The Man She Called A Nobody

Chapter 1: "What Do You Mean By 'We'?"

“Hey Bobby, we finally did it —the company accepted the contract.”

Bobby’s voice crackled through the phone speaker, bursting with surprise. “Are you serious? This is huge! Congratulations, Lisa! This is just the beginning. We have to celebrate. Let me take you out for drinks.”

“Yes, absolutely,” Lisa purred, a wide smile spreading across her face. “I’ll call you as soon as I’m ready, okay?”

Beep. The call ended.

Lisa stood by the edge of her bed, practically vibrating with excitement. Finally, all her late nights and endless hustle had become reality.

Standing in the doorway, Nelson watched his wife. A lump formed in his throat, and his eyes pricked with unshed tears. This was his Lisa. The woman he had supported through every failure and struggle. Yet, the first person she called to celebrate her massive success was Bobby; a corporate nobody who had barely been in her life for a month.

Nelson swallowed the bitter taste in his mouth, quickly blinking away the moisture in his eyes. He refused to let her see him look so weak. Forcing a bright, cheerful smile onto his face, he rapped his knuckles lightly against the doorframe and stepped into the room with his arms wide open.

“Congratulations, babe,” he said warmly. “Finally, we did it.”

He stepped forward to wrap her in a hug, but before his arms could even graze her shoulders, Lisa shoved him back.

“Hey! What is wrong with you?” she snapped, her joyful expression twisting into a scowl. “Can’t you even knock before creeping in here? That’s incredibly rude, Nelson.”

Nelson stumbled back a step, dropping his arms. The physical push was nothing compared to the sudden, heavy ache in his chest. How could she look at him with such disgust?

“I… I just wanted to celebrate,” he stammered, his forced smile faltering. “After all our hard work, it finally paid off. We did it.”

Clap. Clap. Clap.

Lisa mocked him with a slow, sarcastic round of applause, her eyes dripping with contempt.

“What exactly do you mean by ‘we,’ Nelson?” she spat. “This has absolutely nothing to do with you. Do not act like you’re part of this picture.”

The coldness in her voice hit him like a physical blow. “What do you mean, stay out of the picture?” he asked, his confusion turning into a desperate defense. “This was our dream, babe. I’ve been there for you through all of it. I am in the picture. Why are you acting like this?”

“Oh, cut the crap, Nelson! You’re just nagging, as usual.” She threw her hands up in exasperation. “This was my hard work! What exactly did you do for me? Wake up and warm the couch all day? You’ve amounted to absolutely nothing since the day we met, and now you want to crawl out of the woodwork and take credit?”

“Shit,” Lisa muttered, pressing two fingers to her temples as she paced back to the bed. “You’re giving me a headache.”

Nelson remained frozen by the door. The bedroom suddenly felt suffocatingly dark, matching the sinking feeling in his gut. Pain radiated through his chest. What was she talking about? Had she entirely forgotten the years he spent cooking, cleaning, and managing her life just so she could focus on her career?

When he finally found his voice, it was barely above a whisper. The heartbreak wouldn't let him speak any louder. “Is that why you couldn't even tell me the news before calling that so-called Bobby?”

Lisa’s head snapped up.

“What the hell did you just say?” She stormed across the room, closing the distance between them in seconds. She shoved a single, manicured finger hard into his chest, forcing him to take another step back.

“Did you just call Bobby a nobody? Bobby is entirely out of your league, Nelson! He is a real man. You couldn't even accomplish a fraction of what Bobby has done for me in just a few weeks.”

She laughed, a dry, humorless sound. “Real men take their women out. They spend money on them. They elevate them. They don’t just cook cheap food and mop floors. You know what, Nelson? I’m done living with a man who has zero ambition and no future.”

Before she could tear him down any further, something inside Nelson snapped.

“Enough!”

His voice boomed through the bedroom, deep and vibrating with an authority that shook the very walls.

Lisa flinched, taking a wary step back. She had never seen Nelson like this; his eyes were dark, his jaw clenched tight enough to shatter teeth.

“What is all this, Lisa?” Nelson demanded, the anger giving way to a desperate plea. “When did you lose all your respect for me? It’s me. We’ve built everything together. You can’t just kick me to the curb like this.”

Lisa recovered her composure, her face hardening into a mask of pure ice. “Watch me. I’m getting out of this house.”

She grabbed her coat, brushed past him without a second glance, and slammed the front door so hard the framed pictures on the hallway walls rattled.

Silence descended on the house, heavy and freezing. This wasn't supposed to happen. This wasn't the woman he married.

********

Across town, the atmosphere in the Park family home was entirely different.

“Hey sis, why are you here so late?” Kyler asked as he opened the front door. “Is it that deadbeat husband of yours again?”

“Don’t even worry about him,” Lisa said smoothly, stepping into the warm foyer. “Let’s go into the dining room. I have a surprise for everyone.”

A few minutes later, the family was gathered around the remnants of a lavish dinner.

“We’re almost done eating, Lisa,” Mrs. Park, Lisa’s mother, prompted, dabbing her mouth with a napkin. “You haven’t told us your big surprise yet.”

Lisa sat up straight, clearing her throat. The entire room went dead silent, hanging onto her every word as if she were royalty.

“I just landed the deal,” she announced, her eyes gleaming. “Reeds Furniture. The biggest brand in the city.”

“What? Are you serious?!” Kyler leapt from his chair. “Reeds accepted your contract? That’s massive!” He rushed over and planted a proud kiss on his sister’s forehead. “Congratulations, sis. You’re going to be rich.”

“Come here, my beautiful daughter. I am so incredibly proud of you.” Mrs. Park pulled Lisa into a tight, emotional embrace, completely ignoring the fact that her daughter had shown up unannounced in the middle of the night.

Meanwhile, Nelson sat alone in the dark. It was nearly 11:00 PM, and Lisa wasn't back. He had called her phone six times; it went straight to voicemail.

Panic gnawing at his edges, he suddenly remembered the location-sharing app they had installed on their phones years ago for emergencies. Opening it, he saw her pin hovering right over her mother's house.

Without thinking, he hailed an Uber.

As the car pulled up to the curb of the Park residence, a deep sense of dread washed over him. Coming here was a terrible idea. The Parks had never liked him, and tonight of all nights, he was walking straight into the lion's den. But he had to know she was safe.

Thud. Thud. Nelson knocked gently on the heavy oak door.

It swung open almost immediately. Kyler stood in the doorway, his triumphant smile instantly melting into a scowl. Before Nelson could even speak, Kyler reached out and grabbed him violently by the collar of his jacket.

“What the hell are you doing here?” Kyler snarled. “Did you come to make my sister’s life as miserable as yours?”

Nelson reacted instinctively, slapping Kyler’s hands away with a swift, practiced motion. Kyler stumbled back, surprised by the sudden show of strength.

“I’m not here to start trouble, Kyler,” Nelson said evenly, straightening his jacket. “She left the house without a word. I just wanted to make sure she was safe.”

“Why do you even care? It’s not like a broke loser like you can take care of her anyway,” Kyler sneered, rubbing his wrist. “You’re just a parasite clinging to her life.”

Kyler turned on his heel and walked back into the house, deliberately leaving the door wide open. A silent invitation to face the firing squad.

Taking a deep breath, Nelson stepped inside and made his way to the dining room.

“Good evening, Mom,” Nelson said softly, offering a polite bow to Mrs. Park, who was seated at the head of the table.

Smash!

Mrs. Park slammed her palm violently against the hardwood table, rattling the fine china.

“Watch your mouth, you fool!” she shrieked, her face turning red. “I am not your mother. It makes my skin crawl to be addressed like that by someone as lowly as you.”

“Mom. That’s enough,” Lisa said, though she sounded bored rather than defensive, sipping from a glass of wine. She didn't even look at Nelson.

“Why are you here, Nelson?” Mrs. Park continued, ignoring her daughter. “If you came here to leech off my daughter’s new wealth, you can forget it. Not a single dime of her contract money is going to you.”

She turned to Lisa, her expression softening into a pleading look. “Lisa, you should have dumped this dead weight years ago. He is a stain on our family name. All he deserves now is a divorce.”

Nelson froze. The air in his lungs evaporated.

Divorce?!