My father controlled me my entire life. He wasn’t cruel, but for him everything boiled down to calculations and profit. In his world, I was just an object, a piece on the chessboard of his life.
My future husband? In his opinion, it had to be a ‘strategic partner’ — a union for the sake of family and capital, not love or happiness.
‘Someday you’ll thank me,’ he kept saying. ‘Marriage isn’t about feelings. True love comes from stability and strength.’
Over the years, his words became heavier and heavier. Every family dinner, every conversation boiled down to one thing: ‘It’s your duty to your family.’
One cool autumn day, I couldn’t take it anymore. I left the house, leaving behind a cold silence, like a tomb. I needed to get away, at least for a few hours.
And then, on the corner of the street, I saw him. The young man was limping slightly as he swept fallen leaves in front of shop windows. His movements were calm, almost ritualistic. There was something soothing about them.
I approached him.
‘Excuse me…’ My voice trembled. ‘I need a husband. Today.’
He looked at me in surprise.
‘Are you serious?’
‘Yes. It’s not love. It’s just a way to escape my father’s control.’
He was silent, thinking.
‘So you need a fake husband?’
‘Exactly. A contract. Paperwork. Nothing more.’
‘I’m Ethan,’ he said, extending his hand. ‘Are you sure?’
‘Absolutely.’
That same day, we went to the registry office. No white dress, no flowers. Just signatures on paper and two people who were almost strangers.
Life with Ethan turned out to be surprisingly simple. He taught me little things I had never paid attention to before: how to make breakfast, how to write a shopping list. His world was slow and real.
When my father found out about the wedding, he flew into a rage. He called every hour, his voice cold as ice.
‘Anna, what have you done? You married a cleaner?! You’ve disgraced the family!’ he shouted.
‘It’s my life,’ I replied firmly.
‘I want to meet this man tomorrow.’
The next evening, my father came to our small flat. His expensive suit, his arrogant gaze — everything reminded me of the life I had run away from. He looked around the room and grimaced with contempt.
‘Anna, do you really want to live here?’ he asked.
‘This is our home,’ I said, feeling Ethan’s calm presence behind me.
My father turned his gaze to him:
‘You married my daughter? Do you even know who she is? How much is her surname worth?’
Ethan looked him calmly in the eye:
‘Yes, sir. But I know that Anna is not a surname or money. She is a person.’
My father snorted:
‘Don’t make me laugh. You married her for profit. You’re just a cleaner.’
Ethan didn’t back down:
‘I may be a cleaner, but I know what honesty and respect are. And she deserves more than to be a pawn in someone else’s game.’
His father’s face froze. But then Ethan added:
‘The name Andrew probably doesn’t mean anything to you.’
His father flinched.
‘Andrew?’
‘Yes. Andrew is my father,’ Ethan said firmly. “He used to be your business partner. Until you forced him out of the business. He lost everything. He had to work as a cleaner to feed his family. I grew up with that.
I saw my father’s face turn pale. His shoulders slumped, and he sat down heavily, as if the weight of the past had fallen on him. And then he suddenly dropped to his knees.
‘Andrew… was my friend,’ he whispered. ‘I made a decision for the sake of profit. At the time, it seemed like there was no other way. But I betrayed him. And… I’m sorry.’
A few days later, we met in the park. Andrew, Ethan’s father, was there too. He was grey-haired and aged, but his eyes were clear.
My father was agitated, his hands were shaking. But he took a step forward and held out his hand:
‘Andrew… it’s my fault. I hurt you and destroyed a lot. I can’t fix it, but I want to at least try.’
Andrew was silent for a long time, then nodded:
‘We were both different people.’ But it’s never too late to become better.
They shook hands. Two people who had been separated by years of pain had finally found a way to reconcile.
I looked at them and understood: this is the real legacy. Not money, but the ability to forgive and choose your own path.
