30-year-old Emily abandoned her husband, Harry, and their two kids, but 3 years later she deeply regretted their actions. Emily timed her departure perfectly; she made sure it coincided with the time her son’s, Will, and Rob would be at school that memorable afternoon.
Emily, who worked as a bank cashier in one of the biggest banks in the country, had taken a half-day break from work. She had lied to her manager about an imaginary important medical check she had at the hospital. The kind-hearted manager duly obliged her without much ado. But Emily was not going for any checkup; rather, she was leaving her matrimonial home for good.
It was 1:15 p.m. when Emily returned home to find her husband, Harry, in the study room engrossed in his laptop as usual. Even without being told, Emily knew that her husband was looking for job vacancies online, as had been his ritual since he lost his job 6 months before. Harry was quite surprised to see Emily back at such an odd hour, but he warmly welcomed her back home.
Emily completely ignored Harry and his surprised questions; she just went upstairs to their shared room. Harry didn’t feel any bit slighted by Emily’s snub; he was already used to such cold treatments from her. Harry hadn’t only lost his high-paying tech job; he seemed to have also lost respect. All this started when Emily began shouldering the bills alone. The Emily he used to know and cherish so much seemed to have just disappeared into thin air overnight. This new Emily treated him like complete trash. She now only talked to him when she was in the mood, and it seemed like Emily wasn’t in the mood that afternoon when Harry thought, as he simply went back to his job hunting.
Harry was still engrossed with his job search when he started hearing the unmistakable noises of heavy bags being dragged down the stairs. Surprised, he immediately stood up, left the study room, and hurried outside. There he met Emily pulling a heavy traveling bag into the boot of their Corolla sedan.
“You didn’t tell me you were leaving for a work conference,” Harry asked Emily, a surprise evident in his polite tone.
Emily stared at him mockingly from head to toe first before she screamed at him in a venom-filled voice, “Does this look like I’m traveling for work? I’m leaving you for good! I’m sick and tired of being the only one paying all the bills while you sit at home all day playing games on your laptop, you lazy thing!”
Emily’s words hit Harry like a stab to the chest, and he staggered back a little. “Is this some kind of joke or something?” he wondered to himself. Harry opened his mouth to speak, but no words came; he was just shocked beyond words. Harry just stood transfixed to a spot, looking utterly confused. It was only when Emily dashed back into the house and returned with another bag that Harry realized she really meant business. He then quickly snapped out of his initial shock and said to Emily in a pleading tone, “But you can’t possibly do this to me, Emily. It’s been barely 6 months since I lost my job. Besides, you know too well that I have been trying my utmost best to secure another one. What about the kids?”
Emily harshly cut Harry off and screamed at him in a tone of finality, “I don’t give a damn about you and your damned efforts or about the kids! They both aren’t suckling babies anymore. I’m leaving you, and that’s it!”
Harry said everything possible to make Emily change her mind. He even reminded her about all the wonderful memories they had shared together. But it was like Harry was just talking to himself, as Emily never said a single word to him again. She just kept dashing inside the house and coming out with her stuff, which she haphazardly dumped inside the car.
Harry just helplessly stood by the side of the open car, trying to talk her out of her madness, as he saw it. But all to no avail. At a point, Harry even rushed towards Emily to hold her hands, but Emily angrily gave him a heavy push that landed him on the floor.
Harry was still on the floor when Emily returned with the last of her stuff. She threw the pair of shoes inside the car and zoomed off. She didn’t even so much as glance back at Harry as she drove off.
Harry didn’t really know what to do after Emily’s departure. He felt lost and confused, so he remained on the ground for a long time. At long last, Harry got up, dusted himself off, and slowly went inside the house. He made straight for the room he once shared with Emily, and as expected, the whole place was like a war zone. A few unwanted dresses, shoes, cartons, nylons, hangers, and all the like were littered all over the room. The room was in a total mess, to say the least, but the state of the room was the least of Harry’s worries at that particular moment. He just cleared away some of the trash from the bed and laid down on it, still feeling dumbstruck. Then, desperately fighting back his tears, Harry went down memory lane.
Harry had met Emily in his last year in college. The duo had met at the school library one bitterly cold winter night. The gentleman-like Harry had noticed that Emily was shivering from the bitter cold, so he approached her and offered her his thick winter jacket. Emily accepted Harry’s offer, wowed by his kindness. Then she jokingly told Harry to sit close beside her so their combined body heat could help deal with the cold. Harry first laughed heartily before he obliged Emily’s request. The duo got talking at once like they had known each other forever.
After their first meeting, things happened very fast between Harry and Emily, and they were soon fully dating. Though they were both coursemates, Harry was 2 years older than Emily. Over time, their relationship kept blossoming, and the love birds were already talking about marriage.
The duo moved in together upon graduation. Luckily for Harry, he secured a decent-paying job at an accounting firm immediately after leaving college. But Emily wasn’t so lucky herself. She spent almost 2 years looking for a decent job. Despite the fact that she was still unemployed at that moment, Harry had no qualms whatsoever about tying the knot with Emily. Emily was just 22, and Harry 24 when they got married. For the first 2 years after their marriage, Emily was solely financially dependent on Harry. Despite the fact that his salary was not that big, only decent enough for comfortable living, Harry made sure that his beloved Emily lacked nothing. He simply provided her with anything she asked for.
A year after their marriage, the couple had their first son named John. With the baby’s birth came new responsibilities for Harry, but he never complained for once. He even took on a second job as a part-time Uber driver just to adequately provide for Emily and their new baby. Barely a year later, luck finally smiled on Emily too, and she got a high-paying cashier job at a big bank. The couple was really happy. They were gradually but surely growing financially.
Their second and final baby, Janet, came 2 years after their first. The couple’s joy knew no bounds. They now had a baby boy and a baby girl to call theirs. Like some people strongly believe that some children attract blessings for their parents, Janet surely did attract blessings for Harry, as just 3 months after her birth, Harry secured a six-figure salary accounting job in a new cryptotech investment firm.
Harry’s new salary was almost triple of what he had been making from his two previous jobs. The young family started living really large after Harry’s newfound wealth. He spoiled his kids silly with love and care. Harry took Emily and the kids out on expensive dinners and shopping sprees almost every month. The family also went on expensive vacations whenever the opportunity called for it. The family was a quintessential small happy family, all thanks to Harry’s mindset of free spending and living for the moment.
Sure enough, the two kids, John and Janet, formed a closer bond with their father than with their mother as they grew. Not that the kids said anything against Emily, but for the fact that Harry was the one that literally pampered them to death. To them, he was the best dad in the world that any child could ever wish for. Emily wasn’t left out as well. Harry basically went out of his way to impress her with expensive gifts. Harry even bought her the latest model of Toyota Corolla as a birthday gift on her birthday. Emily’s joy knew no bounds.
But like they say, good things never last. About 3 years after Harry landed the mouthwatering tech job, the firm’s young CEO was involved in a major swindling scandal. The authorities investigated his financial dealings and promptly arrested and charged him to court for swindling about $2 billion from thousands of the firm’s investors. The tech company was dissolved and taken over by the authorities, and that was how Harry lost his job. Worse off, Harry was a strong believer in living for and enjoying the moment; hence, he never made hay while the sun shone for him. He neither invested his money nor saved a penny. Harry was basically left penniless once he lost his job.
Things started falling apart in Harry’s once-happy home immediately after he lost his job. Emily seemed to suddenly change overnight. She began finding faults in Harry’s words and actions. Nothing he did or said ever seemed to please her anymore. Emily also started talking down on Harry. It had only been 1 month since Harry lost his job, but Emily was already bitterly complaining that shouldering the mounting bills alone was too much of a burden on her shoulders. In short, she literally became a thorn in Harry’s flesh, even though she knew that he was trying his very best to secure another job.
Emily returned home that memorable afternoon and packed out of her matrimonial home, abandoning Harry and their two kids just like that. You see, Emily’s excuse for leaving, of course, was that she was sick and tired of bearing the financial burdens alone. But that was just the facade. She had actually met another guy and richer lover named Mike. He was just 27, stunningly handsome, and stupendously rich. Emily had met Mike at her workplace and had immediately fallen head over heels in love with him. She was even the one that wooed Mike, who was more than willing to date her, as Emily was a beauty herself.
The joyous shouts of “Daddy, Daddy, we’re back!” from the 5-year-old Janet as she sped upstairs to hug her beloved father, jarred Harry back to reality. He quickly glanced at the wall clock and realized, to his utter dismay, that he had spent almost 3 hours just thinking about the past. Harry then quickly wiped his eyes as he went down memory lane, and he didn’t want his two little angels to see him that way.
The first few weeks after Emily’s departure were terrible for Harry. He kept lying to his kids, especially to Janet, that Emily had just left for an impromptu business meeting in the country’s capital city. But lying to his kids about their mom’s departure was not Harry’s major problem; he was almost penniless when Emily left, and the kids must be fed. So Harry literally became a beggar just to feed his beloved kids. He asked for financial assistance from his friends and relatives. Luckily for Harry, everyone he asked was more than willing to help him out financially, as he had also been of help to them in the past. But Harry was not the kind of person that wished to financially depend on others forever. So he desperately continued searching for a job.
He still felt heartbroken about Emily’s departure and still thought about her. Harry did truly love Emily, but he never allowed himself to slip into depression. He was determined to be strong for his kids, no matter what.
Barely a month later, Emily filed for divorce for irreconcilable differences, and Harry simply let her go. Luck finally shone on Harry barely 3 months after Emily’s departure. He had applied for a position in a new private accounting firm and had been promptly invited to the interview. Harry attended the interview wishing for the best but expecting the worst, as he had been so much disappointed before with countless interviews. But the interview, if you would even call it that, was something else.
The young woman who introduced herself to Harry was Mrs. Deborah Jackson, the owner of the firm. She literally turned the interview into some kind of a first date. Harry was expecting difficult official questions as usual, but what he got were mostly personal questions. Deborah took one look at Harry, and the supposed official interview turned into something more personal. First and foremost, Deborah told Harry that she was a 34-year-old childless widow who just recently lost her multi-millionaire husband to cancer. Harry was still trying to make sense of how Deborah’s revelations were in line with the official interview he was expecting when she started asking him deeply personal questions.
“Are you married, Harry?” Deborah asked the confused-looking Harry.
“I’m a divorcee with two kids, ma’am,” Harry managed to reply to Deborah’s question.
Harry’s replies seemed to settle it. The obviously glad Deborah promptly welcomed him to the firm. Harry was simply overjoyed; his new salary was more than enough to adequately take care of his beloved kids and pay off his mounting debts and bills. Deborah was a confident, pretty, and wealthy woman who knew what she wanted and how to get it. She clearly wanted Harry from the very first day she set her eyes on him.
Very simple and short, Deborah had been dealing with utter loneliness since her husband’s death 2 years ago, and she was childless, and it hurt her. But now she had the handsome, gentlemanly, recently divorced Harry, who had two kids already, working for her. It was like a dream come true for Deborah, so she wasted no time at all to seduce Harry. Deborah treated Harry like the co-owner of the firm; she sought his advice on almost every issue concerning the company. And the more the two spent time together, the more Harry gradually but surely started falling for her.
Over time, Deborah completely threw off the official cloak for good and started plainly wooing Harry. And sure enough, barely a year after Harry started working for Deborah, the two were fully romantically involved. They both needed each other. Harry was still reeling from the heartbreak of Emily’s departure and really needed a lady to give him the love and care that he truly deserved. Moreover, he wanted his two little angels to grow up with a mother’s love and guidance.
Harry saw that mother for his beloved kids in the kind heart of Deborah. For Deborah, she needed a man to fill the void left behind in her heart by her husband’s death. Moreover, Deborah was fully aware of the fact that she wasn’t getting any younger and needed some kids to love and cherish. Hence, she soon started visiting Harry’s home just to spend time with John and especially Janet, who immediately took to the sweetheart of Deborah like a magnet.
It would be really difficult to know which of the two proposed to the other person. It seemed like they just both decided to get married, and that was exactly what they did in a very lavish wedding reception barely 2 months after Emily’s departure. John and Janet were both overwhelmed with happiness to have such a kind-hearted stepmom like Deborah. The two siblings soon started calling Deborah “mom,” and what a mom she was to them. Deborah took the kids like her very own kids and spoiled them silly with love and care. Harry and Deborah loved and cherished each other to the moon and back. To both of them, the other person was like a god-sent messiah.
The small family was living in complete peace and harmony. When almost a year later, Emily came calling out of nowhere. The very day that Emily came calling was on a hot summer Sunday. John and Janet were both off to a summer camp, so the pale-looking Emily entered the house only to find Harry and Deborah enjoying a lavish Sunday afternoon lunch. On sighting Emily, Deborah, who recognized her at once from all the pictures she had seen of her, quickly left the dining hall and went upstairs.
Deborah’s prompt departure from the dining hall was akin to telling Harry, “You both can’t settle whatever you both have together and leave me out of it.” But Deborah needn’t worry about that at all because even though Harry was shocked to see Emily after almost 3 years, he didn’t even give her the chance to apologize. Emily, on seeing that Deborah had abruptly left, immediately knelt down to apologize to Harry, but Harry gave her no such chance. He left Emily kneeling there and promptly rushed upstairs to be with his beloved Deborah.
Emily was shocked beyond belief at Harry’s reaction. She just knelt there all alone in the room, silently sobbing for what seemed like ages. At long last, Emily finally managed to stand up and leave the house just the way she had come in.
Turned out that Emily never had the rosy life she dreamt of with Mike. He treated her like trash, and he infected her with a disease. The now penniless, lonely, and sickly Emily had come back, hoping that Harry would take her back almost 3 years after abandoning him and two kids. But how late she was.
If you were in Harry’s shoes, would you have forgiven Emily? Feel free to share your comments with us in the comments section.
