{"id":122437,"date":"2025-04-16T08:45:14","date_gmt":"2025-04-16T01:45:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lorevista.com\/?p=122437"},"modified":"2025-04-16T09:25:01","modified_gmt":"2025-04-16T02:25:01","slug":"my-wife-and-i-hadnt-spoken-in-10-years-until-i-found-out-she-was-getting-married-again-story-of-the-day","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lorevista.com\/my-wife-and-i-hadnt-spoken-in-10-years-until-i-found-out-she-was-getting-married-again-story-of-the-day\/","title":{"rendered":"My Wife and I Hadn’t Spoken in 10 Years Until I Found Out She Was Getting Married Again \u2013 Story of the Day"},"content":{"rendered":"

My runaway bride reappeared ten years later in heels and a power suit, demanding I sign our divorce papers like we were just neighbors with unfinished business.
\n $\"\"$ I consider myself a loner. Honestly, I still have a wife. She had just run away from our wedding ten years before.\n

Every year, I get the same envelope from her. New law firm name, new initials, glossy folder \u2014 just the way she likes it \u2014 a true aesthete, even in divorce proceedings.\n

I open it, read halfway through, sigh, and stash it in the drawer. There\u2019s a whole collection, almost like a calendar, for every year of our \u201cfake marriage.\u201d\n

That morning, as usual, I was cleaning the barn. The snow had melted, the ground was soft, and the tractor refused to start again. My glove was torn; the dog had buried the other boot somewhere.\n

All, just as it should be. Quiet. Peaceful. The air smelled of fresh grass and smoke. I love that \u2014 it smells like life. Real life.\n

I reached into the metal mailbox. An envelope. Gold initials. Oh, something new. She switched firms. Progress.\n

\u201cWell, hello, Mel.\u201d\n

The dog barked. We understood each other without words those days.\n

\u201cWould you sign it, Johnny?\u201d I asked my dog, sitting down on the porch with my coffee.\n

$\"\"$ \n

He sneezed. Wise dog. While I was thinking, Billy dropped by. My childhood friend, a farmer who always smells like apples and diesel fuel.\n

\u201cSo, she sent you another \u2018love letter\u2019?\u201d he smirked, setting a basket of fresh bread on the step.\n

\u201cYep. Volume Ten. Might auction them off someday.\u201d\n

\u201cStill not gonna sign?\u201d\n

\u201cNope. I\u2019ve got a principle. If you want to end something \u2014 come and say it. No need to yell. Just be honest.\u201d\n

Billy sighed, gave me a look like he wanted to say something \u2014 then changed his mind.\n

\u201cI\u2019ll get going. Looks like rain\u2019s coming, and I didn\u2019t bring a cover.\u201d\n

\u201cYou\u2019re wearing a leather jacket, Billy.\u201d\n

\u201cThat\u2019s not a cover \u2014 it\u2019s fashion.\u201d\n

And he left, leaving me with my coffee, my dog, and yet another farewell letter.\n

I went back inside. Everything is in place. I tossed more logs into the stove. Scratched the dog behind the ear and turned on the radio \u2014 the only thing that hasn\u2019t abandoned me over the years.\n

And then, I heard the sound.\n

First \u2014 a low engine hum. Then \u2014 the familiar squeak of suitcase wheels. Then \u2014 high heels crunching on gravel. I stepped onto the porch. And saw her.\n

Melanie. Her hair was a bit shorter, but her eyes were the same. She had that look \u2014 like we saw each other yesterday, even though it\u2019s been ten years.\n

\u201cHi, Jake.\u201d\n

$\"\"$ \n

I smiled. But something inside me clenched.\n

\u201cWell. Finally decided to come and ask for an autograph in person?\u201d\n

***\n

Melanie stepped across the threshold. Her eyes scanned the wedding photo on the mantel.\n

\u201cYou still keep that?\u201d she nodded toward the frame.\n

\u201cYep. Nice photo. And the frame isn\u2019t cheap either.\u201d\n

$\"\"$ \n

Her gaze drifted past the mantel to the plaid throw blanket on the armchair. It was the same one we used to fight over on rainy nights. Her fingers brushed it gently and then paused.\n

Melanie turned toward the kitchen shelves, where old jam jars stood in a neat row.\n

“Is that… blueberry?”\n

“Yeah. From that summer when the berries went wild behind the barn.”\n

Melanie gave the faintest nod, but her eyes glistened before she looked away. Then she straightened her posture, smoothed her sleeve, and reached for her briefcase.\n

She sat at the table and pulled out the documents.\n

\u201cJake, I\u2019m serious. My wedding\u2019s in two months. I need everything signed.\u201d\n

I sat down across from her.\n

\u201cThe groom wants to make sure you\u2019re officially single?\u201d\n

\u201cHe thinks I\u2019m single. So don\u2019t make this harder than it is.\u201d\n

\u201cHave you ever been honest with me, Mel?\u201d\n

\u201cOh, don\u2019t start.\u201d\n

\u201cFine. Not starting. Just listening.\u201d\n

She unfolded the papers and laid them out in front of me. I glanced at them.\n

\u201cOld version. Outdated. Doesn\u2019t even mention the farm.\u201d\n

\u201cWell, I thought…\u201d\n

\u201cThat nothing had changed? Big surprise, huh?\u201d\n

She flared.\n

\u201cJake, I didn\u2019t come here for your passive-aggressive lectures. I came because I\u2019m tired of playing silent. I want to end this like an adult.\u201d\n

\u201cAn adult comes sooner than ten years later. An adult doesn\u2019t run off the night before the honeymoon and hide behind envelopes.\u201d\n

She stood up. Her hands were trembling.\n

\u201cIf it\u2019s money you want \u2014 just say so. How much?\u201d\n

\u201cMoney?\u201d I laughed. \u201cYou think I waited ten years for a payout?\u201d\n

\u201cThen why, Jake?! Why haven\u2019t you signed?\u201d\n

\u201cBecause you still haven\u2019t said why you ran. I have principles.\u201d\n

\u201cOh, Jake, it\u2019s been years. Everything\u2019s changed.\u201d\n

I stood.\n

\u201cYeah, it has. I got my life together. Built something. A business. And by the way, I earned everything I had while we were still married. Officially. Legally. Even the lakeside lot. And those two cow-show trophies? Still during our marriage.\u201d\n

She stared at me silently.\n

\u201cBy law, half of it is yours,\u201d I said. \u201cBut I\u2019m not handing it over to someone who only dared to mail things once a year.\u201d\n

\u201cYou… you\u2019re blackmailing me?\u201d\n

\u201cNo. I\u2019m giving you a choice. I\u2019ll sign if you formally waive any claim. At a notary. All legal. But we\u2019ll need to update the paperwork. That takes time.\u201d\n

She sat back down. \u201cFine. How long?\u201d\n

\u201cA week. Maybe two. This isn\u2019t New York. Around here, the internet runs through a tree.\u201d\n

\u201cThen I\u2019m staying. Technically, it\u2019s my house too.\u201d\n

\u201cTechnically \u2014 yes,\u201d I sighed. \u201cBut you\u2019re cooking dinner. I\u2019m allergic to your flower petal salads.\u201d\n

\u201cAnd I\u2019m allergic to dust and male ego.\u201d\n

We stared at each other for a few long seconds. Then, I walked off toward the pantry to break eye contact. Melanie climbed upstairs \u2014 offended, with her briefcase under her arm like she\u2019d come here to win, not to talk.\n

I knew she wouldn\u2019t survive that silence.\n

Truthfully, the papers were just an excuse to keep her here a little longer. So I could finally knock some sense into our marriage.\n

Because I still loved that infuriating woman. Whoever she had become.\n

***\n

Days on the farm passed quickly, but our silence moved painfully slowly.\n

Melanie spent most of her days in town, hunting for a decent Wi-Fi signal. Meanwhile, I cleaned the house and the yard and planted flowers on the porch.\n

Billy dropped by one afternoon.\n

“This place hasn’t looked this good since your wedding, pal.”\n

“Oh, I just… finally had some time for myself.”\n

“Careful, someone might fall for you.”\n

“Cut it out. Not Melanie. That’s long gone.”\n

Billy tilted his head and looked at me like I’d just said the sky was green.\n

“Jake, don’t be a fool. She’s here. That means something.”\n

“She’s here because she wants a signature.”\n

“Then sign it. Or don’t. But for the love of bacon, talk to her. Ask her to dinner. Do something other than fixing fences and mumbling at your dog.”\n

That evening, I found Melanie in the pantry. She was holding my box of documents.\n

“What are you doing?” I asked, not even raising my voice.\n

“Looking for tea. But I stumbled on this.”\n

“You always break into places where you’re not invited?”\n

“And you always hide what matters instead of talking about it?”\n

“I wasn’t hiding. I was postponing. It wasn’t time yet.”\n

“Not time?! I’m getting married, Jake! Married! To a real, present, grown man!”\n

“Oh, sweetheart, I’m sure he will be thrilled to hear his bride was digging through her legal husband’s pantry.”\n

“You just can’t accept that I left! That I changed! You hold on to the past like an old jacket that hasn’t fit in years!”\n

“And you hold on to some fantasy version of yourself until you have to look yourself in the eye. Have you ever actually thought about what you did? I can’t believe the Melanie I loved could sleep at night after running away like that!”\n

“Oh, I slept just fine! I didn’t have to crawl under three blankets because someone never fixed the windows!”\n

“You never said anything bothered you! Not once!”\n

“Oh, maybe because it was obvious?! You never asked what I wanted! I wanted more! A career! The city lights!”\n

“You could’ve told me. We could’ve sold this place and moved to New York together.”\n

“Oh yeah? And what about the money you poured into building this farm the day before the wedding? You think I didn’t see the contract? That was the final straw, Jake! You said nothing.”\n

“And you did? You said nothing, either! About your dreams, about the windows!”\n

“I’ve had enough! No wonder I ran. I haven’t even been able to answer my fianc\u00e9 for two days because there’s no signal here!”\n

“Oh. You probably connected to the broken router. I have two \u2014 forgot to mention.”\n

“You! How dare you!”\n

She slammed the pantry door. The house went black \u2014 total darkness.\n

“What was that?” I frowned.\n

“I\u2026 may have knocked that old switch.”\n

“That ‘old switch’ was the main breaker. It’s broken now. Congratulations, Mel, we’re in the dark.”\n

“Wonderful! Magical!” she shouted. “No light, no water, no reason to live!”\n

“Let’s not overreact,” I muttered, grabbing a flashlight.\n

I headed outside and built a fire. Melanie sat on the bench, wrapped in my old flannel shirt. No makeup. Hair hastily tied up. For the first time in days, she looked real.\n

“You hungry?” I asked, skewering some chicken.\n

“Starving. But if you offer me canned beans, I’ll run to the nearest motel.”\n

“Barbecue. Real fire. Your dad’s old recipe, actually.”\n

She gave a slight nod.\n

“Mel\u2026” I started but didn’t finish.\n

“Don’t. I don’t even know what to think. But it’s\u2026 peaceful here. Cozy, even. You’ve turned this place into something magical. I miss that in New York.”\n

“It’s not too late to stay. I always knew your soul was too wild and free for a city apartment, even if it’s a big one.”\n

I chuckled. “Yeah\u2026 I only realized that after I got everything I ever wanted.”\n

“Well, there are plenty of forests and fields out here to calm the rebel in you.”\n

“I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I ran because I was scared I’d stay here forever. That my dreams would die under diapers, early mornings, and a farm you decided to build.”\n

“Oh, sweetheart, I wasn’t going to make you a prisoner. I wanted to make you happy.”\n

We sat in silence. The fire crackled.\n

Then, Melanie suddenly laughed.\n

“Remember when I burned your favorite sweater?”\n

“It was hideous.”\n

“But warm!” she giggled. “And it smelled like you.”\n

“Melanie… All these years, I couldn’t understand\u2026 why? We were so in love. I still\u2026”\n