Lena stood in front of the mirror, the steam from the shower still fogging the edges of the glass. Her skin was flushed from the heat, but her thoughts were ice cold. Wrapped in Daniel's robe, her body still humming from another night tangled in sheets that weren't hers, she stared at herself and asked the question she couldn't escape anymore.
Who am I becoming?
She didn't have an answer.
Days had blurred into nights, her world divided between two men—her husband, Theo, who was now attentive, kind, trying desperately to win her back… and Daniel, the man who gave her escape, passion, and something dangerously close to addiction. It wasn't just the sex—it was how he made her feel desired, powerful, and momentarily free of guilt.
But that guilt always came crashing back.
Theo had noticed. He hadn't said anything directly, but he watched her now with a quiet intensity. He bought her favorite flowers. Cooked dinner. Ran her baths. And when they made love, it was soft, slow… but Lena lay there unmoved, hearing his whispers but feeling Daniel's breath in her mind.
Still, she tried.
She went back to the store, threw herself into work, managed events, and even hosted a book reading. She smiled at customers. Laughed when Mira came around with her newlywed glow. But inside, she was drowning in a secret she no longer knew how to hide.
One evening, after Theo fell asleep on the couch watching a movie he picked just because she liked it, Lena picked up her phone. She stared at Daniel's name for what felt like forever. She didn't text. She didn't need to. She knew she'd see him tomorrow.
The next day, Theo left early for a consulting meeting. Lena didn't even wait an hour before leaving too.
Daniel opened the door in sweatpants and a smirk. "Miss me already?"
She didn't answer. She kissed him.
Hours later, as they lay together in a lazy tangle of bodies and sheets, Daniel looked at her. "Are you ever going to leave him?"
Lena blinked. The question felt like ice in her veins.
"I… I don't know."
Daniel laughed softly, not mockingly, but with a kind of resignation. "You don't have to. I'm not asking. I'm just wondering if you ever think about it."
"I do," she admitted. "But thinking doesn't mean I will."
He nodded. "Fair enough."
That night, she returned to Theo late, claiming the store inventory had taken longer than expected. He believed her—or at least pretended to. He didn't question. He just pulled her into a hug and whispered, "I'm glad you're home."
And as she clung to him, something cracked inside her. Not regret. Not shame. Just... exhaustion.
How long could she keep living two lives?
_____
The pregnancy test stared back at her. Two pink lines.
Lena felt the world tilt beneath her feet. Her hand trembled, the plastic stick falling into the sink with a soft clatter. She backed away, heart racing, eyes burning with a truth she never wanted to face.
She was pregnant. And it wasn't Theo's child.
She sat on the cold bathroom floor for a long time, the weight of her secret pressing into her ribs like stones. Her mind tried to do the math, to find loopholes, denials, anything—but the dates aligned too cruelly. Daniel was the father.
Theo came home that evening with takeout from her favorite Thai restaurant and a bottle of sparkling juice—he'd been trying to cut back on alcohol for her. He found her in the kitchen, pale and silent.
"What's wrong?" he asked, voice laced with concern.
She hesitated. Her throat burned. And then, softly, she whispered the lie that would bind her to him forever.
"I'm pregnant."
Theo froze, his eyes wide with disbelief. Then came the smile—slow, stunned, and radiant. He pulled her into a tight embrace. "Oh my God, baby… we're going to have a child."
Lena closed her eyes as he held her. She didn't deserve this joy. But it was too late to take it back.
She vowed that night—no more Daniel. No more lies. She would bury that part of her, raise this child with Theo, and never look back.
Days passed. Then a week.
Daniel, growing impatient, walked into the bookstore one quiet afternoon. Lena's heart nearly stopped when she saw him.
And worse—Theo was there too, rearranging a shelf like he always did when waiting for her to close up.
Daniel's eyes flicked between them, realization dawning. But he said nothing. Instead, he played the role she prayed he would.
"Beautiful place," he said to Theo with a friendly nod. "Your wife's got great taste in literature."
Theo smiled, offering his hand. "She's got great taste in everything."
They shook hands.
"I'm Daniel," he said smoothly. "Just browsing."
"Nice to meet you," Theo replied. "I'm Theo, her husband."
Lena couldn't breathe.
Daniel's gaze flicked to hers, calm but electric. "You're a lucky man."
Theo beamed, proud and clueless. "I know I am."
Daniel paid for a poetry book—Pablo Neruda, the irony too sharp—and left with a parting nod. "Congratulations, by the way. On the baby. You two make a great couple."
Lena stared at the door long after it closed, her world spinning inside out.
Theo wrapped an arm around her waist and kissed her temple. "You okay?"
She forced a smile. "Yeah. Just tired."
But inside, her soul screamed. Because lies don't dissolve with time—they deepen, rot, and one day… they explode.
The moment Daniel walked out of the bookstore, Lena's phone buzzed with a message.
> I want to see you this evening, baby.
She stared at the screen for a long time. Her fingers hovered over the keyboard, but she didn't respond. Her stomach twisted with nausea—not just from the pregnancy, but from the storm of guilt pressing down on her chest.
The thought of Daniel—his presence, his voice, his touch—still haunted her. But now, everything felt different. Her life was no longer only hers. A child, however unintended, now pulsed within her. And Theo… sweet, forgiving Theo… he had believed her lie.
That evening, her body finally gave in. Her hands trembled, and her vision blurred. Theo noticed immediately.
"You don't look good," he said, dropping a book mid-shelving.
"I think I need to see the doctor," Lena murmured, pressing her hand to her temple. "Can you close up the store for me?"
"I'll go with you," Theo offered.
"No, please. Just—just stay here. I need some air. I'll be back soon."
He hesitated, then nodded. "Call me if anything feels off, okay?"
She kissed his cheek, guilt digging deeper into her ribs.
Moments later, Lena was in her car, driving—not to the clinic—but to Daniel's house.
The familiar ache tightened in her chest the second she stepped into his apartment. The door clicked shut behind her. He appeared in the hallway, a towel slung low around his waist, droplets of water tracing down his chest from a recent shower. The scent of sandalwood and heat wrapped around her like smoke.
Daniel's eyes swept over her, soft and knowing. "You came."
Lena looked away, her breath shaky. "I shouldn't have."
"But you did," he whispered, stepping closer.
"I wanted to say goodbye," she said, voice trembling. "This… it has to stop. I'm pregnant, Daniel. And everyone believes it's Theo's. I can't keep doing this."
Daniel's expression didn't change. He nodded once, but there was something burning beneath his calm. "I know whose child it is," he said, gently. "I know it's mine."
She looked up sharply, stunned.
"I know you," he continued. "And I know what we had wasn't just sex. It was real. This baby… it's proof."
Lena's heart thundered in her chest. "Don't make this harder than it is."
He stepped behind her, his hands brushing her arms. "You still want me."
She flinched. "Daniel—"
His breath was warm near her ear. "Tell me you don't feel anything, and I'll let you walk out that door."
Her eyes welled with tears. She wanted to scream I don't, to erase the magnetic pull, to undo the path she'd wandered so far down. But the words never came.
Instead, silence settled around them like a blanket of fog.
She stayed for hours—talking, pacing, crying. But when Daniel reached for her again, Lena stepped back.
"No," she whispered. "Not tonight."
She left his apartment with her heart in shards and a lie growing inside her.
But deep down, she knew: the secrets she buried wouldn't stay hidden forever.