I’ve been with my fiancé, Adam, for six years, and we were all set to get married next month. But everything changed during a visit to my parents’ house when he stumbled upon their secret lifestyle, which made him question our relationship.
We were excited to introduce Adam to my extended family before the big day. My parents insisted we stay at their house, and I thought it would be fun to share my old room with him. Adam, however, preferred a hotel. “I don’t see why staying in your childhood home is going to change anything,” he said, looking uncertain.
“It’s a good thing,” I reassured him as I handed him a plate. “You’re supposed to feel welcome and at home with my family, too.”
That night, we all went to bed early, ready for a family outing to the local theme park the next day. But Adam couldn’t sleep. He kept tossing and turning.
“What’s going on?” I finally asked, turning to face him.
“I just can’t sleep, Sasha,” he snapped. “This bed is lumpy and uncomfortable. I’m not used to sleeping in beds that aren’t my own.”
“Just take a walk outside,” I suggested, feeling frustrated. “The fresh air will help, and you’ll come back and fall asleep.”
“Fine,” he said, getting out of bed and leaving the room.
Just as I was about to drift off, a scream shattered the quiet night. My heart raced as I bolted upright. What was happening? Was there someone in the house? I felt panic rising in my chest. Suddenly, Adam stormed back into the room.
“What happened?” I blurted out, feeling uneasy. Adam’s face was twisted with horror and anger. He paused for a moment before shouting, “I can’t believe it! Your mom! Sasha! Your mother! She’s kissing another man in the foyer!”
My heart sank. I had always feared this moment, when my parents’ unconventional marriage would come to light. I desperately tried to calm him down. “Wait, let me explain,” I urged, but he wasn’t listening.
“Call your dad, Sasha,” Adam demanded. “Tell him that your mom is cheating right here in your own home.”
It made sense to him, but I knew it was far more complicated.
Before I could respond, my mom walked in, still straightening her clothes. “I can explain,” she started, but Adam interrupted.
“Explain? What’s there to explain? You’re cheating on your husband in his own home!” he shouted.
“It’s not cheating, darling,” my mom said softly. “Sasha knows, and she’ll explain it all to you. Shaun and my marriage is different. Very different. You need to understand that, Adam, before you judge us.”
Adam turned to me, his eyes wide with disbelief. “You knew? You knew about this, and you didn’t tell me?”
I reached out to him, but he recoiled. “I didn’t know how to tell you. I’m not proud of keeping this secret. But it wasn’t mine to tell.”
“Sasha!” he said, throwing his hands up in frustration. “You should have told me! This isn’t something you keep hidden from the person you’re going to marry! I don’t know if I can trust you now. Was this a setup? Did you want to introduce me to this lifestyle?”
At that moment, I felt overwhelmed. I couldn’t understand what Adam was getting at. Suddenly, a memory flooded back from when I was 16. My friends and I had planned a sleepover at my house. “You have the biggest room, Sasha,” my friend Brielle said excitedly. “Let’s have it at your place.”
“Sure! I don’t think my parents will mind at all!” I replied, feeling eager. “We can watch movies in the living room since my parents have a TV in their room now.”
“I’ll bring my cotton candy machine!” Brielle exclaimed. “We can have that and popcorn!”
I remember telling my mom about our plans, and she smiled enthusiastically. “Sure, honey,” she said. “You girls can take care of yourselves. Dad and I have a dinner that evening.”
But later that night, everything changed. As my friends and I sat on the couch, my parents walked in with another couple. My mom was holding a man’s hand, while my dad kissed the other woman. Their shocked expressions told me I was about to learn something big.
“We are married to each other, and we love each other,” my mom explained gently. “We’re committed, honey. But we’re also allowed to see other people if we want to. There’s nothing wrong with the way we are. You need to understand that.”
Listening to Adam, I felt the same flood of emotions. “No, it’s nothing like that,” I said urgently. “I am dedicated to you. I don’t want that lifestyle.”
But Adam wasn’t hearing me. Instead, he started talking about his mother’s infidelity that led to his parents’ divorce, which made him see betrayal everywhere. “Everything is a red flag for me, Sasha.”
He packed a bag and left for a hotel, saying he needed time to reevaluate our engagement. I spent the rest of the night crying, the weight of my parents’ choices crashing down on my relationship.
“You need to talk to him,” my mother urged, handing me a cup of coffee. “Just go to him.”
I joined Adam at the hotel. We barely spoke; the silence was heavy with everything left unsaid. I wasn’t sure if he still wanted to be with me. I suggested we move to my grandmother’s house for the rest of our stay so we could talk comfortably.
“Yeah, that sounds okay,” he said. “This hotel is too cold anyway.”
There was a chill between us that hadn’t been there before.
“I’ve never kept secrets from you,” I told him. “I didn’t know how to bring it up. It’s not something I like talking about because I struggled to understand it myself.”
Adam sighed, rubbing his temples. “I get it. But this feels too close to home, Sasha,” he said. “I just need some time.”
The rest of the week at my grandmother’s house was tough. We tried to finish the family visit in the best spirits we could muster. My parents apologized to Adam, but it didn’t change much. Their actions had triggered something deep inside him.
On the drive home, Adam and I talked. We both wanted to stay together and see where life would take us, but I suggested, “I think we need to go to therapy.”
“I think that’s a good idea,” he replied, biting his lip. “I need to uncover my own trauma before accepting your parents.”
Now, Adam and I have started talking about everything—his fears, my shame, our future. We know we can only heal from this together.
What would you have done in my shoes?
If you enjoyed this story, here’s another one for you. My Entitled Parents Demanded That I Give Them My New House — My In-Laws Suddenly Stood up for Me. When Carina’s parents kicked her out after high school, she had no choice but to navigate her way through life.
Years later, just as she was about to get married, they stormed back into her life, trying to take ownership of what she had worked so hard for.
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