When Isobel uses her husband’s car, she finds a blonde wig in it. Not wanting to disturb the peace, Isobel decides that she doesn’t want to confront him. So, she follows him… right up to her mother’s house. What secrets are being kept, and why isn’t her husband telling her the truth?
Honestly, I don’t even know where to start. I’ve replayed the last two weeks over and over, and it still doesn’t feel real. So, here I am, sitting on a rocking chair in my son’s nursery, trying to understand what has been going on in my life.
Jack and I have been married for six years. I thought we were solid, the type of couple who told each other everything. I mean, we’re expecting our first child in three months, and life should’ve been simple, exciting even.
A smiling couple | Source: Midjourney
But then, I found the wig.
Let me tell you everything.
My car was in the shop having all the tires replaced, so I borrowed Jack’s car to get to my doctor’s appointment. I couldn’t wait to hear our baby’s heartbeat. I was already a little sad because Jack couldn’t get out of his meeting and had called a cab to get to work. But still, I knew that he was pushing work because he wanted to be around when the baby was born.
So anyway, I reached into the glove compartment hoping to find a pair of sunglasses before I could start the car, and something fell out.
A woman’s hand reaching for the glove compartment | Source: Midjourney
A wig. A blonde, shoulder-length wig.
I froze, just staring at it like it was going to explain itself and why it was in my husband’s car. Why would Jack have a wig? He had never mentioned anything about it.
The only explanation that made sense was that it belonged to someone else. But who? My mind raced, piecing together fragments of worry that I had ignored for weeks. All the late nights at work, sudden errands, and the distance in his eyes when I spoke about things.
A blonde wig on a car seat | Source: AmoMama
My baby kicked in my belly, bringing me back to the present. I took a deep breath, maybe it wasn’t what it looked like. Maybe it was for a joke or something harmless. But deep down, I knew it wasn’t.
Something was going on.
That night, after dinner, I tried to figure out how to bring up the topic. I didn’t want to accuse him outright because Jack wasn’t the type to do anything to hurt me. There had to be a reason. And I knew that whatever it was, it was going to be good.
A pregnant woman standing in the kitchen | Source: Midjourney
I waited until Jack was relaxed, scrolling through his phone on the couch while the news blurted out the latest in the sporting world. I cut us slices of chocolate cake and went into the living room to finally crack the case open.
“Honey, can I ask you something?”
He looked up, smiling as he took the plate from me.
“Sure, what’s up?” he asked. “Everything alright with the little guy?”
A slice of chocolate cake | Source: Midjourney
“He’s fine,” I said, patting my stomach. “Look, you know I used your car today, and I found… something. A wig. In the glove compartment.”
His eyes widened, just for a split second, then he laughed.
“Oh, the blonde one? It’s for this work thing. There’s a Halloween party coming up. I got it last week and must have forgotten about it.”
A man laughing | Source: Midjourney
I stared at him, the facts not adding up.
“Halloween? It’s June, Jack.”
My husband shrugged, still smiling like it was nothing.
“They’re planning it early this year, Isobel. I think they’re just tired of the people with kids not showing up because they have to take their kids trick-or-treating. So, yeah…”
Children dressed in Halloween costumes | Source: Midjourney
Every instinct screamed at me that he was lying. But I let it go. I didn’t want to be that wife, you know, the one who constantly pushed and pried and dug holes until everything fell apart.
I also just wanted us to be in a good place because we were getting so close to the birth of our baby. But I couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off. The next few days, I felt like I was living in a fog.
“I’m heading to the office, honey,” he would say randomly and disappear for hours.
A woman sitting on a couch and holding her head and belly | Source: Midjourney
Sometimes he would take phone calls in the other room, anything to get away from me. I couldn’t take it, because this man used to use the loo while I was in the shower. We used to be closer than anything.
But now? Jack couldn’t wait to be alone. I couldn’t take it anymore.
So, I did something I never thought I’d do. I followed him one afternoon after he said he needed to go to the office.
“But it’s a public holiday?” I asked.
A man holding his phone | Source: Midjourney
“It is, but it’s work, honey,” he said.
I waited until he pulled out of the driveway, then grabbed my keys and followed him. My heart pounded the entire time, a deep sense of betrayal taking over me.
I expected him to drive somewhere suspicious, maybe to meet someone. But he didn’t. He drove to my mom’s house.
A woman driving | Source: Midjourney
I parked a few houses down, out of sight. My hands were still trembling. Why was my husband going to my mom’s house? And why hadn’t she mentioned it?
Jack stayed inside for about thirty minutes, and when he came out, he was wiping his eyes. He looked… completely devastated.
I sat there in my car, frozen, completely unable to make sense of it. Jack never cried, not like that.
An upset man | Source: Midjourney
And what could possibly be going on between him and my mom?
I tossed and turned the entire night.
“What’s wrong?” Jack mumbled in his sleep.
“Nothing,” I said quietly. “I’m just uncomfortable. It’s okay, you go back to sleep.”
A man laying in bed | Source: Midjourney
I wanted to confront him, to demand answers, but something in me said to wait. I needed to talk to my mom first.
The next day, I went to her house, ready to tackle whatever was coming my way. My mother looked surprised when I showed up at her door, but she invited me in.
“Come on in, darling,” she said. “Look at you! I can’t believe how soon we’re going to meet our little boy!”
An older woman opening a door | Source: Midjourney
I took a deep breath and sat down on the couch.
“Mom,” I said, wanting to be straightforward. “Is there something going on between you and Jack?”
Her face went pale, and she looked away.
“Why would you ask that, Isobel? My goodness, child.”
An older woman | Source: Midjourney
“I’ve seen him, Mom. I’ve followed him here. I know he’s been coming over a lot, and he didn’t tell me why.”
Her lips trembled before she let out a shaky breath. Something big was coming. A confession of sorts. I could feel it.
“I didn’t want you to find out like this,” she said.
“Find out what?”
She closed her eyes for a moment before looking back at me.
A close up of a shocked woman | Source: Midjourney
“I have cancer, sweetheart,” she said. “I’ve been going through chemo, and I’m almost at the point of my hair falling off. Jack has been helping me, taking me to appointments, bringing me groceries.”
“Cancer? Mom, why didn’t you tell me?” I exclaimed, wrapping my hands around my belly.
My mother reached for my hand, tears in her eyes.
A woman sitting on a couch and holding her belly | Source: Midjourney
“Because you’re pregnant, darling. I didn’t want you to worry. You have enough to worry about with the baby coming. Jack wanted to tell you, he told me that he could handle it. But I didn’t want to tell you until the baby was born.”
“So… the wig?” I asked, looking carefully at my mother. I could see it now—her blonde hair was just a wig, similar to the one I found in Jack’s car.
“Jack’s been getting them for me. He’s been trying different brands because I’m struggling with how they feel on my head…”
A box of wigs | Source: Midjourney
For a moment I couldn’t breathe. It all made sense now.
“I need you to fight through whatever emotions you’re feeling right now. I’m fighting this. I have my good days and my bad days, but I’m fighting.”
Listening to my mother brought the truth to light.
A worried woman | Source: Midjourney
Jack wasn’t sneaking around to hurt me. He was doing the exact opposite. He was trying to protect me from the truth, from learning that my mother was sick. All I could do was sit there, gripping my mom’s hand.
“I’ll be just fine, Isobel. I promise you, my darling. I’m going to be around for a long time, and I’m going to be a cool grandmother. When my hair grows back, I’m going to dye it all sorts of colors for my grandson.”
She started laughing, and it was infectious. Before I knew it, I was laughing with her until tears streamed down our faces.
A mother and daughter laughing | Source: Midjourney
That night, I found Jack sitting on the couch, staring at the TV but not really watching it. He looked so tired, so worn out. I couldn’t hold it in any longer.
“I’m sorry,” I blurted out, my voice breaking. “I followed you. I know about Mom.”
He turned to look at me, his eyes soft but full of sadness.
A man sitting on a couch | Source: Midjourney
“I didn’t want to keep it from you. But she made me promise not to tell you. She didn’t want you to worry, love. Not with the baby coming. I just wanted to protect you. Well, I wanted to tell you…”
“I know,” I said. “Mom told me everything.”
Jack wrapped his arms around me, and we sat in silence for a while. I didn’t know what was coming next, but I hoped my mother was around to see it all.
A couple sitting on a couch together | Source: Midjourney
What would you have done?
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