Mum said the boy isn’t mine
“I want a DNA test!”
John stood in the doorway, his demeanor leaving no room for doubt about his seriousness.
At that moment, Anna was washing dishes and initially thought she’d misheard him over the noise of the running water.
After turning off the tap, she asked her husband for clarification.
“What did you say?”
“I want a DNA test for our child.”
“But why?” Anna asked, drying her hands.
“Because I think the boy might not be mine.”
This was a shock. Their son Timothy was already four years old. John might not win any Father of the Year awards, but he had always been caring towards his son. He spent time with the boy, bought him toys, and even babysat when Anna needed to go out.
Never in all those years had he expressed a doubt about being the father. He really didn’t have any reason to suspect. Anna and John had married six years ago, and a year later, Anna discovered she was pregnant.
That year was a happy one, and Anna had not been involved with anyone else. Of course she hadn’t! So where was this coming from?
“Can I ask why you’ve come to this conclusion?” she inquired.
John smirked. Then he gave her a rather dark look.
“See! You’re already trying to talk me out of it! If you were innocent, you wouldn’t be scared!”
It all seemed absurd.
Anna and John might not have a fairy-tale romance, but Anna had always believed those were just stories. What is love anyway? If you’re comfortable with someone, respect each other, and stay faithful, that’s love, isn’t it?
But never in their years of marriage had John humiliated her like this. They had always shared mutual respect and trust, and now he was openly accusing her!
“I’m not trying to change your mind,” Anna said as calmly as possible. “I’m just curious as to why, four years after Timothy’s birth, you suddenly think he might not be yours?”
“Well, he doesn’t even look like me!” John offered what he thought was irrefutable logic. “I’m blonde, and everyone in my family is fair, while Timothy has dark hair and brown eyes!”
“And yet I have dark hair and brown eyes, don’t I?” Anna pointed out. “He’s the spitting image of my dad, as you’ve seen yourself!”
“I don’t see it.” John immediately dismissed her argument, despite having marveled a few months ago at how much Timothy resembled his granddad. “But I do see how much he looks like your colleague!”
“Who, exactly?” Anna asked with genuine curiosity.
“Who? That bloke, Mike!”
Anna couldn’t help but chuckle. Before her pregnancy, she had worked at a furniture store as a manager, and there had been a delivery guy named Mike. Incidentally, Timothy didn’t resemble him at all, apart from also having dark hair.
“John, this is ridiculous,” Anna shook her head. “You know I’ve never cheated on you!”
“Well, my mum and sister said you’d deny it! Whether you like it or not, I’m getting that test done!”
Ah, so that was the root of it all. Everything clicked into place.
Anna was the kind of person who got along with just about everyone. She was kind, easy to talk to, and always ready to lend a hand. But she had a no-nonsense side that stopped anyone from taking advantage. If something bothered her, she’d say so. She never sucked up to anyone.
Her relationship with John’s mum had gone south immediately. Initially, his mum had seemed like a pleasant woman. She always set a nice table when they visited, complimented Anna, and mentioned how lucky her son was to have met such a bright and beautiful woman. Anna had been thrilled to have such a mother-in-law, unlike the “witches” her friends often complained about.
But soon, it was clear this charming woman would smile at Anna’s face while badmouthing her behind her back. Calling her stupid, a poor homemaker, and even ugly. The last of which stung, as Anna was quite attractive.
Naturally, Anna didn’t ignore it. During their next visit, she called out her mother-in-law, asking her to make up her mind about her.
That’s when the woman’s true colors showed. But Anna dealt with it promptly—she stopped interacting with her. John visited with their son, but Anna refrained from inviting his mum over.
John’s sister took after their mother. She loved to gossip and talk badly about everyone. Everything was always someone else’s fault. Her husband left (when he caught her cheating), she got fired (caught stealing), and her electricity got cut off (because she hadn’t paid for months). Initially, Anna tried to establish common ground with her, but found she couldn’t listen to her complaints or agree out of guilt.
And now it turned out that the beloved mum and sister had filled John’s head with nonsense, provoking a major rift in their marriage.
Anna decided to give John a chance to reconsider. She sat at the table and invited him to do the same.
“John, you know your family doesn’t exactly like me. They’ve planted absurd ideas in your head that could end our marriage.”
“If you’ve got nothing to hide,” her husband replied, as if he hadn’t heard her, “then let’s do the test.”
“Fine,” Anna conceded. “But only on one condition.”
“And what’s that?” John smirked.
“When the test shows the child is yours (because it will), you pack your bags, go stay with your mum, and we get divorced.”
“Why?” John frowned.
“Because I’m not living with a man who doesn’t trust me despite having no reason not to. If your mum’s opinion matters more than ours, go ahead! But think logically, and you’ll realise I’d never betray you.”
John was silent. Anna hoped he’d come to his senses and stop indulging in nonsense. But evidently, he’d been thoroughly influenced, because after a couple of minutes, he insisted:
“We’re doing the test. End of story.”
“Alright,” Anna nodded.
Perhaps they’d convinced John Timothy wasn’t his. Or maybe he didn’t take Anna’s words seriously. But the next day, John and Timothy underwent DNA testing.
The test took a week. During that time, John and Anna didn’t speak. Anna also noticed her husband was chilly towards their son.
She awaited the results with eager anticipation. To throw them in her husband’s face. Anna’s mind was made up. If John had come to question things himself, she might have accepted it. But everything had been fine until his mum stepped in. What next? Would his mother concoct more ways to hurt their relationship and tarnish Anna’s name? Anna wasn’t putting up with it.
When the results finally arrived by email, Anna called John over. She opened the report without glancing at it, confident in the outcome. She simply held her phone towards him.
He scrutinized it for a long time, then finally smiled.
“Timothy is mine after all! Wow, that’s a relief! We should celebrate!”
“Absolutely, we should,” Anna agreed. “But not about your parentage—that was evident the moment I got pregnant. About our divorce.”
“What divorce?” John frowned. “Anna, are you serious? Yes, I doubted! And do you know how many men raise children who aren’t theirs?”
“I don’t know and I don’t care to,” Anna stated. “But I know I won’t live with someone who doesn’t think for himself. Who can hurt a loved one just because someone else said something. Who ignored his own son for a week over thoughts he concocted. Leave, John.”
John spent a long time trying to save the marriage. He even apologized and promised not to listen to his family again.
But Anna couldn’t be swayed. It might’ve seemed trivial, but it revealed the man she lived with and bore a child to.
Anna also felt sorry for the person John would end up with one day. Clearly, they’d have their work cut out dealing with his family’s meddling. But maybe John learned something from this and would act wiser in the future. Though that seemed doubtful. People rarely change.
