Ex-Husband's Regret

Her side of the story
Mom collapses in the chair after my admission. The heartbroken look in her eyes was undoing

me. The disappointed look she gave me nearly made me crumble on the spot.
Travis, who had been holding me, lets go as if I had burned him. He backs away from me slowly

until he’s a few feet away.

I know the rest had varying degrees of shock, but they didn’t matter to me right now. Not when

my family was looking at me like they didn’t know me. Like I was a stranger.

“Please tell me you’re playing a sick joke on me,” Mom pleads. “Tell me you didn’t have a child and

kept him hidden from us all these years.”

I want to lie to them just so the heartbroken and disappointed look in their eyes will disappear. I

know that I can no longer do that. There was no hiding from this. There was no more running from

the truth.

“I’m sorry. So sorry,” I cry as I stumble towards her. “I wanted to tell you, but I was so ashamed.”

I go to take her hand, but she flinches and pulls it away.

This is what I’ve been so afraid of. Ava was right. I was the perfect daughter. The one who never

made any mistakes.

The one that thought things through before, except for that one time. Now their image of me is

tarnished. Now they know that I am just like them. Human. The Ace card I had over Ava was gone. 2

I was in the same boat as Ava. I made mistakes that are now hunting me. Sleeping with Calvin

remains the greatest mistak

y life.

“H–How did this happen? When did it happen…did dad now?” Travis asks as he paces, frustration

clear in his steps.

“Dad didn’t know. No one except Calvin and Molly knew.” I look at the ground, unable to face the

look on my mom’s face.

“Start from the beginning and don’t leave a single thing out. I want to know why the hell you’ve

kept my grandson a secret from his family,” Mom growls, her eyes turning fierce.

I didn’t want to rehash the past, but at this point, I don’t think I had any choice. If I didn’t want

them to be even madder than they were right now, then I had to spill it.

1/5

+15 BONUS

“When Rowan married Ava, I was broken I tried not to let it show. Tried to make you, dad, and

Travis believe I was okay because you were all so worried about me. I felt like I was drowning,

left with

any of you, but I fell into

as small as I did back then when I learned that

with Ava.

didn’t sleep, and I didn’t attend classes. In fact, I

noticed this. She started pushing, and when I refused to get better, she threatened

didn’t want you to know how I was struggling. I didn’t

out how tough things were for

was lost in memory. I had so much bitterness and resentment towards Ava

found out how far I’d fallen, she would have been ecstatic. It was probably a year

had been going through her own kind of

became my anchor. My grades

constantly cry or think about Rowan every second.”

turns out we went to the same Uni

assignment partner.” 2

to him. After all, we weren’t friends. I tolerated him

when he didn’t show any remnants of the obsession he had for me

being weary of him. We co–existed. He stayed out of my way and I stayed out of

wanted to stop, but now

things were going well for some time. They weren’t

me know

his son at first sight. Everything around me crumbled, and

to breathe through the pain of the memories,

so fucking hard.

pain, and I was really angry. Angry at myself for turning down Rowan’s proposal, angry

getting drunk and sleeping with Ava, angry at Ava

angry at the baby for being

hear a sharp intake of air. I don’t need to turn to know that it is from Rowan. I

the way I wanted

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*15 BONUS

him I knew word would probably get back to Rowan, and that would have hurt him. That’s why I slept with Calvin that night, because I counted on Rowan’s friend telling

don’t tell them, but it’s also how I lost my virginity. I was saving it for Rowan

to sleep with a guy I didn’t even like just to get back at the man I loved. I told Calvin that it was a mistake and that he should forget about what happened between us. I snuck out of his room, and I thought that was that. That it was a terrible one–night stand and that would be the end of

for what was to come next. What destiny

went back to ignoring each other like the other didn’t exist, that is, until my period was late. A cheap test. and later, a

worst news I’ve ever received. Deep in my heart, I believed that one day Rowan and I would get back together. I didn’t want an unwanted baby to hinder that. I didn’t

my mistake to always be in my

an emergency pill the morning after?” mom asks, making me blush

mess, everything was new to

h–had s–sex so I didn’t really know that I

enough to get me pregnant. Looking back, maybe

aused me to get one, but like I said, I was so ashamed, I didn’t

anyone to know.”

to tell me that during all the years you dated Rowan, you never slept together?

still a virgin?” Travis asks in

Before we started dating, which was at

that walked and had a vagina. When I’d told him

ready. My biggest regret was

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we not talk about this? It was

+15 BONUS

a

I wanted to get rid of

asks, her voice ringing with horror and

threatened to tell