Mel returns home to two hungry kids, a messy house, and a deceitful spouse who doesn’t realize Mel is aware of his activities after a demanding and challenging day. Owen keeps adding more to her day instead of making it easier for her. Then, our family broke down as a result of my daughter’s remarks.

You know how the last thing you want to see when you arrive home from work is a dirty house? But that’s just what you get: a completely disorganized home.

Upon entering my house, my expectations were that the girls would be occupied with their homework and Owen would be seated next to them at the table, offering assistance when needed.

“Thank goodness, you’re home!” My eleven-year-old daughter Lily exclaimed and grabbed my bag.

“What’s wrong?” I enquired right away.

She rolled her eyes and exclaimed, “Emma and I are starving! Meanwhile, Dad’s been watching TV all afternoon.”

“What?” I questioned, glancing around the home to see that Emma’s toys were all over the place. “Why is the house such a mess?”

I could hear the TV roaring in the distance. Naturally, Owen would be lounging in front of the television, feigning indifference to the state of the house.

“Emma threw a tantrum because I gave her a granola bar,” Lily explained. “I know she doesn’t like them, but she didn’t want yoghurt either.”

At eight years old, Emma genuinely adhered to the lifestyle of a princess. Lily, Owen, and I were all objects in my daughter’s universe.

Lily was constantly my shadow, clinging to my arm.

“Come on, let me talk to Dad,” I replied.

Owen was practically sleeping, sprawled out on the couch in the living room.

“Owen!” I yelled. “What’s going on?”

“What do you mean?” he stretched to ask. “Everything’s fine.”

“The house is a mess, and the kids are hungry. No dinner has been made. Observe the time.”

Owen rolled his eyes.

Don’t get me wrong, but I didn’t think Owen could handle everything. Every other day, I worked from home, and on those days, I was completely in control.

As a lecturer, Owen conducted most of his courses online, although he often visited the school when needed. He was responsible for watching the girls and making dinner until I got home.

Owen shyly admitted, “I lost track of the time. Emma won’t listen to me and has been acting out all afternoon. Lily has shown rudeness. She asked for your assistance simply with her homework. And I’ve only wanted to go to bed. Mel, I’m not feeling it. I believe I may be getting a cold.”

Lily snorted next to me.

“Mel, I had a difficult day,” he remarked. “I’ve had a fever on and off.”

Owen persisted in lamenting his day. He got increasingly passionate as he rattled off the things that had made his day miserable.

“How about you and Emma clear up the toys and Lily and I will start dinner?” I enquired.

Owen exhaled. I was aware that was the last thing he wanted to do. However, I didn’t really give him an option.

“Are you angry, Mom?” As Lily gathered all the vegetables I would need for a stir-fry, she asked me.

“No, sweetie,” I replied. “Not with you and Emma, anyway.”

Lily came upstairs with me after I had fed the kids and was going to start doing some laundry.

“Dad asked us not to tell you,” Lily muttered. “But he also went somewhere while you were gone.”

I became anxious.

Owen confided in me, in front of Lily, that he was feeling under the weather and needed to spend the majority of the day at rest. Still, he had told lies. He had disappeared away, leaving the girls to fend for themselves. It was nonsensical.

What was my spouse doing?

Owen was enjoying ice cream across the counter from me after supper. Once more, he began to whine about his day.

While doing the dishes, I just partially listened. The realization that was consuming my thoughts left a hole in my heart. Owen was missing; where had he gone?

My husband was lying to me, and I knew it. I was simply unaware of the cause, though. I so pretended not to suspect anything and carried out my errands before going to bed.

Without any evidence, what more could I do?

By dawn, Owen had significantly improved.

“Mel,” he said. “I have to spend a few hours at the office. I lost a whole day yesterday, and I had papers to grade.”

“But it’s the weekend, and your Mom is coming over to spend time with us,” I replied.

“I’ll see Mom later,” he said while putting on his clothes.

As Owen fiddled with our room and dressed, I browsed through my phone, remembering that I could use geolocation to find out where he had been recently.

When I realized he had been at a restaurant not too far from my house, I was astounded.

Is he actually going to a restaurant and leaving our kids at home? I pondered.

Later that day, Owen’s mother arrived and began playing with the children. She wanted to paint with them, braid their hair, and even bake a variety of pastries and cupcakes.

“Mom,” Lily hurried over to me. “We need chocolate chips, we want to bake with Gran and there’s nothing in the cupboard.”

Leaving the comforts of my home was the last thing I wanted to do. However, I couldn’t stop wondering what Owen was doing. I didn’t try to check his location because I had been with the girls.

On my day off, I didn’t want to be preoccupied with them, but I was.

So, picking up some chocolate chips would be the ideal chance for me to find Owen.

“Okay,” I said to Lily. “I’m going to get some. Find out whether Gran has any other needs. Create a list for me.”

Initially, I headed to the supermarket to get all the necessities for my daughter. It nearly killed me to be curious about Owen’s whereabouts despite how I felt about him.

I then looked through my phone once more and discovered Owen’s whereabouts. He operated a different restaurant close to my place of employment. Eager to explore and find my spouse, I drove to the spot and parked.

And there he was.

Owen, my twenty-two-year-old husband, sharing a passionate kiss with a different woman beside the eatery.

I finally blurted out, “I saw you today,” that evening in our bedroom by ourselves with Owen.

“What? When?” he questioned, a momentary look of perplexity giving way to apprehension.

“You weren’t alone, Owen.”

He asked, putting his spoon down on the counter, “You followed me?”

“I was around,” I lied. “I went to get things for the girls to bake.”

“I can clarify, Mel,” he stumbled to say.

I questioned, “Who is she?”

“Mel,” he said. “Let’s refrain from doing this. I’ll explain. It isn’t what you believe.”

But I didn’t want to hear any of his justifications; given what I had seen, everything was precisely as I thought.

I didn’t want to entertain any of it. The image of his betrayal was so vivid.

Eventually, Owen left the kitchen, dragging his feet as he went.

After I packed the girls’ lunch for the next day, I got into bed.

Owen was asleep, snoring loudly.

I felt horrified at the sight of him.

I pondered about how I would explain this to Lily and Emma.

Emma, minus the tantrums, loved Owen. She enjoyed that he got into the floor and played with her. She cherished the way he would tickle her until her crimson face started to well up with tears.

Conversely, Lily would be heartbroken. She was a mama’s daughter at heart, but she relied on Owen to watch out for her. He was like her shining knight in certain respects.

Was.

Everything was different now. Owen had put his family second to another lady.

I spent the whole night tossing and turning, not knowing what to do with myself.

I simply knew that I no longer wanted to be with Owen. My opinion of him had shifted after witnessing him with a different woman.

Owen was waiting for me with toast and coffee the following morning.

“Speak with me,” Owen urged. “What do you want to do?”

Sincerely, “I don’t know,” was my response.

I also didn’t. This was a situation where there was no winning. Owen is the reason I would not want to stay. My kids would suffer the repercussions if I left.

Owen wasn’t the man I’d married, that’s all I knew.