The perfect wife

He didn't break her all at once. He taught her how to shatter herself.
To everyone watching, she has the life girls dream of
: money, beauty, a powerful husband, and a marriage wrapped in perfection.

But behind their locked doors, perfection is the punishment she can never escape.

He tells her who to be.
He tells her how to walk, how to breathe, how to think.
Every mistake is a lesson.
Every bruise is a reminder.
Every betrayal is somehow her fault.

And she believes him.

Because after years of being molded, corrected, and rewritten,
she no longer remembers who she was before he decided to "fix" her.
She only knows the rules he carved into her bones.

Don't speak too loudly.
Don't ask questions.
Don't look at him when he's angry.
Don't look away when he wants your attention.
And above all
Don't ever forget that love is earned, not given.

Her sister whispers that she's losing herself.
Her friends say they're worried.
Her subconscious screams that something is wrong.

But she silences all of them.
Because she is so close
so close to becoming the perfect wife, he swears she could be
if she tries a little harder.

And if she can be perfect...
Maybe he'll finally love her.

Or maybe perfection is the very thing that will destroy her.

*This story depicts domestic and emotional abuse. These scenes are fictional and not meant to glorify or romanticize abuse.

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