My mom hasn’t been feeling great, so I took my kids, Max and Emma, and drove three states away to help her out. I thought I would be there for more than four weeks, but since she started getting better, I decided to come back early to surprise my husband, Ian. But when I got home, I was the one who got surprised by a strange kid watching cartoons in our living room!

As I pulled into the driveway after a long drive back from my mom’s, Max and Emma were super excited to see their dad. I didn’t tell Ian we were coming home early because we wanted to give him a fun surprise.

“Surprise! Dad!” they yelled, but there was no response.

“Mom, why are there little shoes in the hallway?” Emma asked, pointing at two pairs of shoes. One was for a little kid, and the other was definitely a woman’s.

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I shrugged and said softly, “I really don’t know, maybe Dad has some friends over.” My heart felt heavy, like something was definitely off.

We all walked into the living room, and there, right in front of the TV, was a strange kid I had never seen before, just sitting there and watching cartoons like it was totally normal.
“Who are you? What are you doing here?” I asked, feeling confused.
“I’m Jason, I live here,” the boy replied, still glued to the screen.

Just as I was about to ask him more, Max and Emma got super excited and wanted to know if they could play with this new kid.

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I felt completely lost and didn’t know how to respond.

With my voice shaking, I asked him where his parents were, worried about what he might say.

Jason stayed silent and just pointed toward the bedroom.

Climbing the few stairs to the bedroom felt like it took forever. I really hoped Ian wouldn’t be there with another woman. Unfortunately, my worst fears came true when I walked in and saw him in bed with someone else.

“You’re back!?” he shouted, clearly shocked to see me. “It’s not what it looks like,” he tried to say. The woman beside him looked at me, confused.

“Who are you?” she asked, and that’s when I realized she had been deceived just like I had.

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I quietly left the room, making sure Max and Emma didn’t see their dad cheating right in front of them. I thought it was best to shield them from what was happening.

When I walked into the living room, they were still playing with Jason, who they thought was just a visitor. I asked all three of them to come to the kitchen.

“Do you want something to eat?” I inquired, my hands shaking from the shock. Emma seemed to sense that something was off and wanted to help me feel better, so she replied, “Yes, Mom, let’s cook something!”

As we were in the kitchen, I noticed Ian through the window leaving the house with his suitcase in tow.

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Sophie walked up to me, tears streaming down her face. She kept saying how sorry she was. “I can’t believe it. Ian told me you died four years ago, and that his kids were with your mom in another state. I didn’t think to question him.”

As I looked at Sophie, I felt a mix of anger and sadness. Even though I was furious with her for being the one my husband cheated on me with, I couldn’t help but feel bad for her too. She had been tricked and lied to, just like I had.

We ended up talking for a long time and both agreed that Ian needed to face the consequences of his actions. We decided to reveal the truth about him to his family, friends, co-workers, and even his boss.

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Sophie and I grew closer as time went on. In the end, our kids were like siblings, and it was important for them to be in each other’s lives.

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