When she arrived, I led her straight to the table. I had cooked spaghetti with a creamy beef sauce. I had thought about getting wine and flowers for the table but decided against it angrily. This wasn’t a date. So, I set out two basic place settings and served water for both of us.
As she sat down, Chisom looked around the gloomy apartment and commented, “This is nice”.
“It’s a simple apartment, Chisom. You don’t need to patronize it.” I didn’t mean to make her feel bad, but my words seemed to make her quiet, maybe thinking I was being sarcastic. We ate in silence for a few minutes.
She looked at me with some fear in her eyes. “Do you think you’ll be living in this apartment for a long time?” I understood what she meant. She was indirectly asking, “When are you coming back home?”
“I’m not sure, darling…” I hesitated, feeling uncomfortable about using endearments. “Chisom, I don’t know what will happen in the future. I love you and want our marriage to succeed.” Her face brightened with a smile, but tears filled her eyes.
“But I’m not sure what steps we should take to achieve that. Inviting you here to discuss further felt like the right next move.”
She closed her eyes tightly, tears streaming down her cheeks. Without speaking, she took my hand across the table, brought it to her lips, and kissed it deeply. It was a gesture of love I recognized. The last time she did that was after our picnic, the day after I found out about her affair. It seemed like a long time ago.
Chisom gripped my hand tightly, sitting upright with tears still on her cheeks. She looked directly at me and said, “Kunle, I need you to understand something. I will do whatever it takes, absolutely anything, to make things right. I know that the pain you’re going through is because of me, and I… I…”
All of a sudden, she stopped talking. Moments later, she started crying, burying her head in her hands and shaking with sobs. Without hesitation, I walked over to her, helped her stand up, and hugged her tightly. She cried for a while as I held her close, her face against my shoulder. In that moment, I forgot about my own pain and it felt good to have Chisom in my arms.
I took out a tissue and softly wiped the tears from her face, then guided her back to her chair.
I asked her, “Do you think you can still enjoy the rest of dinner?” She nodded, and I responded, “Great because I ordered ice cream for dessert.” I loved seeing her happy and surprised expression.
After dinner, we sat on the sofa in my small living room. “That meal was wonderful, Kunle. Thank you,” Chisom said. She had no idea what would happen next, and neither did I, of course.
“Thank you, Chisom.”
“I have so many things I want to talk to you about, things to say or ask. They’re all mixed up in my mind, no clear order. So, I’ll just talk about whatever comes to mind, without worrying if it makes sense,” I continued. She nodded in agreement.
“I want to talk about how I feel about your cheating and lying to me. When I talked to Adaora today, she thought you hadn’t fully grasped how much this has hurt me. For us to move forward, you need to understand and acknowledge everything that’s upsetting me.”
“So here’s one thing. Maybe not the most important, but one thing: you deceived me. For eight months, you were with another man, meeting him regularly, and building a close relationship with him. I had no idea.
While I believed you were intimate with only me, you were enjoying the secret pleasure of another relationship. When I kissed you passionately or whispered affectionate words to you in bed, you knew, but I didn’t, that someone else was doing the same with you. When we had sex, you could have been comparing me to him, my body, my actions, my passion, and I would never have known.”
Chisom looked at me sadly and said, “Sweetheart, I never meant to compare you to him. That’s not what this was about at all.”
I reacted swiftly and firmly. “Can you honestly tell me that you never thought of him while we were together? Can you look me in the eye and say that while we fucked, you never once thought about him? Can you swear you never imagined how it felt being with him?”
She avoided looking at him when he asked those questions; it was clear what her answer meant. “No, honey. Okay, I admit … sometimes I thought about those things.”
“How nice,” I said. “I trusted you completely, opened up to you fully, believing you were my only partner as I was yours.”
She was silent for about a minute. “Kunle, that wasn’t my intention at all. I understand your perspective now. I realize now that my actions have hurt you, and I’m sorry for that.”
“Don’t interrupt me,” I said angrily, but trying not to yell. “I bet what made it thrilling for you each time you were with that guy was the thrill of cheating, knowing he wasn’t your predictable husband of many years.
I don’t approve of that at all, but I can see why it might be exciting. What even disgusts me more is thinking about how you continued having sex with me, knowing you also had another secret lover who you were fucking.”
“I can’t stop thinking about the Tuesday when I recorded you with him. You spent two hours with him in a hotel room, then came home that night smiling. You looked so happy and full of life. Later that evening, you tried to have sex with me, even though you knew you had been with him earlier that same day!”
“Don’t you understand? Every time we had sex, there were three of us in our bed. You had someone else with us, in your head, and I had no clue about it!”
She stayed quiet, looking down. “You made me look like a fool, Chisom!” She looked up suddenly, started to say something, then changed her mind. We sat quietly for a few minutes, then I continued speaking.
“Maybe we should discuss the dishonesty now. I understand why you kept your affair hidden so well. You’re smart, I’d give you that.” I managed a slight smile.
“When I found that thong, and asked you about them the next day, it was really tough for me. I started by expressing my love for you and how our marriage is the most important thing in our lives, after our children.
I assured you that if I ever did anything to risk our life together, I would tell you and make things right. I kept talking. But then you looked me in the eyes and gave me a bunch of lies about how the thong had my cum on them, saying we had sex the night before I left for Abuja, which was a lie.”
She began to respond, but I interrupted her. “Hold on. Remember later when I played you the recording of your conversation with him on your phone? You still told me a long story about him being your celebrity client and meeting him secretly in hotels. You really should write fiction, Chisom!” I laughed bitterly.
“So please tell me,” I said. “Why did you keep lying to me? Why did you lie directly to my face? Was it to keep your affair going? Or did you like me being clueless about what was really happening?”
Chisom waited until I finished talking, then started to respond. She looked pained, but she remained calm and didn’t cry.
“Baby, there’s one thing I really hope you can trust. I hated lying to you. I hated it. But I couldn’t be unfaithful to you without lying, could I? Especially when you asked me questions like that. Please believe what I’m going to tell you now.
From the very beginning, when I knew I would keep seeing Chike, I promised myself one thing: you would never find out. I didn’t allow myself to think about how much it would hurt you. I should have, but I didn’t.”
“Instead, I just kept telling myself, ‘no matter what happens, Kunle will never know about my affair. I won’t let him get hurt by what I’m doing.’ That was always my plan. I see now what a stupid plan it was…”
“Anyway, when you asked me about the thong, I was shocked and didn’t know how to react. I didn’t expect you to find it lying around. I couldn’t bear to tell you the truth because I didn’t want to hurt you so much. So, I made up a believable lie and felt relieved when you seemed to believe it! I silently thanked my lucky stars that my secret was safe because it meant you wouldn’t be hurt.”
“The next morning, I called Chike and told him we needed to be cautious and take a break. I cancelled a…..meeting we had planned, and I didn’t see him for over a week until that Tuesday when you must have secretly recorded us. I thought you were still suspicious but had eased off. I didn’t realize you were monitoring me so closely. I guess I underestimated your intelligence!”
“So, on Wednesday when you played the recording of my phone call with Chike, the same thing happened again. I panicked and froze. Then I tried to come up with an excuse—I made up that wild story about him being a famous client needing privacy. I briefly thought you believed it, which relieved me. But then you played another recording, the one of him and me together in the hotel.”
“Then I realized how stupid I had been. All I wanted was a chance to explain everything to you, but you walked out on me. I deserved that! I don’t know what I was thinking…. I just kept telling myself that you would never, ever find out.”
“I lied to protect you, baby. It might sound stupid and selfish now. But I didn’t enjoy lying to you. I didn’t feel good thinking you believed me. I just didn’t want you to find out… I guess I didn’t want you feeling like you do now.”
“Okay, Chisom. After I first confronted you about the affair when I found the panties, did you ever think about ending things with him? Instead of being more careful and hiding your affair better, did you think about breaking up with him?”
Her silence and sudden tears told me everything. Eventually, she whispered, “Baby, I’m sorry,” sounding small. “I’ve been foolish and blind. I didn’t realize the danger I was in because I was so wrapped up in my own mistakes. I’m really sorry.”
“I see, and I’m sure you’ve still not had the decency to end it.”
“No, Kunle!” She cried out louder. “I called him the morning after you left, and I ended things. Kunle, I promise you, I’m done with Chike for good!” I knew she was telling the truth because of the last recording I heard in the car.
I let her cry for a minute or two. Then, softly, I asked, “Chisom, if I hadn’t discovered your affair, how much longer do you think it would have continued?”
She looked surprised when she glanced up at me. “I’m not sure,” she replied. “It wouldn’t have lasted very long.” Suddenly, she cried out, “I’m sorry, Kunle!”
“No,” I said, “go ahead.”
“It seemed like things were getting a bit stale, and I believe they would have kept going that way over the next few months. Eventually, we would have just called it off.
Just because I was hurting, I said, “Maybe this is where we are, Chisom. Maybe after 16 years, things have cooled down, and it’s time to end it.” I didn’t really mean what I said. I knew I was trying to hurt her, but I was also curious about how she would respond.
“Kunle!” Chisom almost leapt up from the sofa. “That’s not how I feel at all! I love you more deeply now than when we were married. You mean more to me than ever before! The only thing keeping me going each day these past two weeks is the hope that we can move past this and be a loving, happy couple again. I will always love you, and I’ll never leave your life unless you decide you don’t want me anymore.”
“Chisom, you’ve almost done that already.”
She just nodded unhappily. “I know I have.”
We sat quietly for another minute or two. Then I looked directly at Chisom and asked, “How could you … sleep with him on our anniversary? How could you?”
She blushed and glanced at her hands. She must have expected me to mention this because I had talked about it before in our previous conversations.
“Kunle, I didn’t see Chike on our anniversary. It was the day before. We hadn’t seen each other for almost two weeks. He wanted to meet on our anniversary, but I said no. So we agreed to meet the day before our anniversary. I’m so sorry, Kunle!”
She started crying again, but I just looked at her silently. I wasn’t going to let her get away with it.
“But you have to understand that what you did those two days felt like another kind of betrayal. He got what he wanted because you let him. The end result was that my wife wasn’t there for me, especially on our anniversary.
Whatever you were thinking while you were with me, you can see how it feels to me now. That was my unfaithful wife, doing whatever she needed to keep me from finding out. Doing what was needed to stop me from touching her and realizing why she was sore.”
I just sat there, thinking. Chike enjoyed having that feel power over me; sleeping with my wife, his lover, the day before our anniversary. He thought I’d never find out, but he knew. I couldn’t even be that mad at him. I didn’t think much of a guy who’d sleep with a married woman, but I understood his competitive nature. He wasn’t worth worrying about; if Chisom hadn’t agreed, they never would have had an affair.
My wife was very attractive. She wasn’t just pretty; she was energetic, smart, fun, and great to talk to. Any guy would want to be with her if he got the chance. It didn’t make sense to hate Chike. I was mad at Chisom. She took something from me, and Chike just took what she gave him.
“Chisom, I want you to know how I feel about this. It’s obvious he enjoyed sleeping with you the day before our anniversary, trying to show he had a hold on you before I could.”
“But you need to understand that what you did felt like another betrayal. He got his way because you allowed it. As a result, my wife wasn’t there for me, especially on our anniversary. Whatever you were thinking while you were with me, you can see how it feels to me now.
That was my unfaithful wife, doing whatever it took to keep me from finding out. Doing whatever it took to stop me from touching her and realizing why she was sore.”
Chisom hadn’t looked up for a few minutes. Then, without facing me, she said, “Yes, Kunle. I get it now. I’m really sorry. I know I’ve said it before, but I mean it. I was selfish and stupid. I’m really sorry for everything.”
We sat silently for a few minutes. I had already decided how I wanted to end the evening, and now I acted on my plan.
“I think we should take a break for tonight, Chisom.” She smiled sadly at me, her eyes red and swollen, and nodded.
“Let’s meet again in two days, on Sunday. I’ll come over to your place in the afternoon. Before then, let’s both try to write down how we think the other person feels about everything going on. I’ll try to understand your feelings, Chisom, and you do the same for me. Then we can talk about it when we meet again.”
“Sure, Kunle. I don’t quite understand yet, but I’ll give it a shot. I’ve been focused on my own feelings, so maybe I should make an effort to understand yours better.”
“Good then.”
I walked her downstairs and held the door while she got into her car. Just before she started the engine, I said, “Chisom, there’s one more thing I need to be honest with you about.”
She looked at me and waited. “I’ve been seeing someone. Actually, I’ve been sleeping with her. She works at a company we do business with. We had a drink together a few weeks ago after work, two nights after I moved out. We’ve been seeing since then. I felt you should know.”
Chisom’s lip trembled, and she seemed completely surprised. I could tell she was wondering whether I was being honest.
“Kunle, really? Wait, are you just trying to get back at me by telling me this? Not that I could blame you… You’re really seeing someone else already?”
“Chisom, I don’t have much to say about it now. Let’s see again in a few days.”
I didn’t let her say anything more. I walked back to the entrance of my apartment building and waved goodbye to her. She seemed like she wanted to ask more questions but realized after a minute that I was done talking to her. Then she drove away.
With a smile, I quickly returned to my apartment. I wanted to call Lanre and Adaora before Chisom could reach them.
When I called, Lanre answered. ” “Kunle how far, e good as you call sef! How things dey go? You fit show for barbecue with us tomorrow around 5pm?”
“Sure bro, thanks. But fit I follow you and Adaora talk tonight, even if na for small time?” He called his wife, and after a minute, she answered on another phone.
“I need your help with something,” I said to both of them. “I just lied to Chisom, and I need you to support my story. I told her I’ve started dating someone I met at work, and we’ve been intimate. I said it started a few nights after I moved out.”
“Kunle, are you actually dating someone?” Adaora asked.
“I still don’t feel interested in any other women right now,” I answered. “But what you said at lunch got me thinking. Chisom may not fully understand what I’m going through. This could be a way for her to see it firsthand. I also admit, it feels like a bit of payback for what she did.”
“I understand, Kunle.” Lanre said
“I think Chisom will probably call you, maybe even tonight. She’s not sure if what I told her is true or if I made it up. So, I want you to make her believe. Act hesitant, take your time, and eventually say that I gave you the impression I was seeing someone, but you don’t know any of the details.”
They both laughed, and Adaora said, “It’s okay! We’ll handle it. After we talk to her, she’ll be even more worried than before!”
“Thank you both. I’ll see you tomorrow afternoon. If Chisom calls, you can fill me in on all the details.”
That night when I went to bed, I felt a bit more hopeful than I had in a long time.
I didn’t know how Chisom would react to what I told her. At the very least, it would make her think uncomfortably for a while. Despite everything that had happened, I still loved my wife. But I was also hurt and angry with her, and I didn’t mind the thought of us both feeling the pain in our marriage.
Written by Sixtie9ine
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