Quenching Thirst

At noon, Liang Ying got off work a little late. She hurriedly bought groceries and rushed home to make lunch. Looking at the time, she realized that by the time she finished cooking, she would barely have a chance to eat before she had to rush back to work. Winter lunch breaks were always short.

Zhao Jian'an had already been home for a while. He was sprawled on the sofa, scrolling through his phone. Hearing her come in, he complained without looking up, "Where have you been? Why are you so late? Can't you hurry up? I'm starving. If you take this long, I'll be late getting back to work..."

Liang Ying said nothing. She put down the groceries, turned around, and looked for the kettle so she could pour herself some water.

She had been so busy all morning at work that she hadn't had time to drink. She had rushed all the way home, too, and now she was so thirsty that even swallowing made her throat hurt. But when she turned around, she saw the kettle on the coffee table, completely empty, without a single drop of water.

She had boiled water that very morning.

Liang Ying slowly lowered the cup in her hand and stood a short distance from the coffee table, perfectly still, her gaze faintly distant.

After a while with no sound from her, Zhao Jian'an looked up. He paused, then asked accusingly, "Are you going to make lunch or not?"

Liang Ying pointed at the kettle. "Why didn't you boil more water after you finished it? Or you could have left a little, just enough for me to drink."

Zhao Jian'an looked at her in confusion. "If you want a drink, just boil some more."

Liang Ying looked down at him, her expression blank. "I'm really thirsty right now. If I boil water, I'll have to wait for it to cool. I want something to drink now, and I still have to make lunch. Go downstairs and buy me a bottle of water."

Zhao Jian'an seemed not to have expected her to ask for that. For a moment, instead of looking annoyed or impatient, he stared at her with bafflement. "Why don't you just wait a bit? Do you really need me to go out for that?"

His tone was airy. He genuinely thought this kind of petty issue wasn't even worth discussing. But Liang Ying didn't let the conversation end. Instead, she kept pressing him about it. "Then why do you never have to wait when you want a drink? Why is there always water whenever you want some, and why does someone always hurry to boil more as soon as you finish it? Why do you never have to boil water yourself? Why can't you leave even a little in the kettle instead of drinking it all? Why is it that I boil the water, but I often don't get to drink any and have to boil more? Why do you never remember that there's someone else in this house who needs water, that you're not the only one who drinks it?"

Her tone was calm, but the barrage of questions was still relentless. That finally wore down Zhao Jian'an's patience. He let out a loud, incredulous laugh, as if she were being impossible, then said with deep irritation, "Oh my god, you're making a big deal out of something so small... Honestly, who could live with someone like you? If you want a drink, just boil some water. It's that simple. Don't make a whole thing out of it. It's so cold now, and hot water is better for you anyway. If I let you drink cold water when you got home, you'd just complain about that, too."

Liang Ying smiled.

Her throat was still so dry it felt ready to crack. She wanted to quench her thirst, but not with water.

"Let's get divorced."

(This story leans toward realism and isn't very cathartic, but they will get divorced. She doesn't want this man. It's mainly about a woman learning how to live for herself.)

Theme: Fear is a shackle we put on ourselves. Nothing is really as frightening as it seems.