COVID-19 saved my marriage

As you can probably tell by the title, this is a reconciliation story. If that is not what you like in a story then please skip this one. I was debating whether to put this story in Romance because of the ending, or maybe even non-erotic because there is virtually no sex in this one. If you're looking for that then skip this one. I chose to put it here in LW because at the core of the story it involves cheating. I hope you like it, but even if you don't please leave a comment. I enjoy reading them. If you decide to read any of my other stories please feel free to comment there as well. I hope you are all staying healthy in this time of COVID

My name is Kurt Engstrom and this is how COVID-19 might have actually saved my marriage.

It's Memorial Day 2020 and I'm sitting at home where I have been, for the most part, since the last week of March. Our state put in a "Stay at Home" order on March 23^rd. Since then both my wife and I have been holed up, only occasionally going out, usually just to the grocery store.

She is an accountant and I am an architect, neither job are part of the "essential businesses". So, both of us are "required" to stay home and stay safe.

When the news really started hitting on this pandemic in mid-February I wasn't really concerned that much. It was in China or on some cruise ships in the Pacific. Some people started freaking out like it was the end of civilization. I didn't give it much credence, tens of thousands of Americans die every year from the regular flus, why was this one any different? Our Governor, however, proclaimed the "Stay at Home" order and so both our companies shut their doors, hopefully only temporarily.

The end of this week is supposed to be the end of the order, the Governor has started opening up the state, certain sectors, but has already extended previous ending dates three times, and there is talk that some aspects of it will be extended again. While our finances are taking a bit of a hit, we had cash reserves to fall back on. I won't mind if it is extended this time.

At the beginning of the "Stay at Home" order I thought that my wife, Audrey, and I would probably kill each other. We were not getting along at all. In fact, we were married only on paper. The 4 year itch had hit her. I know they say there is a 7 year itch, but I've spoken to enough people to know that there is also a 4 year itch.

She started stepping out on me probably about a year ago. I didn't realize it until about August. He was one of her rich clients. She had seen his financials and he had seen her assets. She was a smart and well put together woman, both physically and emotionally. He wanted another acquisition. Not another yacht, house or business, he wanted a wife, my wife. His name is Richard Hamilton, I refer to him as "Dick". He is in his mid-thirties, divorced, and an entrepreneur. He isn't particularly handsome, but his money helped him dress and look all that more appealing.

I first met him when he came into "our" bar -- Charlie's, one night when my wife and I were there. He came over to our table as we were sitting there with a few friends, just shooting the shit. She introduced him to us and then looked at him adoringly, then back at me nervously. He asked her to dance and she didn't even hesitate or look my way, but instead followed him out to the dance floor like a little puppy.

I realized then why she had been treating me the way she had for the last 3 months, and why our sex life had diminished greatly.

To her credit, she only danced one dance with him, but the look on her face said it all, she wished I wasn't there so she could spend all night dancing with him.

That next week it wasn't hard to find out what they were doing with each other. He didn't hide his intentions and would wine and dine her where all could see. I didn't say anything, our marriage had already turned into a sham.

That next week I went to Charlie's without her. I found a barfly that I had spoken with a number of times and we spent 3 hours in a motel room "getting acquainted". When I got home, around midnight, Audrey was already asleep. I guess that was a telltale sign of what our relationship had deteriorated into. She wasn't even upset that I had went out drinking without her.

In the morning she asked, "What time did you get in last night?"

"Around midnight. Spent the night at Charlie's, drinking with friends."

"Oh" was all she said.

You're probably asking yourself, "Why didn't he confront her, or file for divorce?" I asked myself that question also. I guess I didn't want to admit that our marriage was on a downward spiral to its demise.

Audrey and I had met in college and became serious in our senior year. When we graduated, her with an accounting degree and me with my architect degree, we thought we had the world by the tail. We both landed great jobs with respected firms and started making great money.

We got married a year later and were on top of the world, working hard to make names for ourselves. I guess we lost sight of what was really important, each other. By year 4 we were basically just going through the motions. Oh, don't get me wrong, I loved Audrey. She was my soulmate, at least that is what I told myself and anyone else that asked. We were just drifting apart because we lost focus and the drive for "us" as a couple. We were focused and driven to succeed in our individual professions.

After that night at Charlie's, when "Dick" made his appearance, tensions were high at home. We didn't have sex for about 6 weeks, at least not with each other.

One Saturday night Audrey hinted that she wanted a little "fun time" with me that night. When we went to our bedroom she undressed and came to bed nude. That was unusual. She had been sleeping in either a nightshirt or pajamas for at least the last 6 months. She said, "It's been a while, are you up for it tonight?"

I thought, "What the hell." I said to her, "Sure, I'll be right back." I went to my dresser and opened my wallet. I grabbed a condom out of it and tore open the package. I had never used a condom with her before, she was on the pill. She was looking at me, her expression one of slight confusion and then understanding. She turned over and got on her hands and knees. She was offering me "doggie style". I guess she either didn't want to look me in the eye or didn't want me to look at her.

For the next few months things didn't change much. About once a month she would offer me sex and it would always be "doggie style". I didn't have to look into her eyes, and likewise, she didn't have to look in mine. Of course, I always used a rubber.

I guess December is when I first heard about Covid-19, at least that is the first time I can recall hearing about it. Again, it was something on the other side of the world and didn't concern me too much. Audrey and I talked a little about it, but it was just in passing and was just something to talk about rather than our failing marriage.

One Friday in January I had come home right after work. Audrey wasn't there, I figured she was probably out with her "Dick". I changed into some jeans and headed out to the bar. As I was pulling out of the apartment complex Audrey was driving in. She called me as I drove toward the bar. "Hey, where you going?"

"To the bar." I said.

"Okay" she said.

"Whatever." Was my response and I hung up.

I was sitting at the bar, finishing my first beer, when my phone rang, it was Audrey.

"Hello?" I said.

"Where are you at?" She said questioningly.

"At the bar." I told her.

"I don't see you." She said.

"Where are you at?"

"Charlie's." She said.

"Why are you there?" I asked.

"To have a drink with you." She responded

"I'm not at Charlie's."

"Why not?" She asked.

"I stopped going there sometime in September, I didn't want to chance running into "Dick" since he knew we went there."

"Oh," She said, then asked, "So where are you at?"

"O'Grady's, but there is nothin' happening here so I probably won't stay long."

"So, you don't want me to come over there?"

"Wouldn't make any sense to come over here if I'm going to be leaving shortly." I said.

"Oh, okay. I'll see you at home then." She said.

In retrospect, I think she was trying to reach out to me to reconnect with me. I either didn't get it or didn't want to. We had been so unlike husband and wife for so long that I didn't see any reason to try anymore.

When I walked in the house at 11:30 I could tell she was mad.

"I thought you were coming right home?" She said.

"No, I went to the Tip-A-Few after I left O'Grady's." I let the conversation die there. I saw no reason to argue with her. I walked to the guest bedroom and spent the night there.

In the morning she was as chilly as the weather outside. I didn't stick around to endure her mood. I took off and spent the day avoiding the apartment. When I did come home, I noticed that she had been crying. "Maybe "Dick" dumped her." I thought.

Over the next week things went back to normal; work, gym, home, sleep, repeat. I knew that before too long something had to change. We couldn't continue on like this indefinitely. That something happened a few weeks later.

It was the middle of February and there were reports of cruise ships being quarantined and some passengers being quarantined on a military base north of San Francisco. It was on the West Coast so nothing to make me worry.

The last week of February, however, Audrey got sick, a bad case of the flu. It was flu season so nothing unusual about that. We didn't worry that it was COVID-19, since they weren't even talking about it being in our area. I nursed her back to health as best I could. During her sickness, however, she started being appreciative of everything I did for her.

The next week she was getting ready to go back to work when she stopped me in the doorway of our bedroom as I was about to head out to work. "Kurt." She said.

"Yes?" I replied.

"Thank you for helping me last week while I was sick. I'm glad I could count on you."

"No problem." I said, "I know you would do the same for me."

A couple weeks later is when the Governor put the "Stay at Home" order in place. That first week we didn't say much to each other, I guess we each thought that the other had let them down. By the second week we were at each other's throats. We were tensed, frustrated, and going stir crazy. I'm sure she was missing her "Dick". I know they were talking to each other on the phone, I overheard her a couple times whining about being stuck at home.

I have to admit, at that point I was seriously contemplating divorce. However, lawyer's offices and the courts were "non-essential" so that would have to wait. I thought to myself, "I bet there are a lot of lawyers that have bruised egos after being told they are "non-essential".

One afternoon Audrey got a call and she took it outside on the deck. I didn't hear much of the conversation, but I know she had to be talking to "Dick". When she came inside, she was visibly upset. I didn't know whether to ask about it or not, so I didn't say anything.

That evening I heard her in the bathroom crying. I still cared about her so I had to ask, "Audrey, are you okay?" I said through the door.

"Go away." She said.

"Go away where?" I replied.

"I don't care, just don't bother me!" She yelled.

"Audrey, you're obviously upset. Just know that even though you may not love me anymore you can still talk to me. We did love each other once."

I heard her crying more now.

"I'm sorry Audrey, I hope you feel better." I said. It did pain me to hear her crying. I wondered what was said during that phone conversation to get her so upset.

I went into the living room and sat on the couch watching some show. I couldn't tell you what it was now, just some show. I was deep in thought. "How had we gotten to this point?" That is when I determined that we had lost our focus. The question was, "Could we ever get it back?"

About an hour later she came out and sat on the other end of the couch. Her eyes were red and puffy from crying. I patted my lap and she laid her head down on it. It had literally been years since she had done that. I stroked her brown hair and didn't say a word. She would tell me if she thought it would help.

After about a half hour I could tell that she had fallen asleep. I looked at her face lying there in my lap and I started crying. "How had we drifted so far apart?" I thought. "When we were first married, we were going to conquer the world together. Now we can't even share our problems."

At 11:00 I gently shook her. She roused groggily. "Let me put you to bed." I told her. She sat up and I got up off the couch. She was just sitting there, half asleep. I picked her up, one arm under her legs and the other arm supporting her back. I carried her into our bedroom and laid her down on the bed, pulling a blanket over her.

I went to the guestroom to spend the night. When we had first gotten an apartment we thought it would be best to get a two bedroom just in case a baby came along. We had planned on three kids, now that was just a pipe dream -- up in smoke.

Sometime around 1:00 I was awoken by Audrey climbing into bed with me. She snuggled up to me and I put my arm around her.

We woke in the morning and she was still snuggled into my shoulder. It had been a long time since we had woken up this way. I looked at her as she looked up at me. I kissed her forehead.

"I'm sorry I yelled at you yesterday." She said.

At the risk of wreaking the mood, I asked, "Was that Richard on the phone yesterday?"

She looked at me, her face turning to sorrow. "I'm sorry Kurt, I've hurt you so bad."

"We're both guilty of hurting each other." I said. Then I hesitantly said, "If you want, we can start the divorce proceedings as soon as the state opens back up. Whatever you want, we can work it out."

She started crying and buried her head in my chest. I just laid there, breathing softly. After a few minutes she said, "He's sick, he's got the virus. They don't know if he will recover, he is that bad."

"I'm sorry Audrey, I know you love him." I said even though it pained me to say it.

She lifted her head up and looked into my eyes. "Oh Kurt, I'm so sorry. I guess I gave up on us."

"I think we both gave up. I'm sorry for that."

She hesitated and then said, "I'd like to see him in the hospital. Do you think they would let me?"

"I don't know if they will. Maybe you should give the hospital a call." I told her.

After a few more minutes of lying there together we got up and I went in to take a shower. When I came out, I smelled bacon frying. I smiled a little smile. This was something else we hadn't done in a long time, have a homemade breakfast together. For the last couple years, including the last 3 weeks in isolation, we just had coffee and a bagel for breakfast.

We had an enjoyable breakfast together. There was no longer any animosity present between us.

After breakfast she called the hospital. They told her that they were not allowing visitors, but when she explained that she was worried that she may have been the one to infect him, they wanted her to come in to be tested.

"I'll drive you there." I said. She looked at me with a sorrowful look on her face.

"You don't have to do that." She said.

"I know." I replied.

She looked at me for a minute and then said, "Why are you being so nice to me?"

"We loved each other once." I said. "I'm sorry that I'm not everything you want me to be."

At that she started crying again and then said, "If you would drive me, I would really appreciate it. I don't think I'm in the right frame of mind to drive."

At the hospital, the first thing the nurses did was have Audrey get tested and asked about her recent illness. We wouldn't know for a day if she actually had had the virus. (It turns out that she did, we had no idea how she contracted it. That meant that I probably had had it too but was asymptomatic.)

They suited her up and allowed her to see Richard. I waited in the waiting room, after about 20 minutes she came back out.

"That was quick, did they kick you out?"

"No, he was asleep on a ventilator. He looked so weak and powerless lying in the bed."

"I'm sorry Audrey." Was all I could say.

On the way home she was silent. Occasionally I would see her, out of the corner of my eye, look over at me. I just kept my eyes forward on the road.

As we arrived at the apartment she again said, "Thank you Kurt, I really appreciate you doing that for me."

"No problem, Audrey, at least it got me out of the apartment."

When we got in the door she went straight to our bedroom. I left her alone with her thoughts. About 15 minutes later I heard some activity coming from the bedroom. It sounded like she was moving boxes around. I peeked in and saw the suitcases, we kept in the back of our closet, sitting in the middle of the room. I turned and walked away, a little tear forming in my eye.

I went back to the living room. I grabbed a piece of paper and pen and started making a list. The list was the things that I wanted from our years together; my tools, my truck, the guest bedroom furniture, some pots and pans, silverware, serving utensils, knives, the T.V. and gaming console, and also the souvenir refrigerator magnet we got on our honeymoon in the Caymans. Everything else she could keep.

I started looking on online for apartments for rent. We were on a month to month lease so she could keep the apartment and take over the payment. I decided to take a drive and try to see some of the complexes that were advertising. I yelled to Audrey, "I'm going out for a while."

She called back, "Will you be back by suppertime?"

"I'm not sure, I'll call you if it's going to be too late."

I drove around thinking as I looked at the apartment complexes. "How did we get to where we were at? I know when we got married we loved each other. Where did that love go?" To be honest, though, I still loved her. When I saw her with "Dick" all those months ago I couldn't believe it. Sure, I looked at women, but I never strayed before I saw her and the way she was looking at him. After I saw that it was, "Why not? If she is going to, I might as well do it too."

I drove past a couple different apartment complexes that had promise. They both had a workout complex with a pool included for only $50 more per month. I decided that I needed to tone up some if I was going to be divorced soon.

As I drove back to our apartment, I decided that I would talk to Audrey tonight and let her know she could keep the apartment and I would find my own.

As I approached the door to our apartment, I heard what I thought was news on the T.V. Audrey wasn't usually one to watch the news, I wondered what was been said. "They're probably extending the "Stay at Home" order, I thought to myself.

As I opened the door, I saw her sitting on the couch, crying. I looked at the T.V. and saw our wedding DVD playing. "She must have found it in the closet." I realized. I just stood there, half in and half out of the apartment.

I watched as the minister was talking. He was welcoming all our guests (about 200 of them) to our wedding ceremony. Audrey looked up at me from the couch. Tears were streaming down her face. I closed the door behind me and went to sit on the couch beside her.

"What happened to us?" She asked.

"I've been thinking about that." I said.

She paused the DVD and turned to me, giving me her full attention.

"I think we both focused on our careers and let our marriage go on autopilot."

She didn't say anything, but nodded her head in a way that made me think that she knew exactly what I was saying. She turned back to the T.V. and started the DVD again. We both sat there in silence watching ourselves from five years ago.