When I decided to please my husband with his favourite dish at work, I found out that he hadn’t worked there for months.
Little did I know that this revelation would shake the foundations of our 20-year marriage and set me on a path I never thought possible.
I packed Jonathan’s favourite foods – lasagne, garlic bread and tiramisu.
He’d been working late a lot the last few weeks, so I figured he needed a little cheering up.
The security guard at the office building gave me a strange look when I asked about Jonathan.
‘Ma’am, Jonathan hasn’t worked here anymore for three months,’ he said.
The ground went out from under my feet. ‘What, that can’t be. I mean, he’s here every day.’
‘Wait here,’ I said to the driver. I walked closer and took some pictures on my phone.
A young woman joined them, then another.
Soon there were six women at the table with Jonathan.
What was he up to?
As they walked out, I approached one of the women.
‘Excuse me, how do you know Jonathan?’
She wrinkled her nose. ‘That bloke? He doesn’t appreciate real talent. Good luck with him.’
Before I could ask any more questions, she left.
That evening, I presented Jonathan with the pictures.
‘Do you want to explain this to me?’
His face went pale. ‘You’ve been following me? Rebecca, how could you?’
‘How could I? How could you lie to me for months? What’s going on here?’
Jonathan sighed and sat back in his chair.
‘I quit my job to pursue my dream. I’m putting on a play.’
I stared at him in shock.
‘A play? What about our mortgage? The kids’ tuition? How can you afford it without a job?’
‘I took some from our savings,’ he admitted. ‘About $50,000.’
‘Fifty thousand dollars?’ – I shouted. ‘Are you out of your mind?’
‘It’s an investment,’ Jonathan insisted. ‘This play will be my breakthrough. I’m sure of it.’
I took a deep breath.
‘Either you cancel this play and return the money, or we get a divorce.’
Jonathan looked at me for a long moment.
‘I can’t give up on my dream, Becca. I’m sorry.’
It was like a slap in the face.
‘I’m sorry? Is that all you have to say?’
Jonathan stood up, clenching his fists.
‘What do you want to hear? That I should go back to a heartbreaking job just for your happiness?’
‘I want you to be responsible!’ – I shouted.
‘We have children, Jonathan. Bills. A future to plan for!’
‘What about my future?’ – He objected.
‘My dreams? Aren’t they important?’
I laughed bitterly.
‘Not important if they cost us everything we’ve worked for!’
Jonathan started pacing the room.
‘You don’t understand. This play… this is my chance to be something.’
‘You already had something,’ I said in a shaky voice.
‘A family. A life. Wasn’t that enough?’
He looked away.
‘It’s not about that. I have to do this for me.’
‘For yourself,’ I repeated.
‘Not for us. Not for our children.’
‘They’ll understand when I succeed,’ Jonathan insisted.
I shook my head.
‘And if I don’t? What then?’
‘I’ll get there,’ he said firmly.
‘You’ll see that.’
‘No,’ I said, feeling strangely calm.
‘I won’t see it. I can’t watch you put everything on an empty dream.’
Jonathan’s face turned stern.
‘Then it looks like we’re done here.’
As he walked out of the house in anger, I sank down onto the couch, feeling the weight of our ruined lives weighing down on me.
How had we gotten to this point?
The following months were a whirlwind of lawyers and paperwork.
I kept fighting and filed for divorce, trying to get my half of the savings back.
Jonathan moved out and devoted himself fully to his favourite play.
Emily, our oldest daughter, took it hard.
‘Why can’t you forgive Daddy?’ – She asked one evening.
I sighed.
‘It’s not about forgiveness, honey. It’s about trust.
Your father violated that trust.’
Jonathan called one evening. ‘The play is being performed next week. Will you come?’
‘I don’t think that’s a good idea,’ I said.
‘Please, Becca. It’s important to me.’
Against my better judgement, I agreed. The theatre was half empty.
Jonathan’s play was…lame.
Ridiculous dialogue, confusing plot. I left at intermission.
A week later Jonathan came to my house. He looked terrible – unshaven, clothes wrinkled.
‘The play failed,’ he said. ‘I’m so sorry, Becca. I made a huge mistake.’
I felt a slight pity, but suppressed it. ‘I’m sorry it didn’t work out. But it doesn’t change anything between us.’
‘Can’t we try again?’ – he pleaded. ‘For the sake of the kids?’
I shook my head. ‘You can see them, as the court order says. But it’s over between us, Jonathan. I’ve put a stop to it.’
Closing the door, I felt a weight fall from my shoulders. It hurt, but I knew I had done the right thing.
It was time to focus on the kids and my future – without Jonathan’s lies dragging me down.
That night, I called my sister. ‘Hey, do you remember how we talked about going to Europe? Let’s do it.’
She laughed. ‘Really? What about work?’
‘I’ll manage somehow,’ I said. ‘Life’s too short for ‘what ifs’, you know?’
Finishing the conversation, I smiled. For the first time in months, I felt excited at the thought of the future. Who knew what adventures awaited me?
The next morning I got up early and went for a run. The fresh air was invigorating. As I ran past our old favourite cafe, I saw Jonathan inside, leaning over a notebook.
For a moment I wondered if I should go inside. But then I ran on. Some chapters need to be left closed.
When I got home, I saw that Emily was already up and making breakfast. ‘Good morning, Mum,’ she said. ‘Do you want pancakes?’
I gave her a hug. ‘Sounds wonderful, honey.’
Over breakfast, I brought up the subject of our future. ‘I was thinking we need to make a change. How do you feel about moving?’
Emily’s eyes went wide. ‘Moving? To where?’
‘I don’t know yet,’ I admitted. ‘But I feel like a fresh start would be good for all of us.’
Michael walked in, rubbing his eyes. ‘What was that about moving?’
I explained my thoughts. To my surprise, the kids appeared open to the idea.
‘Can we get a dog if we move?’ – Michael asked.
I laughed. ‘We’ll see. All in order, okay?’
Later that day, I met my friend Lisa for a cup of coffee. She had gone through a divorce herself a few years earlier.
‘How are you?’ – She asked.
I sighed. ‘Honestly? Difficult. But also… liberating? Is that weird?’
Lisa shook her head. ‘Not at all. It’s a chance to rediscover yourself.’
‘I’m thinking of going back to university,’ I admitted. ‘Maybe finish the degree I never got round to doing.’
‘That’s amazing!’ – Lisa exclaimed. ‘You can do it.’
As we talked, I felt a spark of excitement build up inside me. Perhaps it wasn’t an ending, but a new beginning.
That evening, while helping Emily with her homework, I heard my phone ring. It was Jonathan.
I hesitated, but answered, ‘If it’s about the kids, yes. Everything else, no.’
‘Fair enough,’ he wrote back. ‘Lunch tomorrow?’
We met at a neutral café. Jonathan looked better than the last time I’d seen him.
‘I’ve been doing a lot of thinking,’ he began.
I held up my hand. ‘Jonathan, we’re here to talk about the kids. And only about them.’
He nodded, looking guilty. ‘Right. I’m sorry. How are they?’
We talked about how Emily was having a hard time with maths and Michael’s new fascination with robotics.
It almost seemed normal until I remembered why we were here.
As our conversation came to an end, Jonathan coughed. ‘I… got a job offer. Again in the financial field.’
‘That’s great,’ I said, and I really thought so. ‘The kids will be happy to hear that.’
He mewed. ‘The job in Chicago.’
I blinked. ‘О. That’s…far away.’
‘Yeah,’ he replied quietly. ‘I haven’t decided yet. I wanted to talk to you first.’
I took a deep breath. ‘If that’s what you want, you should go for it. We’ll figure out how to arrange the meetings.’
Jonathan nodded, looking relieved. ‘Thank you, Becca. For everything.’
As I watched him walk away, I felt sadness for what we’d lost, but also hope for the future.
Life rarely goes the way we plan.
But sometimes unexpected twists and turns take us exactly where we need to go.
