I’m Mariko, in my 40s, living with my husband, Takayoshi (also in my 40s), and our daughter, Sally, who’s in 8th grade. Both my parents and my in-laws live nearby. Sally is in the middle of a rebellious phase, and her attitude and language have become increasingly disrespectful. To make matters worse, my husband and daughter—knowing full well that I’m not a dog person—went ahead and got a dog anyway. I couldn’t stand the sight of the mess or the unbearable stench, so I moved in with my parents, Hiroshi and Rie (both in their 70s). After discovering that my mother-in-law, Sanae (in her 70s), was abusing the dog and that my husband was doing nothing to stop it, I decided to divorce him. To my surprise, my husband and mother-in-law looked at each other with unconcealed delight. It all makes sense now: he’s been having an affair.
My father offered to foster the dog, so we’ve taken it in at my parents’ place for the time being. Sally has been openly hostile toward me, flatly telling me, “Give the dog back once the divorce is finalized.” I’m certain that my mother-in-law is the one feeding these terrible ideas to my daughter. As much as I need to confront Sally, I have to clear my head for the prenatal class tomorrow. The reason for this is clear: I’ve realized that my husband’s sudden willingness to get a dog and his push to move forward with the divorce aren’t coincidences. He wants to remarry his affair partner, whom he’s gotten pregnant.