John and Donna’s 18 years long marriage was a testament to love, dedication and communication to anyone who knew them. The couple had married young and created a warm home for their children.
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And while they had disagreements like every married couple, after all these years it still seemed like their marriage and relationship was going from strength to strength or at least that is what John thought! All it took was a toy drone which broke the perfect facade Donna had created for all these years.
The Beginning Of The End
The couple had been living in Honesdale, Pennsylvania for most of their life, in a spacious family home that looked like it belonged in a magazine. As far as appearances went, John and Donna’s was spotless.
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Before it all broke apart, John would always compliment his wife, her devotion and just how grateful he was for the life they had been able to create together, so when he decided to buy a drone he never thought that it would all soon come crumbling down.
The Subtle Clues
John worked from home, and Donna had a job in the local area. Every day, Donna would walk her way to work. They had a good routine that had been perfected throughout the years but rather unexpectedly, John started noticing that Donna acting quite unusual.
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It all started when she would arrive home late from work. While this might be expected in most households as we mentioned above, John knew Donna’s commute time and route by heart and it was very rare that Donna would come home, especially without a clear reason why.
Getting Suspicious
After all that the pair had been through, John wasn’t ready to think the worst about his loved wife all because she was coming home late from work, which was turning out to be a regular thing now.
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It was only when he started noticing Donna acting distant and distracted towards him, did he truly realize that his paranoia was warranted. At first, he tried not to think about the possibility of Donna having an affair, but after a while, it all but seem obvious.
An Idea
You see, John was a photographer and with his wife’s reason change in personality only heightening his suspicious, he decided that it was time to take action. But John did something, that probably wasn’t wise but gave him the truth finally.
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He decided to buy a drone and record his wife, while she was coming from “late” from work one day. John wasn’t thinking clearly, and while the logical part of his brain told him it was nothing, his heart knew something was going on.
Going Undercover
As the days turned into weeks, John’s suspicions only grew stronger and he decided to bite the bullet and finally set up his undercover mission to find out exactly why his wife suddenly started coming home late from work.
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As Donna was getting ready for work that morning, John felt extremely nervous. He had a lump in his throat, and he hoped that Donna wasn’t cheating after all but he knew today was the day to be sure so, he grabbed his drone and decided to follow her home.
Second-Guessing
As John was walking to Donna’s work, he still tried to convince himself that nothing was going on. He felt even felt bad for being so sly with his wife of 18 years but his gut told him that there was definitely something wrong and he needed proof.
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As her office came closer, John was rethinking his decision. Was he being too paranoid? He knew that if Donna wasn’t guilty of anything and was only being kept late by her boss, he would look like a fool and would have done more harm than good to their steady marriage.
Didn’t Know What to Expect
But it was all too late to go back now and when he arrived at her workplace and spotted Donna leaving work exactly at her usual time, he knew his suspicions were right! He watched hidden, as his wife left the driveaway and headed exactly the opposite direction from home.
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This is when John pulled up his drone in the air, with his heart racing and sweat beading down his forehead, he knew even before he saw the proof that Donna was in fact being unfaithful to him.
Shocked
Though, to confront his wife he needed proof, so he continued to film her with the drone. John was finding it very hard to keep the drone in the air as he watched his wife, women he thought he knew, walk towards an unknown location.
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John’s heart sank. Had he been right? Was Donna on her way to meet another man? Even now he tried to come up with explanations for this. Maybe Donna had plans to get drinks with co-workers or catch up with an old friend but if that was the case, why hadn’t she mentioned anything to John?
Getting Into A Car
As Donna walked straight through the empty car park to the dark car waiting for her, even John couldn’t come up with a reasonable explanation even though he so desperately hoped for it. He wanted to be wrong, to not face the truth staring at him.
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As soon as she reached the car, Donna checked herself out in the side view mirror and pulled down her ponytail. John thought ‘Is she brushing her hair? I don’t know what she’s doing. She’s making sure her hair looks all nice for this [person]’.
How Could She Do This?
As Donna reached the car, any hopes that John had of being wrong were utterly dashed. He watched in horror, as his wife leaned down to the driver’s seat window, and passionately kissed the man who was sitting inside.
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She then proceeded to sit in the passenger’s seat and his wife and this stranger, rolled out of the car park, leaving John behind with his drone and a broken heart. While he knew something was wrong, seeing it all happen made it speechless and heavy with emotion.
Trying To Stay Calm
After what felt like an eternity, John finally convinced himself to get up from his hiding spot and go home and give his wife a piece of his mind. His walk home was clouded with sadness and anger.
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He was furious at Donna for betraying him like this. He was even more outraged at the man for having an affair with his wife. This man had ruined not only their marriage but the lives of their children.
The Children!
As he thought more and more about how this news would affect his children, John started to calm down. While Donna might be selfish enough to cheat and not think of their family, John was not going to follow suit.
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Instead of having a screaming match in front of their kids with Donna, as soon as she came home he decided to wait and fully think about what he was going to say to her. He mulled things over for a couple of days whilst he decided the best course of action.
Her Reaction
And for two days, John acted as a loving husband to Donna, who he knew was cheating on her but one day, he finally found the right time where they wouldn’t have the kids around them to witness what he was about to say to his wife.
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John wasn’t sure how Donna would react to the confrontation. Would she be sorry? Would she try to lie or explain away the situation? All John wanted was the truth and as he replayed the drone footage for Doona, she immediately broke down.
Betrayed
Her crying only made John angrier about the affair! If Donna was so guilty about what she had done why had she done it in the first place! But as Donna explained why she did what she did, John’s resolve began to break. Despite the anger he felt, he had to try to understand his wife’s behaviour. To understand the reasons behind what she had done.
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She told John about the man and told him that she’d only seen him a few times. She insisted that it was nothing serious and swore that she would end it but regardless, he knew Donna had broken their relationship beyond repair.
No Forgiveness For Donna
While, John accepted that Donna was sorry, but it just wasn’t enough. He simply couldn’t trust Donna anymore after everything they had been through together and their one blessed relationship turned one full of fights and resentment.
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This is when the couple finally decided that things needed to change. John asked Donna to move out and while Donna had ended things with the other man, it just wasn’t a little too late. John felt as though he didn’t know Donna anymore, and having her around caused him too much pain.
Strong Feelings
This is usually the end of most relationship stories but Donna and John’s wouldn’t just end because they weren’t living together. Remember, the couple had a family together and this meant that they had to be present in each other lives if they liked it or not.
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And despite all his pain, John had to admit that without Donna, left just wasn’t as good. He felt sad and alone and after 18 years, he had built a life with her and adjusting on his own was harder than he thought it would be.
Wanting Donna Back
His pain and anger were still there but the hole Donna left behind, felt far bigger than anything else. He wanted her back and while everyone told him that was a step backwards, John knew in his heart it was the right thing to do.
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Donna had always stayed true to John, even though they weren’t living together. She would always ask John to reconsider and never stopped saying she was sorry. So, when John let it slip that he missed her, it was all the sign Donna needed.
Donna Moved Back In With John
John’s desire to be back with Donna felt more and more like the right choice, as he and Donna began discussing what went wrong in their relationship for them to get to this point and John did realize that he too shared some of the blame which ended with Donna cheating.
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Even with the heartbreak, the couple’s love for each other was still strong and their commitment and John’s ability to forgive, allowed Donna to move back into the family home. This seemed like the first step to their happily ever after.
Working Things Out
While Donna was moving back in, John hadn’t forgotten about the affair and knew that the couple had a lot of other issues that they needed to work on but the life they had created together, seemed worth it to fight for each other.
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The couple has taken things slow and while they do live together and have reconciled, their marriage did take a huge hit but the duo decided to focus more on their commitment to being together than all the things that went wrong.
Saved Their Marriage
Things have been going well for the couple and they feel surer than ever that they want to be together. For Donna, the time apart was a stark reminder of how much she loved her husband, and what a huge mistake she made.
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She regrets having an affair completely, but surprisingly, she has positive things to say about the way her husband caught her out, which only helped to heal their relationship in end.
Stronger Than Ever
John also seems to view this affair as something that brought them closer, going as far as sating that the drone and its footage saved their marriage. According to John, if he hadn’t caught Donna when he did, the couple might never have had the chance to repair themselves.
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This story shows that true love isn’t as simple as fairy tales make it seem and real long-lasting relationships are built on forgiveness, compromise and above all, commitment. John and Donna are the perfect examples of all three.