u/Admirable-Key-3060

“Where were you last night?” asks Nancy, while sitting in the dimly lit living room when Andrew walked into the house, seemingly exhausted from whatever outing he had taken part in last night. She looks at him with such disapproval as he sits down across from her, waiting for his response “Andrew, do you hear me talking to you?”
Avoiding eye contact, hesitating to answer the question. Andrew takes a deep breath and mumbles “I hear you loud and clear Nancy. I’m not in the mood to talk, I need to get some rest.”
Nancy’s voice trembling, barely getting the words out “I’ve been up all night worrying about you and all you have to say is you’re not in the mood to talk.”
“Nobody asked you to do that” shrugging his shoulders, emotionlessly, disregarding Nancy’s emotional state.
Andrew, I asked you where you were last night and you’re avoiding the question. Now I know you were with her.”
I was foolish to believe that he would change
“I have done everything possible to make you happy within this marriage, all I ever asked for is your honesty!”
“You’re still stuck on the past, that was a mistake, and I’m tired of you holding it over my head!”
I left my home broken with my past actions and my wife still doesn’t trust me.
Finally looking into Nancy’s eyes “My love, if I’m going to be honest with you, I have to start from the beginning”
“Okay, I’m listening"  
Scratching the back of his neck, Andrew felt Nancy’s awaiting glare like it was the sun beaming down on him in the hottest day of summer. Too nervous to even know where to begin, Andrew blurts out “I have a ten-year-old son. You were correct when you said I was with her, but it’s not for the reasons you are thinking; little Ryan had a birthday party that prolonged further into the night than I anticipated. He was happy to be around friends and family, opening all of his gifts. It was a big event, seeing as it was his tenth birthday.”
Looking bewildered, Nancy gasps for air, barely able to contain herself; her face reddens as bright as a tomato from the slap of betrayal she is feeling. “Y- yo- you- You have a child!? A ten-year-old! His birthday is November 11th, 2015. Everything is starting to make sense now from everything over the last ten years.” Taking a deep breath, trying to calm herself down “You have been lying to me for this long about your whereabouts, what you have actually been doing, missing important events in my life to cover up your secret family.” Beginning to pace around the room in frustration. “You have made me out to be a fool for even saying yes to you when you proposed; I have stood by your side, as I promised to do when we said our vows. We were supposed to start a family; you knew I always wanted children. I sat alone, grieving the fact that I’ll never be a mother. Is this my punishment for not being able to conceive your child?”
Andrew sits calmly, allowing Nancy to express her frustrations after hearing the news. Accepting every jab to the chest with every word she says, “Nancy, yes, I have a son named Ryan. This is not a punishment, I didnt even know I had a son until he was two. She kept it a secret from me in fear that you may have done harm to our child when you found out. When she finally told me about Ryan, she made me promise not to tell you, or she would take me to court for full custody and child support. If I had to pay her child support, I wouldn’t have been able to afford your fertility injections.” Andrew looks at Nancy noticing her facial expression softening “I’m sorry for keeping this secret from you for so long, I didn't intend for you to find out this way.”
What a fool
Exhausted from the yelling and tornado of emotions she’s left feeling; Nancy sits back in her spot on the couch. Glancing into Andrew’s eyes as she finally saw the nakedness of his ugly truth from the many years of listening to the beautiful lies, he wooed her with.
My mother has always told me “Nancy, when will you ever take off those rose-colored glasses” now I finally understand that I only see the good in people instead of accepting the ugliness that comes with them
“I’m going to my sister's house. At the moment I cannot think clearly, looking at you has my mind in fragments. I gave you fifteen years of my life. I’ve lost a sense of time; I cannot tell where the lie ends, and truth begins. Knowing you, I will be leaving in the morning, you cannot convince me to stay this time.
She's leaving me? I'm being forthcoming about everything, just like she asked. How dare she!? She really thinks she can leave me!
“I understand you need space but imagine how I’ve felt about being forced to lie to my wife for over half of our marriage. I never thought about what would happen to us once you found out about Ryan.”
“As your wife, I would have stood beside you had you been honest with me from the beginning. I’m finding out about you having a son eight years after you met him. You allowed another woman to make me out to be your enemy, when I have always been your ally.”
“I didn’t know what else to do. Maybe I was wrong for keeping this secret, but I thought it would have been better without you knowing.”
Nancy stands up and walks towards the light to turn it off. “I’m sleeping on the couch tonight and will be gone before you get up. I need my space, Andrew. Please respect my boundaries. I will contact you when I’m ready to talk.