After I Caught My Fiancé Cheating On My Birthday

Joshua and I grew up as childhood friends. For as long as I can remember, my heart and mind have been full of him. People in love tend to be confident—and Joshua took full advantage of that. He kept our long-term relationship going while having flings on the side.

Over the years, he said one thing more than anything else: “The women out there are just temporary stops. You’re my real home. The journey doesn’t matter—only the destination does. When I marry, it’ll be you.”

Naively, I clung to those words and ignored the truth for ten years. But as I stood there staring at the scene in front of me, no amount of forgiveness could keep the tears from falling.

Only then did Joshua seem to grasp how serious this was. He fastened his belt with a quick motion, straightened his clothes, and—almost dismissively—tapped the girl’s cheek like she was an obedient pet. “You should go now.”

The girl didn’t look embarrassed at all. Her gaze was steady as she asked, “Mr. Henry, is this your wife?” Joshua didn’t deny it. He tossed a blanket her way. “If you know she’s my wife, why are you still here?”

She glanced at me, still wrapped in the blanket, then walked out. The room went suffocatingly silent. Just me and Joshua.

He came closer and gently wiped the tears from my face with his fingertips, as if I were something fragile. “Sadie, aren’t you a little too old to be crying like this?” His tone was so casual it made me feel like I was the unreasonable one.

When I stayed silent, he tried to pull me into his arms—the way he had so many times before. But I pushed him away. “Joshua, do you even know what today is? Did it ever occur to you that this place was supposed to be our home? The one we’d share as husband and wife?”

“How could you…” I couldn’t finish. I slid down to the floor, my back against the door.

Joshua crouched down beside me and rested his forehead against mine. “Sadie, today is your birthday, isn’t it?” When I didn’t answer, he pulled out his phone and sent a message on WhatsApp. “I’ve rescheduled my company meetings with Amazon; I’ll spend all of next week with you. As for our home, if you think this one is ruined, I can get another one right away. You can pick the location and size—maybe somewhere in the Alps—and it’ll be in your name only.”

“I promise, this is the first and last time. I won’t bring anyone else here again. How does that sound?”

In the past, I might have been foolish enough to agree. Now, all I felt was numb and exhausted.

Sniffling, I made the choice that was long overdue. “Joshua, let’s break up. That would be the best birthday gift you could give me.”