Concealment

The following is a work of fiction.

Cheryl had a secret. She wasn't going to tell a soul until the right time came. But how? Surely it would be a disappointment to some. To one person at least it would be devastating. To worry about that after all this time would be absolutely fruitless.

About a month ago she had gotten a major promotion. It was in Portland, Oregon. That meant relocation from her town in Virginia. She was ridiculously excited... and scared. After all, Chuck would not want to come with her. He wouldn't want to leave his son. Besides if she was this eager for the job and was determined to take it did she really love Chuck all that much anyway? Probably not as much as she should have.

While mulling all these things over in her head Cheryl failed to pay attention to where she was walking. She stepped right into a giant mud puddle. "Crap, crap, crap!" She cleaned herself off as best she could and continued to walk along to the bus stop.

What would she tell Chuck? She knew he would be crushed. Would he call her an ungrateful bitch? Would he cry? She actually would prefer to be called a bitch or any other name than have to deal with a man crying. Yuck!

She took the stairs to her second floor apartment. She was digging around in her purse for her keys when she heard the noise. It was Chuck's voice and a... woman? Cheryl opened the door slowly and quietly. She rounded the corner to the living room where she found Chuck and his ex wife on the couch. They were in a very compromising position indeed and having quite a lot of fun at it.

Cheryl almost laughed at the looks on their faces when she dropped her purse loudly. "Oh, don't let me interrupt you! Carry on. I'll be in the bedroom changing."

Chuck burst in after her completely naked and sputtering. "I can explain. Give me a minute. I'll-

"Don't trouble yourself, Charlie." She only ever called him Charlie when she was angry. This time there was a definite coldness to her manner. She knew that this was the perfect time. She was inwardly thanking him for giving her a reason to break up with him. "It looks like we both have been concealing things from one another. I think it's time we came clean."

The End