I Ended a 20-Year Marriage When My Wife’s Secret Was Suddenly Revealed

Whether it occurs due to unrealistic expectations, a decline in love, or low self-esteem, cheating is a common phenomenon and often serves as the primary cause of marital breakdown. A man recently discovered a significant secret from his wife’s past, and despite enjoying what seemed like a happy marriage for two decades, he continues to struggle with forgiving her to this day.

The man’s marriage appeared to be exceptionally joyful and fulfilling throughout all this time.

A 43-year-old man turned to Reddit seeking solace and guidance from empathetic individuals. He and his 44-year-old wife have celebrated 20 years of wedded bliss. In his narrative, the man highlighted the fact that he and his now-wife began their relationship during high school, with him as a junior and her as a senior. During the initial two years of his wife’s college, they navigated a long-distance relationship while he was still in high school.

Both of them completed a year at community college before attending college in the same city for an additional year. From that point on, they have shared a living space. The couple tied the knot the summer after the man’s college graduation. Their marriage has been largely fulfilling for both partners, or so the man believed. However, recently, he made the difficult decision to initiate divorce proceedings. The catalyst for this decision was the revelation that his wife had been unfaithful with multiple men, with the most painful discovery being the period during which it occurred.

The distressing secret came to light during a regular dinner with friends.

“Just after Christmas, we got together with a few friends of hers from college to catch up, have dinner, and hang out. We talked about a lot of stuff, and my wife mentioned that we met in high school (not that we dated, just that we met). Her old college roommate commented that it was crazy that we met in high school, had a few wild years in college, then ended up together. I played along and commented that I didn’t know if my wife was as crazy as I was,” he recalls.

The roommate started to tell a story, but the man’s wife suddenly cut her off and said she was uncomfortable about it. The man wrote that he sensed something was up, so he said that they actually started dating in high school and were together for his wife’s entire time at college. All of his wife’s friends got real quiet and the rest of the dinner was awkward. On the way out, one of her other roommates took the man aside and said he should have “an honest conversation” about what happened at college.

The man is struggling to come to terms with the recent revelation.

“I asked my wife on the way home, and she kind of blew me off. I told her it was important that she was honest with me, and again she said it wasn’t important. When we got home, I told her I was going to stay at my brother’s house until she was ready to talk about what happened in college,” the man disclosed.

The following day, the woman visited and confessed to having cheated on her husband with “several” men during her first two years at college. She conveyed that, at the time, she didn’t perceive it as a significant issue due to the long-distance nature of their relationship, and she doubted the sustainability of their high school romance. The man pressed for more details, and she said it was at least 10 different men, including at least 3 guys she introduced to him as friends when he came to visit on weekends and 1 guy she was still in contact with. The man promptly made the decision to initiate divorce proceedings and intended to commence the paperwork at the earliest opportunity.

And here’s yet another complex life story of a woman who canceled her husband’s birthday party after overhearing what he whispered to her 15-year-old daughter.