Chapter 1

I'm an outdoor enthusiast. My wife, though, she's a total social phobia and never wants to leave the house.

Then there was this "How Lazy Are You, Really?" challenge trending on TikTok.

I snapped a picture of my wife, Chloe, sprawled on the couch, and uploaded it, starting the challenge.

The comments were all like:

"Yep, that's genuine laziness, not an act."

But one comment made me freeze.

【Isn't that Chloe , the swimming sensation from back in the day?】

【She and Jake even won awards for their synchronized swimming routines. Too bad they broke up after college.】

A week later, Chloe, uncharacteristically, grabbed her swimsuit and was heading out.

She said she was going swimming with a friend.

But I stared at her. "That 'friend' wouldn't happen to be Jake, would it?"

I'd known for a while that her first love was back.

Chloe's face instantly went pale.

Her hand tightened around the swimsuit.

"Alex, what are you implying?"

"Are you stalking me?"

I looked at her, feeling a strange sense of unfamiliarity.

"Do I need to stalk you? Jake's back in the country, right?"

Chloe's eyes darted away.

She threw the swimsuit onto the sofa.

"Yes, Jake is back. I only found out after a class reunion. Nothing happened between us!"

I picked up the swimsuit. It was incredibly sexy, barely there.

Nothing like any swimsuit I'd ever bought her.

"If you're so innocent, why dress like that?"

"Alex!" Chloe's voice rose. "How can you be so disgusting!"

"We were just going for a swim, having a chat!"

"What right do you have to go through my things, to read my messages!"

"That's my privacy!"

I tossed my phone onto the coffee table in front of her. The screen displayed the comment section of that short video.

【Swimming Sensation Chloe】

【Chloe and Jake, the Golden Pair】

Those words were like a punch to the gut.

"Privacy?"

"Chloe, three years married, and I didn't even know you used to be a competitive swimmer."

"I always thought you genuinely hated working out."

"But what's the truth? You just hated working out *with me*."

Chloe stared at the phone screen, her body starting to tremble.

"Who told you to post my picture online? Why would you expose my privacy?"

"I'm your husband. Don't I even have the right to post a picture of you...?"

She picked up the swimsuit from the couch.

"Believe what you want."

With that, she opened the door and left without a backward glance.

I stood alone in the living room.

A while later, my phone rang. It was my friend, Ryan.

"Alex, did your wife go to 'The Beast' gym? I saw her with a guy... they looked really close."