Many screenwriters strongly recommend introducing a minor influencer, such as a "desperate bestie," especially in plots involving relationships and marriage. Their role is usually to inject a stagnant plot with life, to rock the boat in some way. Oh, and didn't I say real life is the best screenwriter?
So, our narrator today found himself in a situation in which a critical event in his wife's best friend's family directly impacted his own marriage, bringing to life the dark shadows of his and his wife's past. Okay, let's not exaggerate; let's just read this together.
More info: Reddit
Sometimes you do believe that all the bad in your life is somewhere deep in the past, but then the dark memories of it come and impact your life here and now
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The author of this post cheated on his wife about 5 years ago, but then begged her to forgive him, and they reconciled
Image credits: pixel-shot.com / Freepik (not the actual photo)
Recently, the wife's friend, "Sara," came over and asked them to house her because of her rude husband's affair
Image credits: juanroballo / Freepik (not the actual photo)
The spouses said yes, but then, after numerous talks with Sara, the author's wife told him that she still wants a divorce from him anyway
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The man agreed and moved out, but then he got many calls from his wife, begging him to stop the divorce and come back
Meet our hero today, a man who 5 years ago made the mistake of cheating on his wife. He sincerely repented, asked for her forgiveness, and she forgave him. After this, the couple lived in peace and prosperity, but, as it recently turned out, the original poster's (OP) wife hadn't actually forgotten anything, and it's unlikely she'd actually forgiven him...
Enter "Sara," the wife's bestie, who showed up on their porch one day, distraught after her toxic and rude husband's infidelity. The woman asked to stay with her friends for a while, and they both said yes. But after several days of long and difficult conversations between the friends about adultery, the author's wife admitted that she still hadn't forgiven her spouse.
That same evening, she told him that she wanted a divorce. Well, our hero realized and accepted everything. He simply packed up his belongings and moved out, trying to keep the pain to himself. After this, Sara called him several times, asking for meetings to discuss what to do with her husband. The OP didn't say anything specific, but his meetings with Sara continued.
Then the man received a call from his wife, who tearfully declared that she'd changed her mind, that she missed him, that she loved him, and that she wanted him back. However, the OP was now hesitant to act. Perhaps because he knew his wife had reacted extremely negatively to the fact that Sara had effectively ghosted her and had shifted her focus to him. So the guy decided to take this online, seeking some advice.
Image credits: freepik / Freepik (not the actual photo)
"To be honest, I can't shake the feeling that there's something fishy about this story – specifically, that it's some kind of manipulation on the part of this woman's friend," says Irina Matveeva, a psychologist and certified NLP specialist, whom Bored Panda asked for a comment. "I don't know if her husband is being dishonest by withholding certain facts, but I wouldn't be surprised at all if he and his wife's friend soon got together."
According to the expert, several factors suggest the possibility of intrigue here. First, the author's wife's susceptibility to her friend's influence. Second, the man himself all too readily agreed to his wife's idea of divorce – even though, according to him, he had asked her to forgive him 5 years ago, assuring her that he still loved her.
"Finally, there's the double standard in this story. It's entirely possible that the friend's husband really is a rude and toxic person, but the author himself so clearly contrasts his long-ago infidelity with this man's affair that it sounds repulsive in itself. I'd be happy to be wrong, but something about this story seems really suspicious," Irina Matveeva summarizes.
It must be said that many commenters were also surprised by the characters' rather reckless attitude toward marriage per se, noting that they perhaps see it as a kind of group project. And, of course, the responders couldn't help but assume that the author and Sara might soon start a new relationship... And what do you, our dear readers, think about the described situation?
Many people in the comments, however, claimed that it looks like a kind of manipulation from Sara and that she and the author could start a new relationship soon
