**A Choice Made for Her**
“Katie, don’t you think we’ve lied to each other long enough?” Stephen stepped so close she could feel his breath.
“Steve, you know he’s my husband!” Katherine cried out, nerves frayed—she’d already repeated those words too many times that evening.
“So what if he is? We deserve happiness! Tell me the truth—Lenny’s my son, isn’t he?” He gripped her shoulders.
Katie bowed her head and wept, no longer hiding her tears.
…Katie and Oliver had lived in the same building since birth, their parents’ flats just doors apart. Their families weren’t close, but they maintained warm neighbourly relations.
True friendship was unlikely—Katie’s parents worked at the symphony. Cultured, lively, they often hosted gatherings. She attended music school, set on following in their footsteps.
Oliver’s family was the opposite. His mother worked at the local supermarket; his father was a factory mechanic. Despite their differences, Katie and Oliver were inseparable—first as toddlers in nursery, then as desk partners in primary school.
Katie’s parents tolerated their friendship but never saw Oliver as a future son-in-law. His parents, however, delighted in their son’s bond with such a promising girl, often teasing they’d marry someday.
…Everything changed in Year 7. On the first day of term, their form teacher entered with a handsome new student.
“Class, meet Stephen—your new classmate.” She gestured to an empty desk.
Stephen caught every girl’s eye—well-dressed, with a radiant smile and piercing blue eyes. Katie noticed him too but didn’t dare approach.
Later that week, as she hurried to music school, lost in thought, the door swung open before she could touch it. Startled, she stepped back—and there stood Stephen.
“Oh—hello!” she stammered.
“Hi.” His smile was effortless.
“You go here too?”
“Just finished my lesson.”
“I’ve got music theory next…” She sighed dramatically.
Before he could reply, her friend Lucy shoved past. “Katie, move! We’ve got three minutes before Mrs. Carter skins us alive!”
Katie glanced back at Stephen, but Lucy dragged her inside.
During class, her distraction earned a scolding. “Miss Saunders, focus!”
Afterwards, Stephen waited for her. “Walk you home?”
“You didn’t leave?”
“Wanted to go together.”
They talked music, dreams—both set on a future in it.
…Weekends were spent thinking of him. What started as friendship became love. Now, Oliver walked home with them, glowering at polished, charming Stephen but never daring to send him away.
…Two years passed. By GCSEs, Katie and Stephen knew they were in love—but Oliver stood between them.
“Fancy the disco tonight?” Oliver asked.
“Can’t. Stephen and I have symphony tickets.”
“Why him? Why not me?”
“You’d hate it. Next weekend, we’ll all go—even Stephen.”
Oliver scowled but agreed.
After school, Oliver went to college. Katie and Stephen stayed for sixth form—blissful years, sharing a desk, walking home hand in hand.
One night, after the symphony, they kissed. They vowed to marry, attend the same conservatoire, never part.
But at graduation, reality struck.
“Marry Stephen? Are you mad?” her mother shrieked.
“You need to focus on music, not a family!” her father insisted.
Stephen’s parents were worse. “Marriage at eighteen? Lunacy! You’re studying where we did—no arguments!”
Forced apart, they tried writing. Katie planned to visit, but life intervened. When his family moved, contact died.
Years later, at a music competition, they met again—older, wiser, the spark still there. One reckless night together, and Katie dared to hope.
“I’ll move to you after graduation,” she whispered.
“Can’t,” Stephen said bitterly. “I’m engaged—to Mum’s friend’s daughter. She’s pregnant.”
Devastated, Katie returned home numb.
Oliver found her moping. “Fancy a night out?”
“Fine.”
A month later, she discovered she was pregnant—with Stephen’s child. Abortion wasn’t an option, but tracking him down seemed impossible.
Before she could decide, Oliver proposed. “Marry me?”
“Alright.”
They wed, and in time, she gave birth to Lenny.
…Fifteen years passed. Katie never stopped loving Stephen—until he reappeared, divorced, confessing he’d never been happy without her.
Their passion reignited. She lied to Oliver, sneaked away for stolen moments, torn between duty and desire.
“Run away with me—with our son,” Stephen begged.
“I don’t know…”
“I’ll be back in three days.”
But fate intervened again. Stephen never returned—killed in a car crash.
“Katie, what’s wrong?” Oliver asked.
“Remember how you wanted a girl? Maybe it’s time…”
“Alright,” he rasped, stunned.
They tried for years. Little Alice arrived three years later.
Katie kept Stephen’s memory close. One day, she’d tell her daughter about him.
But for now, she made peace—or perhaps simply accepted the choice life had made for her.
