After ten years of marriage, she left me for someone else. A year later, she turned up on my doorstep, pregnant and broken
I met my wife, Emily, nearly twelve years ago. Back then, I was still studying at the engineering school in Manchester, living in student halls. Emily had just arrived from a tiny village in Cornwalllost, alone, out of place in this loud, busy world. We didnt get close straight away. At first, I barely even noticed her, she was so quiet. Always kept to herself with her books, hardly speaking a word.
But time does its thing. After a few months, we started talkinghesitant at first, then every evening, unable to stop. She shared her doubts; I told her about my dreams. Eventually, we were given a couples room in the hallsthe warden trusted us, seeing how serious we were. And just like that, our life together began.
I always knew what I wantedto be a solid man, someone dependable, not just building walls but making a home warm inside them. I told her straight: “You wont work. A woman should care for the home and the children. And if a man cant provide for his family, hes no man at all.” She didnt argue. She cooked, cleaned, waited for me in the evenings. We were a proper family.
Over the years, I climbed the ladder. Joined a construction firm, worked my way up to site manager, then started my own business. We bought a house in the suburbs, two carsone for me, one for her. We lived the way wed dreamed. Everything, except one thing: kids. The years slipped by, and the house stayed silent. We saw dozens of doctors, spent thousands of pounds, test after test Nothing worked. I buried my hurt. She stayed quiet too, but her eyes were empty. One day, we gave up. If fate denied us this, maybe it wasnt meant to be.
Then everything collapsed. No warning. No chance to understand.
I came home earlier that daytrying to beat the traffic. No car in the drive. The gate wide open. Strange. I waited. The evening dragged on, endless. Then, a text from an unknown number:
“Forgive me. I cant live the lie anymore. Theres someone else. Hes coming home, and Im going with him. I betrayed you, but maybe one day youll understand”
The ground fell away under me. I sat on the floor in the house Id built for two, now just one. Only Theo, my best mate and business partner, pulled me through. Stopped me from drowning in drink or walking away from everything.
Time passed. I learned to breathe again. I saw Emily in photos onlinesomewhere in the Scottish Highlands. Couldnt scrub her from my thoughts. Everything here still whispered her name. I prayed for her to come back. And the universe listened.
A year later, to the day, the doorbell rang. I opened it and nearly crumpled. It was her. Thin, shattered, clothes worn and dirty. And that belly. Huge. She was almost due.
Emily dropped to her knees, sobbing, begging for forgiveness. Her lover had thrown her out. She had cheated on him too, and hed kicked her to the curb. She had nothing left: no money, no home, no hope. Except me.
You can judge me. Call me weak, say I shouldve slammed the door in her face. But you know what? I couldnt. Because, despite everything, I still loved her. Because even through the pain, I wanted her beside me. Because I knew one thing: we all deserve a second chance. And if I didnt forgive her, Id be the one who lost.
Years have passed. Weve got a son nowthe one I thought Id never have. I love him like my own, because he is: by my choice, by my love. And I love Emily, even if the scar on my heart will never fade.
Ive never thrown the past in her face. Never held it against her. Because real love? Thats choosing to stay. No matter what.
