My husband has been complaining that my body smells bad. I became so paranoid about it that I showered 3 times a day and applied deodorant every hour. One day, I overheard his talk with my MIL, he was nervously saying that she just smells off lately. I can’t even cuddle her without holding my breath. Maybe it’s her hormones or something… but it’s honestly embarrassing. I mean, how do I tell her without hurting her feelings?”
His mother sighed and said,
“Men don’t like smelly women, son. Maybe she’s not trying hard enough anymore.”
They both chuckled.
I stood frozen behind the door — the scent of betrayal sharper than any odor he imagined on me.
That night, I didn’t sleep. I just stared at the ceiling, wondering how I went from someone he once kissed like I was made of gold… to someone he now talked about like I was expired milk.
But in that silence, something inside me snapped — not from pain, but from clarity.
The next morning, I got up early.
No tears.
No trembling hands.
Just calm. Focused.
I made breakfast like usual, placed his coffee on the table, and sat across from him.
“Did I ever tell you,” I began gently, “how I used to hold my breath when you came home after gym days? Not because you smelled bad, but because I didn’t want to make you feel small.”
He looked up, confused. “What?”
I smiled.
“I overheard what you said to your mother. About my body. My smell. About how I’m somehow not ‘trying hard enough.’”
He shifted in his seat. “I didn’t mean—”
“But you did say it,” I cut in, still calm. “And while you were busy criticizing my scent, I was losing sleep trying to fix something you didn’t even have the courage to talk to me about like a man.”
He opened his mouth again, but I wasn’t finished.
“You know what I realized? I showered three times a day. I scrubbed. I sprayed. I panicked. I tried. And the whole time, the real stink wasn’t coming from my body — it was from this relationship.”
Silence.
Only the sound of the clock ticking.
I stood up, placed my wedding ring on the table, and said:
“Maybe what you really smell is a woman finally done begging for respect.”
Then I walked away.
And for the first time in weeks… I could breathe.