**Betrayal**
Peter raised his hand in farewell. “Alright, Rosemary, I’m off! Dont worry, Ill transfer the money to Mum.”
The door clicked shut behind him, and Rosemary sank onto the stool, tears suddenly spilling over.
“Mum, whats wrong?” Her son appeared in the kitchen doorway. “What happened?”
“Nothing,” she said, ashamed of her weakness. “Just a bit down, thats all. The boys are away at Grans, and Im missing them.”
“No,” Daniel said firmly, “people dont cry like that just because theyre down. You talk to Jack and Emily every day. Im not a kid anymore, Mum. I notice things.”
Rosemary looked at her sixteen-year-old, already taller than her, and before she could stop herself, the words tumbled outthe fear she hadnt even admitted to herself. “I think your dads going to leave us.” At his stunned silence, she added, “Hes been lying to me. For months now…”
Daniel didnt know how to react. Hed expected her to say work was stressful or shed had a row with a friend. But Dad? How could that happen? Anger surged in him, and she saw it.
“Daniel, dont. These things they happen between adults. Youll understand one day. Your dads a good man, but the heart wants what it wants.”
Even as she said it, she didnt believe herself. She wanted to scream, throw things, but here she was, telling her son to forgive and understand! Daniel clenched his fists.
“Let him go, then! We dont need him. Whys he even still here?”
“Love, you say youre grown, but youre acting like a child. People make mistakes, dont they? Your dad will realise this is just a passing fancy. His familys always been his priority”
“Mum,” Daniels voice cracked. “How could he do this? Ill never respect him the same way again.”
“Itll sort itself out,” she said, squeezing his hand. “Just dont tell the others, all right?”
“You either,” he muttered, wiping his eyes. “We dont want Jack thinking his big brothers not invincible.”
Rosemary glanced at the clock. “Arent you late for practice?”
Daniel jumped up. “Blimey, I am!”
Alone, she tried to think clearly. Talking to Daniel had helped, but now the hurt crashed over her. “How could he throw away everything we had?”
When shed first met Peter, hed been carefree, always surrounded by girls he called “butterflies.” When she told him she wouldnt be just another fling, hed said, “Why another? Youll be the only one. For life.”
And shed believed him. Fool.
Seventeen years, three kids, all those promises”for better or worse”and hed still betrayed her.
It started six months ago. Maybe earlier, but she hadnt noticed. His nephews wedding. She couldnt go, but insisted Peter should. Hed protested half-heartedlyfamily expectations, you know. Later, scrolling through wedding photos online, she spotted a woman glued to his side. It stung. Shed even joked about it, but Peter just laughed.
“That? Probably the brides mate. No idea why she kept hovering. Not my type, love. Jealous, are you?”
Shed believed him. The woman wasnt his usual tasteshe knew that. But then came the odd calls, the silences. Shed complained, “Some girl keeps ringing and breathing down the line. Must be one of Daniels admirers!”
The calls stopped, but she didnt connect it to their conversation. Not then.
The real clues came later. Peter, a jeans-and-tees bloke, suddenly started wearing suits, proper cologne instead of that cheap aftershave. And the “late nights at work.” When she asked, hed grinned.
“Big project, Rosie! Once its doneholidays, that fur coat you wanted, maybe even a quad bike for Dan. Worth the wait, eh?”
Then weekends vanished too. “Off hiking,” hed say, until a call came”Work emergency. You know how it is.”
Rosemary fantasised about dragging that woman out by her hair, but she never even learned her name.
Six months of this turned her into a wreck. She held it together for the kids, but alone, she crumbled. Today, after talking to Daniel, she resolved: “I have to confront him. Before Daniel starts hating his own father.”
But Peter beat her to it. He called, asked her to dinner. “We need to talk. Without the kids.”
She almost laughed. He didnt want a sceneknew shed never make one in public.
At first, she planned to go in her gardening clothes. Humiliate him. Then, last minute, she changed her mind. “Ill look my best. Let him see what hes losing.”
The cabbie kept glancing at her in the mirror. As she paid, he said, “Pretty thing like you shouldnt be so sad. Itll all work out.”
The unexpected kindness lifted her mood. She walked in smilingthen froze. Peter was holding a rose. Why bring flowers if he was leaving? A funeral bouquet for their marriage? The morbid thought almost made her laugh.
Dinner was small talk, tension coiled inside her. Finally, she snapped. “You said we needed to talk.”
He nodded. “Right. Short versionhowd you feel if we skip the holiday, the coat, the quad bike?”
She braced for the blowbut he kept talking.
“Got nearly double pay today. ThoughtDans sixteen now. Why not put it towards a flat? By eighteen, hell have his own place. Smart investment, yeah?”
She stared. “A flat? What flat?”
“Blimey, Rosie, youve been miles away lately. Whats going on?”
Then he erupted. Held it in at the restaurant, but once outside”Have you lost the plot? An affair? Me? I explainedbig project, long hours! You never complained! I bragged about how understanding you were! And this is your understandingaccusing me of cheating?”
They walked home, her grinning like an idiot as he ranted. Every gripe was music to her ears. At their doorstep, he finally wound down.
“Didnt I say you were the only one? Have I ever lied to you?”
Daniels day had gone sideways. Mums confession wrecked him. Late to training, got chewed out by the coach, played terribly. Picked a fight with a mate over nothing. Wandered the streets till dark, itching for someone to start something so he could unleash the fury inside.
Then he saw them outside the housekissing. Recognised Mums coat instantly. His blood boiled. Lecturing him about betrayal, and here she was! Fists clenched, he stormed forward.
“Oi, son,” Peter said, slightly flustered. “We were just”
Well. Alls well that ends well, eh?
**Lesson learned:** Sometimes the shadows in your head are just thatshadows. Jumping at ghosts only stirs up trouble that was never there. Trusts a fragile thing, but sos suspicion. Choose wrong, and you might wreck what youre trying to save.
