When I noticed my wife drawing tally marks on her hand, I thought it was just a quirky habit. But as the marks multiplied and she stayed cryptic, I sensed something darker.

At first, married life was great. Sarah was organized and thoughtful, and everything seemed effortless. Then one day, she started marking her hand with a pen. I asked her about it, but she’d just smile and brush it off. The tally marks became more frequent—some days there’d be one or two, other days, five or more.

One night, I couldn’t hold back and asked again. She said, “It helps me remember things,” but gave no details. I started noticing she’d mark her hand after different moments—after dinner, arguments, or random times, with no clear pattern.

Eventually, I checked her notebook and saw 68 tally marks recorded. I was obsessed, asking her to explain, but she only grew frustrated, refusing to reveal the reason. Then, one day, while visiting her mom, I found a similar notebook filled with tallies and labels like “interrupting” and “raising voice.”

On the drive home, I confronted Sarah about it. She finally admitted, “I’m not counting my mistakes. I’m counting yours.” Each mark represented a broken vow, and she said that when I reached 1,000, she’d leave.

I was shocked. That night, I called her mom, who revealed she used to do the same thing but had switched to counting good days instead. The next day, Sarah apologized, and together, we decided to focus on positives, creating a new notebook to fill with happy memories instead.