Gerry lived in a small town where he had been married to his loving wife, Samantha. They were each other’s childhood sweethearts and dated throughout most of high school. About two years after they married, Samantha told Gerry she was pregnant. Gerry was over the moon with happiness, and the two immediately started picking out names.
An Uneasy Pregnancy
Samantha’s pregnancy was not the easiest. She struggled with lethargy and serious morning sickness. Her nausea also extended through mid-day and only started getting easier in the afternoon. This made her irritable, not to mention the additional hormone influxes that are expected during pregnancy. Samantha’s moodiness was confusing for Gerry, and he found himself thinking about other women. This was when Mary came into his life. They started having an affair with her, even though it ate away at his guilt.
Samantha and Gerry finally welcomed a beautiful baby boy into their lives. However, Gerry realized he had made a terrible mistake. Seeing Samantha and their son together made him understand who was right for him, and it sure wasn’t Mary. His mistress was posing to threaten his beautiful little family, and he wished he could take back the past few months. He broke it off with Mary, who agreed but didn’t take it well. Gerry then started a new chapter of honesty in his life.
A Few Months Later
Life moved forward, and one year later, Samantha had to make a trip to visit her mother, taking their one-son along with her. Tragically, fate had a cruel twist in store for Gerry. Samantha and their son were involved in a fatal car crash and lost their lives. When Samantha’s mom called Gerry with the news, Gerry’s heart shattered into a million pieces. There happened to be a big storm that weekend, and Gerry missed the memorial and the cremation ceremony, but Samantha’s mom sent him a portion of her ashes.
Devastated and grief-stricken, Gerry found solace in the familiar comfort of Mary’s arms once more. She became his girlfriend once again as he sought refuge from the pain and loneliness that consumed him. Mary was a fun and spritely woman, but she could not be more opposite from Samantha. Gerry would often phone Samantha’s mom to see how they were coping with their grief.
He was always surprised at how quickly her parents seemed to move on. Now that their child was no longer alive, they decided to move to France, where they wanted to enjoy their retirement in peace and free from reminders of their lost daughter and grandchild.
Two Years Later
Two years after they cremated Samantha, Gerry still missed the motherly qualities of his late wife. He knew that Mary was not interested in raising a family. Mary would tell Gerry that children are too much of a hassle. But that did not mean he didn’t want to try again. Gerry was a fatherly man, always keeping his baby’s picture close to him.
His heart still aches for their loss. Mary would get jealous if he found Samantha’s pictures anywhere, so he kept that hidden in his wallet. There was a secret compartment. One day, Mary messaged Gerry telling him to hurry home after work as she had a surprise for him.
She handed him an envelope that had two plane tickets to France. Gerry was certainly surprised, but this was a destination dream of Mary’s, not his. However, he went along with her excited jabbering anyway. When they arrived in France, Mary fell ill. It was nothing major, but she didn’t feel up to sightseeing as she was bedridden, leaving Gerry to venture out alone and explore the sights of the picturesque country.
As Gerry wandered through the streets of France, his mind wandered through the heavy turn of events his life had taken. Feeling guilty and sad, he suddenly saw the reflection of a woman who looked exactly like Samantha in a shop window. His eyes widened with disbelief as he whipped around to get a proper look. The woman was accompanied by a little boy who could easily be their son.
Disbelief
Overwhelmed by a mix of hope and confusion, Gerry mustered the courage to approach her and called out Samantha’s name. To his disbelief, the woman turned around with a shocked expression on her face. Clearly, she had not expected that. Samantha’s eyes were in horror as she recognized Gerry standing before her. Looking like she wanted nothing more than to run away, she warned him to stay away.
Next thing, she demanded to know how he had found her. Her voice was like medicine to Gerry’s soul and, simultaneously, like a whip cracking on his skin. He had believed they were both gone – lost forever. As soon as Gerry managed to find his voice again, he managed to speak to Samantha. “How… Why?” he stammered. So, she revealed a painful truth.
Apparently, just after Gerry had broken it off with Mary, she had visited Samantha when Gerry was at work. She introduced herself as Gerry’s girlfriend and revealed the affair they had had during Samantha’s pregnancy. Fearing that their son would grow up with a cheating father, Samantha concocted a plan to fake her death, disappearing from Gerry’s life entirely. She wanted to protect their child from growing up with a bad influence. She even got her mother involved, which made it all the more believable. They faked a death certificate so Samantha and the baby could move to France with new names and identities.
Accepting his Karma
The next moment, three more people walked up to him, and their son reached his arms up to the man, calling him “dada.” Gerry’s heart ached, but there was nothing he could do to convince his child that he was his father. Gerry realized the other two were Samantha’s parents. They had moved to France to be with their daughter and grandchild. Leaving Gerry to rot in his misery.
Gerry pleaded with Samantha, desperately explaining that he had regretted the affair and ended things with Mary. But, no matter how much he tried to convince her that he had chosen her, Samantha would not budge. She put her arm around the man that their child called Dada, and that was when Gerry saw her wedding ring. It was not the one he placed on her finger those years before. Gerry walked away with a heart even more broken than before. He realized how much his decisions had hurt his family, and that regret could not take back the wrong he had done.
Even More Bad News
Returning to the hotel where he and Mary were staying, Gerry was met with unexpected news. Mary had a doctor come to see her in their hotel room. He did some tests, and apparently, her sickness was a result of her pregnancy. Gerry wasn’t sure how many more surprises he could deal with that day. He wasn’t sure how to react because Mary had been open about not wanting kids.
Unfortunately, Mary’s mind had not changed, and she had booked an appointment for an abortion soon. She said she only told Gerry about it because she felt she had to. When she used his credit card to pay for the appointment, he understood the real reason. He confronted her about Samantha, and how she had lied about her being pregnant to his wife.
She denied it, of course. But, when Gerry dropped her off at the hospital, he tried once again to get her to change her mind about the child. She refused. So, after a big sigh, he informed her that he was leaving her.
He sent her enough cash to enjoy the rest of the holiday they had planned, as well as to survive for a couple of months after she got home. But, he hopped on the first flight home. He was ready to deal with the karma he had dished out.
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