- 6 hours ago
Leaving Port, Scum Is Unworthy ASM
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Short filmTranscript
00:00for my husband three years later i found out i wasn't his i gave up everything to move to port
00:05victoria for my husband three years later i found out i wasn't his legal wife in port victoria
00:10right after our wedding my husband sean sterling was recruited by port victoria university i left
00:16my entire career behind to go with him i thought i was sacrificing for love yet three years went by
00:22i still didn't even have valid status let alone a local id card sean told me i was on a
00:28temporary
00:28dependent permit but his assistant zoe she already had her permanent residency he got it for her
00:35through his connections i was furious i threatened to leave for the first time ever my calm husband
00:41actually cried i'm already supporting you those documents can wait and zoe came here to work for
00:48me helping her settle in is only fair i believed him until last week i went to the immigration bureau
00:55to check my status i handed the clerk at the desk our marriage certificate she stared at her screen
01:02ma'am our system shows you are not listed as mr sterling spouse in that instant everything became
01:08clear all those delays all those excuses sean had never listed me as his wife i said nothing i went
01:16straight home and started packing my bags but when i reached my own front door my fingerprint was
01:22rejected three times access denied the lock had been changed i called sean immediately why did you
01:30change the lock oh zoe's lock was broken she's familiar with this model so i had ours taken off
01:37and sent over to her just stay in a hotel tonight i'll be working late anyway my mind went blank
01:42my husband
01:43had taken the lock off our door and given it to another woman so i went to a hotel but
01:48when i swiped my
01:49card it was declined when we first moved in sean had given me an unlimited black card but little by
01:55little zoe took over his personal shopping eventually that card ended up in her wallet
02:00and somehow i believed him until our third anniversary just as the evening was turning intimate
02:07it was zoe she casually handed sean a box of ultra thin condoms
02:14professor it's a special night you always say this brand feels the best thoughtful of me right
02:19i didn't even know what brand he preferred for the past three years we've been trying for a baby
02:24we never used protection the dinner was pure torture he made some lame excuse about a work
02:30emergency and rushed out when the door closed behind him i finally understood by then it was obvious her
02:36role as his assistant extended all the way to his bed the next morning i was about to book a
02:41one-way
02:41ticket out of port victoria when my friend called claire i pulled some strings but all they would give
02:49me was the official marriage record it's fine just tell me what you found
02:56in port victoria sean was legally married to zoe zimmerman claire are you okay i'm fine
03:03the woman by his side had never been me it had always been zoe and in that moment every detail
03:09i had forced myself to ignore came rushing back all those weekends when he claimed he had work at the
03:14university and was gone all day whenever i asked what could possibly be so important he always gave
03:19me the same answer even if i told you you wouldn't understand then i remembered the time he forgot an
03:25important file i took it to the apartment he kept near campus on the bathroom counter were two toothbrushes
03:31and stupidly i didn't think anything of it my mind drifted back to the day i first arrived in port
03:37victoria three years ago sean pulled me into his arms and spun me around like i was his whole world
03:42then zoe waved at us from nearby sean smiled took her suitcase oh i forgot to tell you zoe came
03:49too
03:53she's here all by herself things haven't been easy for her the whole ride his attention was already
03:58on another woman and i had actually been happy for him i really thought he had found the perfect
04:03assistant during those first few months in port victoria i couldn't find a job for the first time
04:09in my life i learned what rejection felt like eventually i swallowed my pride and asked sean for
04:15help doesn't the university have some kind of placement program for spouses could you look into it for me
04:22he didn't even look up he just kept sorting through his papers and said i'll ask around
04:28i waited three months when i asked again i got the same answer meanwhile zoe had already landed a job
04:35at his university the job the benefits the place at his side and she wasn't nearly as qualified as i
04:42was
04:42that was when it finally hit me nothing had gone wrong that job was never meant for me sean had
04:49already
04:49reserved it all for the real mrs sterling
04:53i had already decided to leave i went to book the earliest flight out of port victoria for good
04:59finally it was my turn i slid my passport across the counter i just wanted to leave but after a
05:06few
05:06taps on the keyboard the agent frowned i'm sorry but there seems to be a problem with your immigration
05:11status why she turned the screen toward me our system shows that you've overstayed
05:17your most recent extension application was denied at the moment you no longer have valid immigration
05:24status in port victoria i had been living in port victoria for three years legally i had no status
05:30there at all not as a wife not as anyone i was just a stranger i stepped aside and immediately
05:37called
05:37the immigration consultant
05:41miss parker my extension was never approved now i can't even leave without running into legal trouble
05:46what exactly is going on
05:50mrs sterling let me ask you something when your husband filed on your behalf did he sponsor you as
05:55his spouse because the system shows that the approved spousal sponsor under your husband's file went to a
06:01woman named zoe wizamarkin he did file for you too but not as his spouse he filed you under a
06:07different
06:07category that category stopped accepting applications last year that's why your case has been stuck this
06:13whole time standing there on the sidewalk i suddenly wanted to laugh so that was the truth sean had
06:21already handed zoe the spousal sponsorship that should have been mine and me i had spent three years in
06:26the city only to find out i didn't even have legal status i was only one step away from leaving
06:32for
06:32good one step but there was still one final document he had to sign before my case could be cleared
06:37without it i still couldn't leave cleanly
06:42i went to his university to get his signature before i even reached his office i heard zoe's voice inside
06:48sean are you really giving me the arts foundation residency but i'm not qualified this should go to
06:54claire she actually trained for this i stopped cold outside the door the arts foundation residency
07:01the opportunity one had needed most and sean had never mentioned it to me then i heard him answer
07:07it's fine i already made the calls as for claire she has me she doesn't need it and even if
07:14you'd had
07:15the same chance you wouldn't have done any worse than claire i stood outside his office and almost laughed
07:20so everything i had sacrificed was just luck in his eyes and the career i had once been proud
07:25of was something he thought anyone could replace then the door opened zoe saw me and smiled claire
07:31visitors aren't allowed on this floor why don't you wait downstairs move
07:37i barely touched her before she stumbled backward
07:44are you hurt i'm fine i just lost my balance it's not claire's fault zoe was just doing her job
07:54why would you shove her i didn't explain i held out the notice this is from immigration i need your
08:01signature claire when did you become this unreasonable sign now or i go straight to the dean and ask why
08:11the spouse-sponsored placement in your faculty relocation package ended up with your assistant
08:16that's enough don't forget who's been supporting you without me you wouldn't even be able to stay
08:20here legally when he begged me to come he had said i'll take care of you now it had become
08:26i've been
08:27supporting you sign it now and you might still have a little dignity left
08:34escort my wife out she's not feeling well a second later two guards grabbed me i hadn't even spoken
08:40before someone covered my mouth we'll talk tonight stop acting like a child talk tonight there was
08:46nothing left to say at nine that night sean came home he pushed open the half-closed front door the
08:52lights were on so he assumed i was inside enough already i told you from the beginning
08:57zoe needed that spot more than you did then he pushed the bedroom door open and froze the room
09:03was empty everything of mine was gone
09:08ten minutes later two police officers were standing in front of sean asking questions
09:12mr sterling are you sure this was a burglary yes my wife's things are all gone
09:18when i got back the door was unlocked someone must have come in one of the officers examined the lock
09:26the lock is brand new there are no signs of forced entry i changed the lock yesterday i just hadn't
09:32gotten around to adding her fingerprint yet you hadn't added her fingerprint then how was your wife
09:36supposed to get in sean opened his mouth but no words came out then he remembered over the past three
09:43years he had made claire wait again and again maybe she couldn't get in so she found someone to change
09:49the lock herself so your wife couldn't get into her own home and instead of calling you or waiting for
09:55you to come back she hired someone to replace the lock yes
10:03what is your wife's phone number it's been off the whole time
10:08when was the last time you saw her he thought about what he had done to claire that afternoon then
10:13he lied
10:17this afternoon she was still home this afternoon besides your wife's belongings was
10:22anything else valuable missing no just her mr sterling this probably wasn't a burglary it looks
10:27like your wife changed the lock packed her things and left on her own that's impossible she wouldn't
10:33leave the doors and windows were intact nothing valuable was missing everything in the house was
10:37still there except claire's things and even then he still insisted my wife loves me she gave up everything
10:44for me there's no way she would leave on her own before leaving the officer asked one last question
10:52mr sterling did you and your wife have an argument this afternoon no we didn't argue the police left
11:00before they went they told him to contact claire's family and friends standing alone in the empty house
11:06he suddenly realized something in the past three years claire had not made a single friend here
11:11because he had always told her you have me that's enough
11:19he pulled out his phone and called claire's mother mom has claire contacted you today no why what
11:25happened nothing she lost her phone after he hung up he went through his contacts again and realized
11:31he didn't have the number of any of claire's friends that was when he remembered over the past three
11:36years claire had brought up going back more than once and every single time he had said don't
11:41bother it's too much trouble so in the end she really never went back he used to think she was
11:47simply going along with him only now did he understand she had known all along that he never
11:52wanted to go back with her he called her number again and again every time all he heard was the
12:01same
12:01cold message her phone was off he walked back into the bedroom and stood in front of the empty side
12:07of the closet for him she had given up everything and not once had she ever said she regretted it
12:13so he had taken it for granted that she had done it willingly
12:18just then his phone rang it was the police mr sterling we reviewed the building's exterior
12:25surveillance footage at around five this afternoon your wife was seen leaving with a suitcase there were
12:31no signs that she was being forced leaning against the closet he looked at their wedding photo on the
12:36wall his face stricken he fought back to the promises they had made three years ago then he buried his
12:41face
12:41in his hands in it i was in white and he was in a suit we were both smiling at
12:46the camera three years
12:49ago i had asked him we'll always stay together right of course and i had believed him for three whole
12:57years
12:57i had believed him then his phone rang again it was a purchase alert the card he had given zoe
13:04had just
13:04been used in central 103 000 for a designer handbag while sean was still reeling from the fact that i
13:14was gone
13:14he received a purchase alert from his assistant it was over a hundred thousand suddenly he remembered
13:21two days ago zoe had said she wanted a new bag he had agreed without even thinking the money he
13:27gave me
13:28every month was only two thousand dollars that had to cover everything i had never asked him for anything
13:34more the only time i had ever asked him for anything was when i needed his signature on that immigration
13:39form
13:42sean shot to his feet and called miss parker has claire contacted you she came to me before
13:48she asked about her status recently she also asked me about her extension request she wanted to know
13:55what documents she needed to fix everything so she could leave without any legal complications
14:01mr sterling there is something else i think you should know when claire spoke to me she mentioned the
14:06marriage certificate i think she already knows what you did she knows yes that is why she never
14:12asked you again about filing for her as your spouse sean stood there frozen just then another
14:19message came in from zoe sean the bag needs a cute outfit to match too right after that another charge
14:25notification popped up this one was over 20 000 he stared at the number his mind completely blank
14:30when had zoe started spending his money as if she had every right to it then he remembered it had
14:35started the moment the extra card that should have gone to me ended up in her hands for three years
14:40i had given up everything and all that time he had been busy giving all his care to his assistant
14:47sean soon found out that i had never left port victoria he immediately arranged a meeting with
14:52miss parker and asked urgently what is the fastest way to fix claire's status now
14:58mr sterling you have always known what the fastest way is a few years ago someone told me that during
15:05onboarding it was better to come in as single first then once everything was stable i could file the
15:11family paperwork later at the time i had no choice i only did it to keep the older people in
15:18the family
15:18calm wearied up that is nonsense who told you that my assistant she specifically asked around for me
15:27mr sterling i have worked in immigration for 15 years i have never heard of any rule like that
15:33when you joined the university you came in through an employment-based status route that permit has
15:38never required an applicant to be single he suddenly remembered what zoe had told him sean
15:47it is better not to list yourself as married during the hiring process
15:51the background check gets messy he had believed her he had always buried himself in research and handed all
15:57those details over to the assistant he trusted most immigration rules on boarding forms relocation
16:03paperwork he had barely read any of them himself later with red eyes zoe had told him she wanted legal
16:10status here he had thought about how she was a young woman far from home who had followed him all
16:15the
16:15way here all it would take was one marriage certificate so he agreed without thinking twice mr sterling that
16:22assistant was miss zimmerman wasn't it he said nothing just as he stood up in a daze his phone rang
16:30sean
16:31please come to the office of academic affairs as soon as possible there are some matters we need you to
16:37explain in person at three o'clock that afternoon sean was sitting in a conference room at the office
16:45of academic affairs i was not there i only learned the details later there had been two documents on
16:51the table in front of him the first was a copy of the certificate for the marriage he had registered
16:56in
16:56port victoria with zoe the second was a copy of the certificate for the marriage he had registered with
17:00me in another jurisdiction the director of academic affairs pushed the documents toward him professor
17:07sterling do you confirm that these materials are authentic sean said nothing under port victoria law
17:13bigamy is a criminal offense the university has already received a request for cooperation for
17:19immigration in addition you will need to explain the marital status declaration you submitted when you
17:25joined the university how was he supposed to explain it soon after the investigators arrived professor
17:32sterling are you saying you did not know that forging documents is illegal
17:40later when i heard those words repeated i almost laughed did he know maybe he didn't that was the
17:47cruelest part sean had never carefully planned to ruin me he just never thought about me enough
17:53so he spent three years figuring out how to stay by his side i spent those same three years waiting
17:58for him to come home she fought for a place beside him i waited for him to remember i was
18:03there he never
18:04did sean was suspended from all teaching and research duties during the investigation his salary was
18:11stopped as well when he walked out of academic affairs so he was already standing in the corridor waiting
18:17for him sean my work has been suspended too the residency program with the art foundation called
18:24they said my spot has been cancelled when i first heard that part i felt nothing no triumph no relief
18:32he looked at her for the first time he really looked the coat the bag the lipstick all of it
18:39had been
18:39paid for with my card and me i had never spent like that even buying something small for myself i
18:47used
18:47to hesitate then sean said give the card back sean that card was for claire not for you
19:00she pulled her handbag behind her back her eyes red and even more sean i've been with you for three
19:05years you were with me for three years she waited for me for three years zoe bit her lip and
19:12said nothing
19:13back then you kept claire and me from registering our marriage properly this was what you wanted
19:18wasn't it sean i just wanted to stay after that the legal battle turned ugly zoe refused to dissolve the
19:30spousal relationship she hired a lawyer and demanded compensation sean gave her nothing during those three
19:36years in port victoria she had already gotten plenty a respectable job residency status and the card
19:42he had handed over without a second thought what had i gotten nothing in court the two of them tore
19:50at each
19:50other until there was almost nothing left zoe was ordered to repay what she owed her reputation was ruined
19:56and she left sean did not fare much better he came back to my hometown several times to look for
20:02me but the
20:03people all told him the same thing i had never gone back he kept traveling back and forth day after
20:09day
20:09passed then month after month by the time i heard the rest his life had already been stripped down to
20:16almost nothing no job no home no one
20:23a year later i was at the port victoria art fair claire i turned around i saw sean the moment
20:31i saw him the
20:32smile faded from my face there was no surprise no anger no grievance nothing at all it was just
20:39like the last time i had looked at him from the doorway of his office there were only a few
20:43steps left
20:44between us then a hand came across in front of him and stopped him sir what exactly do you want
20:50with my
20:50wife your wife
20:55she's my wife
20:57it's fine i'll handle it mr sterling do you need something
21:06claire i've been looking for you for a year
21:09as for the marriage certificate i can explain mr sterling it has been a year my husband and i are
21:15doing very well you made me wait for three years he has never made me wait even three days at
21:24the
21:24time i had no money no connections and no way to leave port victoria i worked part-time jobs trying
21:30to save enough to pay the penalty first and buy a ticket out adrian could stand in a gallery for
21:35half
21:36an hour just to ask me how i read a painting what you could never give me he gave back
21:40to me one by
21:40one legal status respect and the chance to become myself again sean stood there and said nothing
21:47i looked at him for a few seconds i have things to do i'll be going now
21:54i turned away adrian followed beside me his hand resting lightly at the small of my back
21:58behind me sean instinctively took a step forward adrian turned his head and looked at him he did
22:03not say a word the meaning in his eyes was obvious enough don't come any closer sean stopped
22:09i did not look back again by the time i disappeared into the crowd he was still standing there the
22:15exhibition hall was full of people moving back and forth and in front of him was the painting i
22:19had been standing before its title was leaving port
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