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,

Like my world had exploded, and I’d been left with nothing. When

any of you, but I

I did back then when I learned that

with Ava.

fading away. I didn’t eat, I didn’t sleep, and I didn’t attend classes. In

pushing, and when I refused to get better,

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

tough

memory. I had so much bitterness and resentment towards

far I’d fallen, she would have been ecstatic. It was probably

I discovered she had been going

were going well after that. Molly became my

every second.” I take a deep breath “It was

again. It turns out we went

assignment partner.” 2

we weren’t

any remnants of the

co–existed. He stayed out

but now more than ever, I knew they

some time. They weren’t perfect, but

the night m alled me to let me know that Ava had given birth

fell in love with his son at first sight. Everything around me crumbled, and all

the surface.” I try to breathe through the pain of

so fucking hard.

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

for getting drunk and sleeping with Ava, angry at Ava for

I loved and angry at the baby for being

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

because if everything had gone the way

2/5

*15 BONUS

hurt him like he hurt me I knew he always disliked Calvin for the way he crushed on me, so that night I approached Calvin and seduced 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 him. He would have been so hurt, I would have gotten my revenge, and maybe then

Rowan and in the end I gave it to the guy who kept fighting for me to love

a mistake and

for what was to come

exist, that is, until my period was late. A cheap test. and later, a doctor’s appointment confirmed

believed that one day Rowan and I would get

of my mistake to always be in my

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

being a complete mess, everything was new to me. To put

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

assumed tha‘ n’t really enough to get me pregnant. Looking back,

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

anyone to know.”

during all the years you dated Rowan,

virgin?” Travis asks

knew Rowan wasn’t. Before we started dating, which was at seventeen, he’d

walked and had a vagina. When I’d told him I wasn’t

to wait till I was ready. My biggest regret was holding out

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not talk about

+15 BONUS

answer your question, yes I was still a virgin. Anyway,” 1

child and I wanted to get rid

Mom asks, her voice ringing with horror and

threatened to tell you and dad if I went