I saw a portrait of my husband kissing another woman at a photo exhibition. At first, I thought he’d been cheating on me, but when I looked closely at the picture, I discovered the truth was far worse than I could have imagined.
My husband Edward and I have been married for two years. We met at a work conference in Amsterdam, and after going out on a few dates, we knew we were head over heels in love. Soon, Edward proposed to me, and we got married.
Because Edward wanted it to be a quiet, intimate family affair, our wedding ceremony wasn’t as grand as I had wanted. Most of the guests were members of my immediate family and a select group of some of our friends.
Sadly, Edward's mother had abandoned him when he was a child, and his father died of an illness a few years later. He had spent his entire life in boarding schools and was raised by his grandparents till they left for their heavenly abode. However, he had once shown me a photo of his cousin Kelly who lived in Amsterdam.
I saw a portrait of Edward kissing a woman at a photo exhibit | Photo: Shutterstock
After the wedding, Edward and I moved to New York. My parents assisted us in purchasing our new home and helping Edward to find a better job.
One year after our marriage, I got pregnant. I was over the moon when I saw two lines on the test kit. I had always dreamed of having a family, and finally, it was happening. But after I told Edward about the pregnancy, he started acting weird.
He would return late from work, hardly spend time with me, and if I inquired what had taken him so long, he’d simply say he was exhausted and go to bed. I asked him if anything was bothering him a few times, but all he said was he busy with work and would talk about it later.
Honestly, Edward’s behavior was really bothering me, and I needed to talk to someone about it. So one day, I called my best friend, Anna, and told her everything. I could have told my parents, but I didn’t want to bother them.
“Well, he must be scared because you know it’s not easy to become a parent,” Anna told me.
I called Anna and told her how Edward had been acting strange after I told him about my pregnancy | Photo: Pexels
“That could be the reason, Anna, but he’s acting too strange now. I mean, he doesn’t even talk to me. If he doesn’t want the child, he can tell me. I won’t force him,” I said.
“See, honey, you can’t say anything until Edward clearly tells you what’s the matter with him. And for that, you guys need to talk. But I don’t think Edward will, so it’s better to avoid the topic for now,” Anna explained.
“I don’t want it to be too late, though, Anna. I want to have this baby, and I want Edward to love our child,” I said quietly.
“Listen to me, Stephanie. It’s pointless to ponder about it over and over again. You’ll merely stress yourself out, and it’ll take a toll on your body. Think about your little one too,” Anna suggested.
“Well, yeah, but...” I started speaking, but Anna interrupted me. “How about we go somewhere? You’ll feel better.”
“I’m sorry, Anna, but I’m not in the mood.”
I visited a photo exhibit the next day | Photo: Unsplash
“You will never be in the mood, Steph. Staying at home all day will just make things worse, and you’ll soon begin overthinking. Do one thing. I’m sending the details, meet me at the photo exhibition tomorrow at 11:00 am. And after that, we’ll go to your favorite restaurant. Okay?”
I didn’t want to go, but Anna kept insisting, so I finally gave in. “Yeah, okay... I’ll see you there,” I said reluctantly and hung up the call.
The next day, I met Anna at the exhibit. The entire display was rather lovely, with stunning and adorable candid photos of couples from all around the city dressed in different styles of clothes and clearly in love.
We also saw some couples striking some lovey-dovey poses and some struggling to strike a better posture while clicking selifies. We burst out laughing when we saw some of them debating about how to strike a proper pose. Then we stood there for a while looking at the pictures when suddenly my gaze was drawn to a portrait at a farther end of the exhibition.
When I looked closely at the portrait, I was stunned. It was a picture of Edward kissing a woman. What's more, the woman in the picture was none other than Edward’s cousin, Kelly.
I couldn't believe my eyes. I called Edward immediately and told him to come to the exhibition. “I’m sending you the address, Edward. You need to come here right now!”
“But what’s the matter? You know I'm working. I can’t come right now,” Edward said.
“You either come here, Edward, or I’ll go to the cops and tell them about how you’ve been cheating on me with Kelly!” I screamed into the phone.
“What crap are you talking about, Stephanie?” Edward said after a pause. “Kelly is my cousin.”
“I don’t think anyone kisses their cousin the way I can see it in this picture, Edward! Check your phone!”
Edward was silent for a while. “Alright, Stephanie, I’ll come to the exhibition. But don’t cause a ruckus or call the cops. I am leaving right now,” he said as he hung up the call.
I called Edward and told him to come to the photo exhibit as soon as possible | Photo: Pexels
Around 20 minutes later, Edward arrived. Caught in his own lie with a photo to prove it, he finally admitted that he was cheating on me.
He said that Kelly was not his cousin but rather his girlfriend. They had been dating for a long time before he met me. They were in love, but Kelly didn’t want to marry so soon, so they broke up. But she had lately returned to New York, which was why Edward was late from work. They had spent a lot of time together.
I just lost it when Edward said all of that. I snatched his phone and called Kelly. But guess what, I would later learn that Edward didn't tell me the complete truth.
Kelly didn’t have a clue Edward was married. He had informed Kelly he relocated to New York due to a new employment opportunity.
Kelly was as shocked as I was when she learned everything. She told me Edward had planned on relocating to Amsterdam at the end of the year. He told Kelly he’d marry her and then help her in her father’s overseas business.
I asked Kelly to meet me and together we taught Edward a lesson | Photo: Pexels
Following that call with Kelly, I met with her and we decided to teach Edward a harsh lesson.
Since our house was in my name, I kicked him out and decided to divorce him too. Kelly not only dumped him, but she also filed a police report against him. Edward kept crying and begging me not to kick him out, but I didn’t fall for his crocodile tears. Men like him deserve such treatment.
What can we learn from this story?
- Be careful before choosing your partner. Kelly had no idea Edward was cheating on her until Stephanie called her and told her everything.
- You can't avoid karma. Edward tried deceiving Stephanie and running away, but karma hit him hard in the face.
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