All too often we find ourselves in toxic relationships. It is even harder when you are married and slowly the person you love begins to change into a different person. This story is inspired by the readers at AmoMama is one many of us have lived ourselves, it is about finding the courage to leave and realizing that we can be happy without the person we thought we needed to be whole.
Trying to keep it together
Linda did everything she could to keep her husband happy. She had a highly demanding job which took up much of her time. Her husband Tim, however, had become a different person. As Linda climbed the corporate ladder, Tim chose to take a break from work.
Linda worked long hours, and since her husband was at home, she rightfully expected him to pick up duties such as shopping, cooking, and cleaning. It was only fair since she was working all day. Linda did not mind her husband not working, she just expected him to do more at home. A fair exchange without a doubt.
But Tim did not pick up the slack, instead, he became more grumpy, lazier, and more toxic towards his wife.
Demanding more
Tim demanded so much from Linda, yelling at her for dinner to be made when she was clearly tired after work. Tim never went shopping for food, leaving Linda to go to the store late in the evening. He refused to clean up, ordering takeaways and leaving his mess behind. He would not even wash the dishes or help with the washing. Linda was exhausted, but she loved her husband so dearly. She pushed on despite her lazy husband’s ways. She wanted it to work so badly. But she had no idea what was really going on. Thinking her husband was just depressed, Linda continued to work, continued to be abused and continued to allow Tim to do as he pleased. She told herself that he would once again become the man she fell in love with.
One evening, Linda felt ill. She was overworked and not looking after herself at all. She needed to rest.
A sickening truth
The couple woke up the following morning, knowing his wife was not well he still demanded breakfast. She got out of bed and made him a meal before crawling back into bed. She just could not go to work today, and she called in sick. Linda fell asleep thinking about how poorly Tim was treating her, he did not even care that she was sick. A few hours passed and Linda woke up, she could hear voices at the front door.
Linda got out of bed and made her way towards the front of the house, she noticed that the front door stood slightly ajar. She could hear Tim speaking to a woman in a hushed tone. So, she tip-toed slowly towards the door and peeped out. She saw Tim and a beautiful young woman holding hands, he whispered to her that his wife would wake up soon and that she should leave, to which the woman replied how she wished his wife was not home today. Tim told the woman that he would be sure to start an argument by Friday so that he could leave for the weekend with her. They both giggled and kissed. Linda, in absolute shock, held back her tears and made her way back to the bedroom.
Making a choice
Linda knew what she had to do. The next day, she waited for Tim to leave. He said he was going to go watch the football at a friend’s house. Linda felt much better but pretended to still be sick and in bed. Once Tim left, she called the locksmiths. She owned their home, and she was going to change the locks! Once the locks had been changed, Linda started packing up Tim’s belongings. She packed his clothing and some possessions into boxes and put them on the poach. It was Friday, and she knew Tim would be home soon to start that argument he had planned. Linda waited. Eventually, she heard Tim’s car pull into the driveway.
Not long after, Linda heard Tim knocking on the door, he yelled asking Linda why his key would not work and why his clothing was outside. Linda was disgusted that he could still stand there and pretend he had done nothing wrong. She opened a window and yelled at Tim to leave, telling him that she knew about his affair, and she knew her worth. She was done. Try as he may, she refused to let him inside the house. Eventually, Tim took his boxes and left.
Happy again
For weeks, Tim tried to convince Linda to take him back. But Linda knew that it was only because he was afraid of losing his comfort. She knew that nothing would change, and she was finally strong enough and ready to be alone without him. Linda filed for divorce, and soon that divorce was granted.
Being happy does not depend on anyone but yourself, and if someone is treating you poorly, gaining the courage to leave can be difficult, but once you have mustered that strength, you will finally realize that you can be happy again. We hope this story inspires you to leave any situation you are no longer happy with, be it a relationship, a job, or even a friendship. Remember that you deserve to be loved!
This story was inspired by an original piece of fiction that first appeared on AmoMama. Any similarities between this story and actual people is purely coincidental.