Emma, Im sorry, Ive messed it up, Kevin pleaded, his voice trembling. I dont know how it happened. Please forgive me, I swear Ill never talk to her again. Ill change jobs if you want. Shall we leave? Just dont walk away from me
***
September greeted Emma with a crisp but still gentle sun. Yellow leaves swirled at her feet, the smell of damp earth hinted at the coming autumn. She was hurriedly packing suitcases. Ahead lay a long journey to the Lake District, where her mother, suddenly taken ill, was waiting.
At first it seemed like a simple cold, but a deep worry settled in Emmas chest, growing each day. The scary diagnosis the doctors gave hit her like a cold splash of water. Kevin stayed home he couldnt accompany her. Emma had to make the only sensible choice: grab her son, Charlie, and fly straight to her mum. Thus began their harsh, exhausting battle against time
The first three months were a blur of endless doctor appointments, test results, and frantic searches for a good specialist. Whenever a brief window opened, Emma would rush back home, yet something felt off. The house was clean, cosy, Kevin was caring, but Emmas mind seemed stuck in the Lake District. The home wasnt abandoned Kevin tried to keep the routine, the warmth was there, but Emmas focus had shifted.
Just as her mother steadied a bit, Emma had to pack again. Charlie, a little weary from flights and hospital corridors, obediently followed. More planes, more doctors, hope that flickered then dimmed. By March there was a small relief: her mum improved a touch, and Emma allowed herself a short break, returning home for a couple of weeks.
During that lull, a truth as stubborn as a weed pushed its way up. Charlie complained that his phone had slipped into the bath. Emma remembered a lifehack shed read in a womens magazine pop the gadget into a bowl of rice.
***
She fished the phone out, switched it on. The screen lit up with an incoming message while Kevin napped peacefully on the sofa.
Charlie, look, your phones working, Emma said, handing him the device. He lazily scrolled, then froze.
Whats this? Emma leaned in, noticing his stiff posture. Im falling in love with you more and more. What does that even mean?
Kevin sat up straight, clearing his throat, trying to look calm, but his hands trembled slightly.
Emma, youve got it all wrong, he blurted, its just a joke, a colleagues prank. Were having a bit of fun at work
Joke? Emma crossed her arms, feeling a chill despite the warm flat. Youre having fun?
Im being honest, its nonsense. We just work together, nothing more.
Are you sure? Because people dont usually send stuff like that as just colleagues, Emma pressed, studying his face for any hint of deceit.
Im 100 per cent sure. Youre overthinking because of Mums illness. Lets forget it, go for a walk. The suns out, we need some fresh air.
Kevin was eager to change the subject, and Emma, exhausted from three months of nonstop stress, let herself be persuaded. She trusted him, chalking it up to nerves and fatigue. They went for a stroll, but the false peace didnt last long.
No sooner had they returned than another message from the same colleague popped up, even more explicit. Emma felt a sting of jealousy but chose to talk to Kevin first instead of launching into a scene.
Kevin, look at this. Its not a joke any more.
He took the phone, his face went pale.
Its its a mistake. Ill tell her to stop.
Youll write to her? Or should I? Emmas voice shook.
Emma, I said it, I love only you. Lets not make a fuss over some nonsense.
Then came another flight. Again the mum, the doctors, the tests, the hospital wards. Charlie remained the only constant in the chaos. Mums condition eased a little, and Emma finally got another brief respite.
***
March arrived. Mum was a bit better, and Emma managed another trip home to try to find some balance. But balance kept slipping away. The SMS thread she skimmed that day wouldnt leave her alone. She couldnt just forget those words.
She decided not to wait for another excuse and confronted Kevin straight away.
Kevin, I need the truth. I cant live with vague explanations.
Ive explained everything! It was a clumsy prank. I dont get why youre bringing it up again.
Because it keeps me uneasy, Emma replied firmly.
Kevin tensed.
Im not trying to make a mountain out of a molehill, love
Emmas voice turned icy. I spoke to your colleague, and she reached out herself.
Kevin stopped.
She wrote, Emma continued, looking straight into his eyes, Yes, I love you. Yes, we had something. What do you have to say to that, Kevin?
He fell silent, his face turning ashen.
Leave, Emmas voice trembled with heldin emotion, pack your things and go.
No, he whispered, youre making a huge mistake! I never did anything with her. She made it up, and youve believed some mad thing!
I dont believe you! Emma snapped, pulling out her phone and showing him the screenshot where the other woman confessed everything, Heres your joke!
Kevin lowered his head. Silence stretched on forever. When he finally looked up, guilt and despair flickered in his eyes.
Alright. I slipped. I love only you, Emma, I always have.
Slipped? Emma laughed bitterly, three years of lies straight to my face! How do you disrespect someone like that?
Its not a lie, I truly love you! Its just that you werent around often and I
Not around? Only cowards act like that! Emma shouted, stepping back, Youre a coward!
But I didnt leave, Emma, I didnt dump you! he pleaded, trying to grab her hand, Were together
Emma pulled away. Whether he stayed or not didnt matter now; the pain he caused was enough. She had nothing left for him.
Didnt dump me, you say? You were tormented, flitting between us, but you never left
I couldnt! I love you!
Love? Emma shook her head. No, you stayed because it was convenient, not because you loved me. Im done dissecting your motives. I need to go. Mums getting worse.
Another flight. Another trip to the Lake District, doctors, wards. This time Emma carried not just her mothers illness but the weight of Kevins betrayal
***
Mum passed in August. By New Years, Emma drifted through days like a fog, mechanically ticking off chores. The house she once called a haven now felt foreign. Charlie was her anchor, the sole reason she didnt dissolve into the endless grey.
When the first months of despair faded, she snapped back a little, but every glance at Kevin burned. She couldnt look at him, hear his voice, see his face. Still, she held on for Charlie, who seemed to sense his mothers turmoil.
Kevin, realising the depth of his mistake, tried to mend things. He stayed close, offered help, begged forgiveness, pleaded for a fresh start.
Emma, please, lets try again. I made a horrible error. I know. But I didnt walk away when you went to Mum. Isnt that proof of my love?
Emmas mind replayed the messages shed stumbled upon while clearing her phones memory. The words that had slipped past her in panic now stared back with cruel clarity.
You know youre my everything, hed written to the other woman.
And her reply, etched in Emmas mind:
Did I tell your wife the right thing? Someone should have nudged her. Any other woman would have left, but you youre a rag!
Emma watched Charlie building with his blocks in the corner, the spittingimage of her younger self focused, clever. He didnt deserve a home where his mother was haunted by a fathers lies.
Kevin entered with two mugs of tea.
Here, a hot herbal blend. Have a sip.
Emma took the mug but didnt drink.
I cant, Kevin
We agreed time heals. Give us time. Ill do anything for your forgiveness.
Time? Emma smiled bitterly, Time showed youre a master liar. You stayed because leaving was inconvenient, not because you loved me. Her words prove it. She told you to tell me, right?
It was stupid on her part! I told her it was over!
You didnt forbid her, Kevin. You just said what was easiest to hear at the moment, so I wouldnt fall apart.
Emma inhaled deeply.
I cant forgive you. Not now. Maybe never. But I have to live, and Charlie has to live. Well stay apart for a while. Ill send him to his aunt for a few weeks, and Ill stay with a friend. I need to figure out what I want next.
Kevins face turned pale. He understood this wasnt a pause; it was a real chance of losing everything.
Emma, dont do this. Please. Ill see a therapist, any specialist. Ill quit my job if I must. Just dont leave.
Im not leaving you, Kevin. Im leaving the lies. I cant love you now, and I wont live in deceit any longer. Well talk when Im back. If I ever come back
***
Emma never returned. Two months apart, then she decided the family could not stay together, not even for Charlies sake. Kevin changed jobs, cut ties with the other woman. Yet Emma knows that young woman will linger in his and her memory forever, and she cant accept that. Never.
