When 75-year-old Richard sees his ex-wife Vanessa with a man 20 years younger than her, he decides they are dating and picks a fight. To his surprise, Vanessa reveals that the man with her is their son, who he never knew existed. But that’s not the only secret Vanessa has been keeping.
Richard was walking home from the grocery shop when an unpleasant sight stopped him on his doorstep. His ex-wife, Vanessa, was walking arm in arm with a man about 20 years younger than her.
‘Is she really seeing someone else already?’
Richard was furious. He saw them enter the café and hurried after them. Bitterness slammed into him as he saw Vanessa and the guy holding hands and smiling at something at a table by the window.
He couldn’t bear to see Vanessa moving on with her life so soon after their divorce. So he stormed over to their table with anger.
‘What the hell, Vanessa?’ Richard pounded on the table, startling Vanessa and the guy with her. ‘Well, well! My 72-year-old ex-wife found herself a new man just weeks after leaving her husband! Bravo! And how long have you two been together?’
Vanessa was so embarrassed and begged Richard to stop. Simon, the man with Vanessa, rose from his seat.
‘Mum… is that my dad?’ – He asked.
Richard was stunned.
‘What did you say?’
At that moment Vanessa realised that she couldn’t hide the truth from either her ex-husband or Simon.
‘Richard, please sit down. I have something to tell you both… Do you remember when we first met 54 years ago… in a bar?’ Vanessa’s voice trembled as she recalled her past….
It was the autumn of September 1968. Seventeen-year-old Vanessa and her friends were thrilled that they had managed to sneak away from home to have fun in a pub.
‘Van, are you sure your dad didn’t see you sneaking out of the house? I don’t want the party to turn into a church sermon!’ joked one of the girls as they burst into the pub.
Vanessa’s father, Alan, was a pastor at the local church, so Vanessa had received a strict upbringing. She wasn’t allowed to go out with her friends after sunset. Sunday school was the norm. Hard liquor and late-night parties were strictly forbidden. And definitely no sex or drugs.
And Vanessa hated it. She loved her father, but not his limitations. She wanted to live an adventurous life like her friends. So that night Vanessa plucked up the courage to sneak out after her parents were asleep and went to the pub with her friends.
Rock and roll tunes played in the background as the teens made their way to a free table and immersed themselves in the glitz and glamour of the nightlife. Soon Vanessa and her friend Carla headed to the bar for drinks.
‘By the way, I heard that Dylan and his friends are going to be here tonight!’ said Carla.
‘It’s over between me and Dylan! Full stop! I don’t even want to talk about him!’ replied Vanessa.
She and Dylan had recently broken up, so knowing he’d be at the pub annoyed Vanessa. She sat down at the bar and ordered a martini. As she sipped her drink, a handsome stranger approached her.
‘Hello, beautiful!’ – The 21-year-old said, leaning closer to Vanessa. ‘My name is Richard. Can I buy you a drink?’
Vanessa was new to drinking hard liquor, and she felt like stars were shooting up around her head. When she looked at Richard, he seemed handsome and she couldn’t resist his charm.
‘I’d love to!’ Vanessa smiled and locked eyes with Richard seductively. She had fallen in love with him at first sight.
Richard and Vanessa talked as if they had known each other forever and danced to the jazz music playing in the background.
‘I’m new to this town,’ Richard said, putting his arm around Vanessa and pulling her closer. ‘Came here on business. How about we take a ride? Maybe you could show me around the neighbourhood?’
‘Oh, I’d love to…but it’s getting late,’ Vanessa said as she saw the time on her watch.
However, she immediately changed her mind when she saw how disappointed Richard was. He was too charming for her to turn him down and she agreed to go with him.
That night became simply magical for Vanessa. She and Richard drove through the bustling streets, laughing and chatting. They kissed passionately, and soon Vanessa was in Richard’s arms, experiencing her first intimacy. It was like a fairy tale.
Once dressed, they kissed again, and then Richard drove Vanessa home. Every inch of her heart wanted her to stay with him as Vanessa snuck into her bedroom. She watched from the window as Richard waved goodbye to her and disappeared into the night.
Vanessa decided to forget everything about that night and move on with her life until three weeks later when she felt nauseous.
‘Vanessa, what’s wrong?’ Vanessa’s stepmother, Rebecca, knocked on the bathroom door. ‘I heard everything, Vanessa. You better come out and explain why you’re crying.’
Moments later, a distraught Vanessa emerged from the bathroom, holding her stomach and wiping her face. ‘I feel nauseous…I have a terrible headache.’