Lily thinks Mark wants to sell their beloved house so they can accommodate their growing brood. However, his ex-girlfriend brings her to the attic with a mysterious message. When Lily discovers the true cause of his need to relocate, everything in her life is turned upside down.
“Lily, if we want to start a family, we need more space. It’s really too little here,” Mark stated with a serious expression.
I was swinging on the porch, watching the sun set behind our small suburban home.
Our blossoming garden was elegantly framed by the white picket fence.
My parents gave us this house as a wedding present a year ago.
I loved everything about it.
However, Mark, this house is ideal. I said, “My parents were very giving with this gift,” with a twinge of regret.
Mark let out a sigh, took my hand, and sat beside me. “I am aware, my dear. However, consider the future. More space for a nursery and a backyard for our youngster to play in comes with a larger home. It’s an improvement.”
His remarks created a stunning vision of what is ahead for us. A bigger home, a nursery, and an area for our future kids to run about and have fun.
Although everything sounded amazing, I couldn’t get rid of my melancholy thoughts. Even in the few time we had lived here, this house was filled with a wealth of memories.
I surveyed our small sanctuary.
Our first supper together as a married couple was prepared in the kitchen, surrounded by the fragrant roses in the yard and our pleasant living room that we both decorated.
This house was brimming with love and happiness. Could I truly walk away from all of this?
“Are you sure this is what we need to do?” I questioned, looking for any sign of reluctance in his eyes.
Mark gave my hand a little squeeze. It’s difficult, Lily, I know. However, consider it. In the new home, we’ll make new memories. It will be our house, where we raise our kids and create our shared future.”
His statements made logic, and I knew he was correct. Even still, it was hard to comprehend that this house would be sold. However, I had faith in Mark and his outlook on our future.
“All right,” I mutely said. “The house will be sold. For the future we have.”
With a smile, Mark drew me into an embrace. “I appreciate it, Lily. It will be worthwhile, I assure you.”
“Lily, you made the correct choice. “You’ll see, it’s for the best,” Mark remarked as taping up another moving box.
I nodded, even though I had a sad heart. There were boxes everywhere in the living room, each one containing a memory of our time spent here.
We had been on the go. After a few days of lodging with Mark’s parents, we would shortly move into our own house. What Mark had informed me was that. For me, our new house was meant to be a “surprise.”
In Mark’s opinion, this was the best course of action for our future family.
I carefully covered a framed picture of us from our wedding day in bubble wrap.
My phone buzzed just then.
I read the message since Mark had left for something.
From an unidentified number, it was.
“Hi Lily. You people sold the house, I heard. I’m overjoyed that Mark told you the truth at last. It stated, “You have a right to know the truth.
A beat skipped in my heart. Admitted? Which truth?
I answered right away, “Who is this? Which admission?”
My hands were trembling in anticipation of a reply.
I heard my phone buzzing again a little later.
“Well, um… It’s Mark’s former girlfriend Claire. Well, so it appears that he didn’t The note said, “YOU NEED TO CHECK THE ATTIC.”
Claire, Mark’s former partner? My thoughts raced, attempting to interpret her meaning.
What may be found in the loft? Why was she only now telling me this?
I ran up the stairs to the attic without stopping to consider.
I opened the creaking attic door to find a dark, dusty room stuffed with forgotten objects and old cartons.
I paused for a second, experiencing a mixture of curiosity and anxiety.
What may exist above this.
Heart thumping in my chest, I began leafing through the boxes. Nothing felt out of place even though I discovered old Christmas decorations, childhood souvenirs, and other miscellaneous objects.
Then I spotted a little wooden chest in the corner that I had never seen before.
My hands shook as I opened the trunk and located the key in an adjacent drawer.
I found a ledger and piles of papers within.
Cold blood surged through me as I turned through them.
The documents listed Mark’s substantial obligations, or the enormous amounts of money he owed to several creditors. There were notes about past-due payments, records of covert transactions, and threats of legal action.
I became particularly interested in one document. It was a business plan that Mark had attempted to implement for a tech startup. Since his father has always been a prosperous businessman, Mark felt under tremendous pressure to succeed.
He had made significant investments in the firm in the hopes that it would succeed and bring his father pride. However, the company had collapsed catastrophically, putting him deeply in debt. The ledger displayed the funds he had to borrow in order to maintain the company.
It seemed unbelievable to me. None of this has ever been brought up by Mark.
He had always discussed our goals, aspirations, and future. It had all been a lie, though.
Everything about the man I loved and our future together was a façade.
I discovered something much more unsettling as I read on.
A paper explaining how he placed some of his debts on Claire while they were together was attached to the ledger. My eyes filled with tears.
“Mark, why didn’t you tell me?” I spoke softly to the vacant loft. “Why did you hide all this?”
The reality struck me hard.
Mark hadn’t desired a larger home for our prospective offspring. In order to pay off his obligations and stay afloat, he required the proceeds from the sale. All he wanted to do was take advantage of my parents’ and my generosity.
I knew I had to speak with Claire as I made my way down the rickety attic steps while holding onto the information I had discovered.
We decided to meet at a calm café after I gave her a call.
“Why didn’t you tell me sooner?” We were seated across from one another when I asked her.
Claire groaned and distractedly stirred her coffee. “Lily, I thought he had changed,” she remarked. “I wished he had been someone else. However, I knew you had to know about the house when I heard about it.
My heart thumping, I drew closer in.
“So, what took place? I said, “Tell me everything.”
With a nod, Claire started to explain.
Claire said, “Mark started his tech startup a few years back.”
But things didn’t work out. He took out loans, made large investments, and was left with enormous obligations when it failed. To keep things afloat by that point, dad had transferred some of the debts into my name. Thought I was doing him a favor, but he was taking advantage of me. Then…”
A lump formed in my throat. “And then he did the same to me?”
Claire gave me a dejected expression. Indeed. He hadn’t changed at all, I realized when I learned he was selling the house. He was trying to escape his situation by exploiting you.”
She extended her hand to grasp my hand.
“Lily, I apologize. You’re worthy of better,” she regretfully remarked.
I drove home in a stupor after leaving the café, Claire’s admissions still fresh in my memory.
With shaking hands, I stumbled into the living room and collapsed into the couch. The reality was too heavy to bear.
When Mark spotted me, his expression brightened and he entered.
Hello, I’ve been trying to find you. Are you alright?”
I held up one of the documents I had carried down from the attic and gazed up at him. “Mark, what is this? How did you get here?”
His look went from worry to fear.
With a pallid face, he stepped back.
“Lily, I can explain…”
I sprang to my feet, fury trembling in my voice.
“Mark, there is nothing you can say to make up for this treachery. I no longer know this man that I once believed I did. Our prospects were false. You made use of me. You used everything—our house, my parents’ gift—! I believed that we were creating a life together, but all you were doing was covering up your faults.”
Unable to meet my gaze, he cast his gaze downward. “Lily, I apologize. I had no intention of it going this far.”
Tears were running down my cheeks as I shook my head.
“Sorry is insufficient. There is no turning back the trust you have betrayed. Is our new house really ours, or was that a deception as well? Were we gonna live with your folks indefinitely?
He just muttered, “I’m sorry,” and that was all I needed to hear.
I turned my back on him and headed for the door.
“Mark, I deserve better than this. I deserve to be respected and to have someone who will be honest with me. We’re done living together,” I said before leaving the house.