When Ryan asked for a divorce, I assumed the pain would be personal. I thought all I would miss were the late-night talks, the shared jokes, and the familiar weight of him in bed. I did not realize he planned to make it a war.
He did not just want to leave, he wanted to win.
He hired a lawyer who spoke with the calm, polished, and relentless confidence of a script reciter. In court, they did not argue about our marriage as much as they argued about my character.
I was described as “emotionally volatile” because I cried in a deposition after being asked whether I had ever raised my voice at my children.