"We're live in three… two… one…"
The studio lights flared to life, bathing the stage in white and gold as the cameras blinked awake.
(Epic theme song swells)
Dr. Brianna Colburn lifted her chin and smiled just in time as the camera came on her beautiful face.
"Good evening, everyone," the stunning lady greeted warmly, her voice leaving the audience in awe as she walked toward the center of the stage. "And welcome back to The Marriage Tribunal."
The applause and cheers from the audience thundered in the studio.
"Tonight's verdict," Brianna continued, allowing just enough pause to let anticipation settle, "is one many of you have been waiting for."
Behind her, the massive screen lit up, bold letters flashed across it as the audience read aloud in unison—
"STAY… OR WALK OUT THAT DOOR?"
The reaction was immediate. Whistles. Claps. Voices chanting her name.
They loved her. Trusted her. Some even called her the Marriage Goddess—the woman who helped wives see their worth, who named abuse for what it was, who reminded them they were not obligated to endure betrayal for the sake of appearances.
Brianna waited for the noise to soften before lifting one elegant hand.
The room fell silent at once.
"Tonight's case," she said, her smile gentling into something more solemn, "is not unfamiliar. In fact, I receive letters like this every single week."
The lights dimmed slightly, revealing two silhouettes appearing on the screen behind her—one male, one female—divided by a thin white line.
"For their safety and privacy," Brianna explained, "our guests will remain anonymous. You won't see their faces. You won't know their names." She glanced briefly toward the audience. "What matters tonight is the truth."
Immediately, murmur sat in the midst of the crowd.
"These two have been married for twenty years," she continued. "They share a home. A history. And according to our female guest—years of emotional neglect."
The camera focused on the woman's silhouette. Her shoulders were drawn inward while she lowered her head.
Brianna turned toward her, lowering her voice. "Take your time. Tell us what your marriage feels like."
There was a pause. Long enough to make the studio feel unbearably quiet.
Then the woman spoke. "He reminds me every day that I'm replaceable," she said, her voice trembling through the speakers. "That I should be grateful he chose me. He never apologise for hurting me. If I cry, he says I'm weak. If I argue, I'm disrespectful."
She paused and inhaled. "And when I'm disrespectful," the woman continued, barely audible now, "he teaches me the consequences. With his belt."
The audience reacted instantly—they gasped, some couldn't believe, others shook heads.
"I stopped talking about my dreams," she went on. "He said they were unrealistic. I stopped seeing my friends. He said married women don't need distractions."
Brianna's expression remained composed, but her throat tightened as she swallowed.
"And how does that make you feel?" she asked softly.
"…Tired," the woman whispered. "I just want to leave. But the kids…"
Those words broke the audience silently.
Brianna nodded once before turning toward the second silhouette. "Sir," she spoke evenly, "you've heard your wife's experience. What is your perspective?"
The man scoffed. "She exaggerates. I provide. I protect. I expect respect. That's marriage."
Boos erupted instantly.
Brianna raised her hand again, restoring order. "Go on."
"She's too emotional. Always has been. A woman like that needs discipline and guidance. If I didn't push her, she'd be nothing. I will not apologize for loving her."
The audience seemed to disagree.
"That's abuse!"
"She should be grateful I even allowed her breathe in my own house!" He shot back.
"No! She deserves better! What kind of man are you?"
"It's a crime to be abusive, you sick fuck!"
Brianna waited, letting them feel it, before turning toward the judges' panel. "Our guest judges will now share their verdicts," she said. "Mike?"
Mike leaned into his microphone. "I'm just going to say one thing. I see it, you see it, the audience sees it... It's obvious, this man doesn't deserve you and you should leave—"
"For heaven's sake, she has children," another judge interrupted sharply. "Telling her to leave is irresponsible."
The backlash was immediate and deafening.
"Um…" Mike blinked, didn't expecting to be thrown off. He glanced briefly at Brianna, then back at the judge.
"Hear me out," the judge said, raising a hand as though he were the one being wronged. But the audience refused to listen to him.
"I—okay, let's… let's hear him out first." Mike voice immediately made the room slowly quiet.
"Thank you," he said to Mike then turned to the audience. "I'm not saying he's perfect. But marriage isn't about perfection. She should have thought about these things before saying, 'I do'."
"So you're saying it's her fault?"
"I'm saying, she chose him. She knew who he was and chose him, even when she saw the 'red flags', as this generation say."
He twirled his pen once, then pointed it toward the woman's silhouette. "You don't get to bring children into the world and then decide your unhappiness matters more than their stability. That's not bravery. That's selfishness."
Brianna smiled a knowing smile. People didn't argue morality when they were comfortable. They defended the past that made them.
"So you either live with the consequences of your actions," he added coldly, "or accept that you're a bad mother."
The woman broke down into heaving sobs. She had agonized over this for twenty long years; every day of her marriage was a calculation of her children's safety versus their stability.
"Parents aren't infallible. And making a mistake doesn't mean living inside it forever." Brianna Colburn turned back toward the silhouettes. "I'll take it from here."
Her gaze settled on the husband's screen. No one knew she was battling a rising tide of disgust, her fingers tightened around her microphone until her knuckles turned white.
"What you described is not love. It is control. Love does not mold someone into the version you want."
"Marriage should expand you," she added, turning to the woman. "Not control you."
Facing the camera now, "A word of advice for the audience. A man who scars your body does not deserve a place in your heart. And a man who humiliates you in private will destroy you in public."
Attention was drawn from Brianna when a loud, mocking scoff echoed from the judges' table.
The judge clapped slowly. "The 'Marriage Goddess' has spoken. Choose yourself over your children. Typical." He leaned forward, eyeing Brianna.
"Funny how you never think about the innocent children. But you know what they say—only a real mother has sympathy for her offspring. Being a woman doesn't make you a mother. We can all agree this show deserves a host who actually knows what it means to carry a life!"