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 I went back to school,

of you,

grass, feeling as small as I did back then when I learned that Rowan

with Ava.

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

started pushing, and when I refused to get

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

how tough things were

had so much bitterness and resentment towards Ava

fallen, she would have been ecstatic. It

that I discovered she had been going through her own kind

going well after that. Molly became my anchor. My grades

Rowan every second.” I take a deep breath

again. It turns out we went to the same Uni and he was

assignment partner.” 2

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

didn’t show any remnants of the obsession he had for me in high school,

being weary of him. We co–existed. He stayed out

was hard. I wanted to stop, but now more than ever,

some time. They weren’t

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

his son at first sight. Everything around

surface.” I try to breathe through the pain of the memories, but it

so fucking hard.

I was really angry. Angry

for getting drunk and sleeping with Ava, angry

I loved and angry at the

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

Noah because if everything had gone the way

2/5

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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 it would no longer hurt as

virginity. I was saving it for Rowan and

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

wrong. I hadn’t planned for what was to come next. What destiny had planned

other like the other didn’t exist, that is, until my period was late. A

Rowan and I would

of my mistake to always be in my

morning after?” mom asks, making me blush

was new to me. To put

I’ve ever h–had s–sex so I didn’t really know that I should have. It was

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

have aused me to get one, but like I said, I was so ashamed,

anyone to know.”

tell me that during all the years you dated

virgin?” Travis

Rowan wasn’t. Before we started dating, which was

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

We planned to wait till I was ready.

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we not talk about this? It was

+15 BONUS

your question, yes I was still a virgin. Anyway,” 1 paused. “I told Calvin about

to get rid of it, but he wouldn’t

abortion?” Mom asks, her

my head. “Calvin threatened to tell