When I got home from work, my wife hadn't returned yet and the clock on the wall was nearly eight o'clock.
She's a small employee in a broadcast company, and usually gets home before me.
I pulled out my phone to make a call, but upon lighting up the screen, I found the wallpaper was changed to a Valentine's Day night scene at some point. A couple leaning into each other with smiling faces were shown, the scene filled with warmth and happiness.
Today is Valentine's Day.
I put my phone back in my bag, and rode the crowded subway to pick up my wife from her office.
The subway train stopped and went for dozens of stations, and by the time I got off, night had fallen heavily.
Upon reaching the destination, I looked around my wife's office area. There was light but no one was around. Arriving at her desk, there was only her phone and a lady’s tie that accompanied her professional attire.
I figured she probably just finished overtime, either went to the restroom or was changing clothes.
But for me, a grown man going into the women's restroom, was a bit awkward, so I decided to check the dressing room first.
The door of the dressing room wasn't fully closed, upon reaching it, a smell of cheap perfume hit my nostrils, causing me to frown, but what I saw next made my pulse race.
My wife was changing clothes with her back to me, her white blouse was stripped off, and the soft curvy figure captivated my gaze.
"It's so late, you should go home too."
She seemed to sense someone behind her, and glanced at me as she spoke. Her white chest, wrapped in a black bra, was quite a sight, making me increasingly eager.
Even though we've been married for four years, countless days and nights we've held each other, and have been intimate, my wife's body still had a fatal attraction for me.
My name is Gu Qing, a born and bred countryman who met my current wife after getting into a city university. After graduation, we got married and our life has been quite blessed.
"Sure." I responded absentmindedly.
What I found strange was that her tone just now was natural and amicable, which made me think she had spotted me a while ago, but she seemed surprised when she saw me. Were there other people here too?
I stepped into the room with a frown, but I almost slipped after only a few steps and almost fell flat on my face.
I looked down and realized, to my astonishment, that I had almost stepped on a used condom. A creamy liquid filled more than half the transparent bag; it was obvious that it had just been used recently.
My senses seem to have magnified in an instant. Cutting through the intense fragrance, I could faintly smell the stale smell of semen that only a human reproductive system would produce.
Working late at night, a dressing room, a used condom...
Had something happened?
The images I conjured up by connecting these pieces made me panic endlessly. With mixed emotions, I glanced at my wife's dressing room.
Had she done something inappropriate behind my back?
I didn't want to think about such things, but what I saw forced me to worry.
My wife, dressed and smiling brightly, walked towards me, but I couldn't help pointing at the thing on the floor and asking her, "Honey, how did this thing end up in the ladies' dressing room?"
She followed my finger and stopped in her tracks. As she lowered her lashes, I couldn't see the emotions in her eyes. In a calm voice, she responded slightly confused, "Probably someone was messing around here. You know in this society, such things are not uncommon."
"So..." I hesitated for a moment and continued, feeling a strange unease, "Were you the only one working late tonight?"
Hearing my question, my wife immediately frowned. Locking eyes with me for two seconds, her expression turned sharp in a heartbeat, "By your tone, are you suspecting that I used the excuse of working late to have an affair in the dressing room?"
Her blunt assumption left me somewhat at a loss, but she didn’t give me the chance to deny and started to defend herself.
"Honey, this broadcasting company is so big, I can't be the only one to visit the dressing room."
She looked at me with a meaningful gaze, saying, "Trust is the foundation of our marriage."
Our eyes met, and there was no sign of anything amiss in her expression.
Maybe I really am overthinking. But I can't control my propensity for suspicion, just like my wife said, society nowadays is all messed up. Infidelity, for example, has become all too common.
Once I left the dressing room, I grew unusually quiet. This Valentine's Day wasn't unlike the ones before, but I found myself unable to savor our meal.
We didn't get home till almost eleven. By then, our child was already asleep.
After exchanging our shoes at the entranceway, we ventured further into the living room. Before I knew it, she had taken off her coat. Beneath it was a black, sheer blouse. The black shoulder straps were entirely visible.
With a glinting eye and a whimsical smile, she said enticingly, "Honey, I'm going to take a bath first. You just wait for me in bed. Close the door later so it doesn’t disturb Xiao Jing.”