He left me, three children and aging parents, and fled to Italy with his lover.
I couldnt stop him.
Everything began on my birthday.
At that time I lived in a tiny village, my pockets were shallow, and the shop windows of the town glittered with countless beautiful thingsmy eyes didnt know where to rest.
I had fallen for a pair of sandals.
I lingered, watching them, already picturing myself walking down the main street in them, all eyes turning my way
Then someone nudged me lightly with an elbow.
Turning around, I saw a man standing before me, smiling.
Nice, arent they? he said, nodding toward the sandals.
Yes I whispered, still glued to the display.
Lets have a coffee. If I buy those sandals for you, will you agree to a date?
I knew I would look foolish and naive to him, but in that moment I didnt care.
Alright, I replied.
I wanted the gift. I wanted to feel special, even if just for an evening.
We sat in a café, he ordered a cake, and I began to tell him my story.
I said my parents were dead.
It was partly true. I had truly buried my father, but my mother I had buried her in my mind ever since I was a child because she had abandoned me as an infant.
I narrated it all to elicit his sympathy. And it worked.
Thus everything started.
I started visiting the town more often, and we met regularly.
His name was Laurent. He welcomed me into his home, surrounding me with attention.
First it was the sandals, then dresses, jewelry, fine perfumes.
But I didnt become his mistress for the gifts. I loved him. I believed he loved me too.
I was naïve. I made a mistake and became pregnant. I expected to hear every possible objection except:
We have to separate.
Figure it out yourself.
Get an abortion.
Instead he said:
Youll move in with me. Well raise this child together.
I could hardly contain my joy.
My mother had ruined my life.
We got married.
I thought fate finally smiled on me.
One day there was a knock at the door. I opened it and nearly fainted. Standing on my doorstep was my mother, carrying a sack of sauerkraut as if wed just spoken yesterday. A neighbor had revealed where I now lived. She wanted reconciliation.
Laurent learned the truth. He discovered that I had lied. Instantly his love vanished. He shouted, called me a provincial impostor, asked whether my father would rise from his grave since I could make people disappear from my life so easily. He threw us outme, my mother, and her sauerkraut.
I still believed in him, and once again I was wrong. I returned to my grandparents house, sent my mother away, and found myself alone with my child. But Laurent came back.
Lets go back together, he said. We have a son.
And I trusted him again.
Foolish as I was, I thought love would conquer everything. Yet he never took me back to his apartment. We moved into his elderly parents old house, caring for them. I agreed. I did everything for him, for his parents, for our son.
Soon I became pregnant again. One day we quarreled, and, angry, he reminded me:
Dont forget youre only a guest here!
Those words cut like a knife. Still, I stayed, convinced love would endure the trials.
When the second child arrived, he claimed money was a problem, that his business had sunk. We were now equal: I had nothing, he had nothing either. Then the third was born. I thought nothing could change now, that we would stay together no matter what.
He began working more and more, leaving early and returning late. I assumed he was making sacrifices for the family. I didnt see everything collapsing.
Italya ticket to a new life but not for me. One day he announced:
I cant live like this any longer. Theres no future here. Im leaving abroad.
I believed him. He was exhausted, dejected, worn out. I even agreedlet him go, let him try to succeed elsewhere.
Later, by chance, I discovered the truth. At the airport, there were two tickets for a flight to Italy: one in his name, the other in the name of a woman he had been involved with for years.
I understood. I couldnt stop him. He left. I stayed, with three children, with his parents who were no longer strangers, in an empty house and a soul full of pain.
I dont know how to live from now on. I only hope that someday the hurt will lessen.
He Left Me with Three Children and Elderly Parents to Run Off with His Mistress.
