Everybody Except Me

Again, a thank you to the fine folks at Specialized Iterations for their help on this story.

As I lay in bed spooned around the best wife any man could ever have, I reviewed my day with a smile on my face. I went to work at a job I loved and came home to the greatest family in the world. I played tag in the backyard with my two wonderful kids, ate a great meal and watched a baseball game on TV with the family. After the kids went to bed, my wife of 21 years and I enjoyed a satisfying, loving romp in the bedroom, where I brought her to orgasm three times before joining her in bliss.

We cuddled together and kissed several times in our afterglow before my wife drifted into sleep and rolled onto her side away from me. I wrapped my left arm around her and smiled inwardly. Yeah, I was nothing special, and nothing I did during the day was special. I was a boring guy leading a life most people would probably say was boring. How great was that?

Unfortunately, I didn't know it was to be the last such day.

I got the phone call a little before noon. Carrie was crying and almost hysterical, and I was having a hard time understanding her. If I understood her correctly, she said something about our son, Troy, kidney disease and hospital. I told her I would meet her there in 20 minutes. I quickly explained things to my boss and flew out the door.

Eighteen minutes and somehow no tickets later, I was at the hospital, talking face to face with Dr. Michael Fierstos in the hospital emergency room, where my son was taken doubled over in pain less than an hour before. How he went from being a normal, healthy high school freshman to having stage three chronic kidney disease was a mystery to the doctor, who told me a specialist was coming down to look at my son.

Carrie and I did our best to appear upbeat in front of our son, but it wasn't easy. Carrie quickly googled chronic kidney disease on her phone, but I just hung out at the bedside with Troy, joking and kidding. Carrie stood off to the side reading, sniffling back tears and looking paler as she kept reading. Several times she looked up from her phone and we locked eyes, at which point I could see that it didn't look good for our son.

That was confirmed by the specialist, Dr. Brendan Nicholas, 45 minutes later. He told us that Troy needed a kidney transplant fairly quickly if he was going to survive until high school graduation, even with dialysis.

Troy handled the news well for a 14-year-old, breaking into tears immediately. I can't say I blamed him. Carrie joined him seconds later.

Dr. Nicholas explained to us that while kidney transplants are fairly common these days, finding a match was still not a certainty. A familial match would be best, and probably the easiest, he said, but the problem with that was I was an only child and Carrie had just one sibling, who had two underage children, who were not eligible to donate, the same as Troy's 17-year-old sister. Including four living grandparents, that made just seven possibles in the family. They were all tested and ruled out within the week. To say our family was devastated would have been the understatement of the year.

Our doctors, however, were more upbeat than we were... or at least they acted that way. Still... it wasn't looking good for Troy. There were a lot of tears shed at the hospital and the Novak home for a week after the seven of us were ruled out.

One of my favorite TV show lines of all time is from Monty Python's Flying Circus, "Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition." To warp that a bit, nobody also expects a miracle... but that's what we seemingly got about a week later, and it came from an unlikely source half a world away.

Carrie and I called Sergio Santiago, an 18-year-old who was the son of our two very good friends, Jorge and Robbie Santiago, a nephew because of how close we are to the Santiago family, but technically we weren't in any way related... that I knew of... until it was shown that we... or at least Carrie and him... were... and he was a three-way transplant match to our Troy.

"As we've said, Mr. Novak, having a family match is the best... and a half-sibling is almost as good as a full sibling," Dr. Nicholas enthused.

"But doc, he's not a half... oh shit! Oh fuck!" I blurted out as Dr. Nicholas looked on in horror.

My brain wasn't firing on all cylinders for a split-second... until it caught up. At first, all I was hearing was a miracle for Troy. Then all I was hearing was the end of my marriage as I knew it. I looked over at Carrie, who seemed to be trying to disappear right before my eyes.

"Carr... baby... oh shit, baby," I whispered.

She looked away, but I could see her face and neck color deeply. I stood stock still, waiting for her to say something. Five seconds passed, then 10. I cleared my throat.

"I can't worry about anything right now except Troy," she said. "I called. I had to try. For Troy."

"Thank you for thinking of somebody else this time," I responded in a bland voice.

Hopefully, we had our miracle, because we no longer had a marriage.

She looked at me directly for the first time in several minutes and narrowed her eyes.

"Not now, Josh. I don't have time for this shit."

I heard what she was saying and I understood it... for what it was worth.

"How long will it take them to get here?" I asked.

"They'll be here a week from Thursday," she said quietly.

"Good. They can stay with us, as usual," I responded.

The Santiagos had stayed with us about a half-dozen times through the years. Our basement had been converted into a full-on guest suite with a master bedroom, a smaller bedroom and a full bath. It wasn't quite the five-star hotel that the Santiagos usually stayed in, but again, they were family. Family. Yeah, right.

******

Carrie and Robbie were roommates at Iowa State University for their last two years. Robbie and Jorge were already a couple by the time I started going out with Carrie a little before Christmas of our junior year.

It took me some time to develop a relationship with Jorge. He was the son of a rich Spanish businessman and was kind of a rich douchebag playboy. I came to realize, though, that he was basically a nice guy without a mean bone in his body, and a lot of his doucheyness came because he hadn't really lived in the real world until he came to the United States to attend college.

We eventually worked up to a pretty good friendship, although a lot of it was still centered around the women in our lives. They were best friends as well as roommates, and there were even rumors on campus that they were more than just friends. I had never seen any evidence of that.

Jorge and Robbie married six months after we all graduated. Carrie was maid of honor, and I also attended as a guest. Robbie was then Carrie's matron of honor at our wedding in Champaign, Illinois, six months after that, and of course we had Jorge in attendance as well.

******

I can't even begin to describe how busy our lives suddenly became. In addition to Troy needing dialysis every day, there seemed to be legions of doctors and nurses around at all times. There was so much to consider, from the surgery to the aftercare, all the medicines that would be needed and the psychological aspects. That would have been a lot to ask of an adult; asking that of a 14-year-old seemed incomprehensible to me.

Troy was scared, and I didn't blame him. He was an athletic, fairly strong kid, with a quick wit. Nothing seemed to get the better of him, until this. Suddenly, he was very sick and in pain. My heart hurt because I couldn't do anything to take away that pain.

I knew Carrie was hurting for our son every bit as much as I was, so I let the elephant graze in the room for the time being.

I worked half-days during the next week. That at least gave me something positive to concentrate on besides my son... and my wife's affair. Lord, how I tried to push that to the back of my mind, but no matter how hard I tried... Troy's illness was like a punch to my heart. Carrie's affair was a kick to the nuts. Work was the only part of my life that didn't bring me pain.

Carrie and I were rarely alone during the next several days. On the rare times we were at the house together, our daughter, Anjuli—AJ, for short, was with us, so we weren't able to speak freely, if that's what we had wanted. When we were alone in our bedroom at night, it was strictly for sleeping. Exhaustion can be a wonderful thing.

Under normal circumstances, the arrival of the Santiagos would have created a party-like atmosphere at the house. There were the usual hugs, myself excluded, but it was a subdued group. I have to admit I stood off to the side and watched the scene with mixed feelings... anger and nausea among them.

It was several minutes before Robbie noticed me. She colored and dropped her eyes for a couple of seconds before coming over to me and embracing me tightly.

"I'm sorry, Josh. Truly," she whispered into my ear before releasing me from her grasp.

I nodded silently as she stepped away. As I looked up, I noticed everybody staring at me.

Neither Troy nor AJ were told about their biological connection to Sergio. They both assumed Sergio matching Troy was an incredible coincidence. We, being the four adults, decided not to say anything for the time being.

Sergio, however, had known of the connection for about the last four years, I found out. Carrie said he was good with his parents' explanation of events. Seems everyone who knew was good with things. Maybe one day, when I knew, I would be good, too, although I seriously doubted that.

As soon as everyone was settled, Carrie took off to the hospital with the Santiagos so they could visit Troy. AJ and I stayed home. She waited until Carrie's SUV was out of the driveway before she approached me.

"What's going on, Dad?" she asked. "I'm not an idiot. Something's definitely going on between you and Mom, and it somehow involves Aunt Robbie and Uncle Jorge as well. If you don't tell me, I'll just ask Sergio. I'm sure he knows, and he'll tell me. He tells me everything."

There are advantages and disadvantages to having really smart children. One of the disadvantages is that it's tough to slip stuff past him or her. AJ was a really smart kid. I figured it was better for me to tell her, even if I didn't know the whole story. This way she would get the story without the spin I was sure would be coming from my wife.

I told her what I had figured out, which truthfully wasn't much: her mother had cheated on me with Jorge Santiago when I was on a long deployment and they had a child, Sergio, who was a half-brother to both her and Troy. That's how Sergio was such a great match with Troy for the transplant.

"Wow!" she said barely above a whisper. "Wait. You didn't know about this until Troy got sick, did you? That's why you've been glaring at Mom for the past week or so."

I nodded my head in the affirmative. I'm sure I was blushing. Right then I felt like the biggest schmuck in the world. I was wrong, though, because there was more to come.

"So you also didn't know about Mom staying in the bedroom with Aunt Robbie and Uncle Jorge when we stayed with them in Spain all those years. They didn't stop doing that until I was about 12. Mom always said they did it because she and Aunt Robbie were just like sisters, and you knew about it."

My mouth dropped open in absolute shock. I was speechless. I guess I didn't need to answer that question.

"Oh my God. I'm sorry, Daddy," she gasped. "I always thought it was a little weird, but I was just a kid. She said you knew. I believed her."

"Fuck," I croaked out.

"What are you going to do?" she asked, again whispering.

"Right now, nothing. We've got to get past Troy's surgery. Then we'll discuss it... in great detail, I'm sure," I said.

"I... we... would appreciate you not saying anything to anybody until after we talk."

"Yeah, okay Dad," she said. "I've got your back on this, Dad."

"Thanks, Baby Girl," I responded.

I'll admit to being reticent around my wife and the Santiagos. I noticed I was getting a lot of looks from my wife, Robbie and Jorge, and they seemed to spend a lot of time whispering to each other.

Friday night back at the house, Sergio pulled me aside quietly.

"Can we talk, just you and me, Uncle Josh? It's important," he asked.

"How could I say no to you, Sergio? You're the one saving my son... and your half-brother," I said quietly as his eyebrows raised.

Sergio and I took a walk around our block.

"Look, Uncle Josh, I know this whole thing is terrible... and awkward. I'm glad I can be there for Troy," he said.

"But I want... no, need to ask a favor of you. A favor just between us, that I think I've earned the right to ask. I need to ask you not to divorce Aunt Carrie over this, and I need you not to take physical revenge on my father, as well," Sergio said.

I could see the angst in his eyes. I looked at... no, studied... his handsome face. He mostly favored Jorge, but now that I knew what I was looking for, I could see a bit of my wife in him. Come to think of it, he did look like he could have been Troy's brother. How had I never seen that before?

"I can't promise I will stay with my wife beyond when Troy leaves for college, but I can promise not to inflict physical revenge upon your father. That's as good as I can do, Sergio, even with everything you're doing for me... and I guess yourself, as well," I said.

"So how are you with this whole thing, Sergio? How do you feel about Aunt Carrie, and being Troy's half-brother?" I asked.

"I was a little freaked out when I first was told, to be honest," he answered. "But I wouldn't even be here if Dad and Aunt Carrie hadn't agreed to hook up to give my parents a kid. Mom is my mother, to my way of thinking, and Aunt Carrie is still Aunt Carrie, although now I guess I have even more feeling for her in my heart.

"And I've always kind of looked at Troy as a little brother anyway. I think it's cool that he's my brother, and I'm really glad I can help him."

We walked in silence the rest of the way back to the house. He had given me even more to think about. I had gotten very little of the whole story, and realized it was even worse than I thought it was.

The transplant was done on the next Tuesday. There were five very intense people waiting for hours. Both boys came through the surgeries in good shape. Troy's new kidney started working immediately, which was a very good sign, the doctors told us. There were five very tired people who left the hospital that night.

I didn't give it a thought at first when Robbie volunteered to ride with me to my favorite Chinese restaurant for the takeout we had ordered two days after the transplant. We had barely cleared the driveway when she started apologizing. In the 40 minutes it took to get to and from the restaurant, I learned the whole story. I certainly didn't feel like eating when we got home.

I've been in the Naval Reserve for 20 years, and have served three deployments overseas. The first one was about a year after Carrie and I were married. I was sent to the Mideast for 18 months. To avoid being alone, Carrie went to stay with Robbie and Jorge for the entire deployment.

"I know it shouldn't have happened, but it did. I'm sorry, Josh," she started. "We were partying pretty good one night... and we all wound up in bed together... and that's what gave me the idea... which turned out to be the stupidest idea I've ever had.

"I never told anybody but Carrie, but I can't have kids... and I really, really wanted kids. So I figured... she could get pregnant by Jorge... and have the baby and I could adopt it and raise it... and you would never have to know.

"And the plan worked perfectly. She gave birth to a beautiful baby boy. By the time you got home six months later, Carrie had lost almost all of the baby weight, and we just told you she had gotten a little chunky eating our rich food, and you were none the wiser... and you wouldn't have been if Troy didn't get sick."

Robbie dropped her head and blushed a bit. I waited for more, but didn't get anything. Remembering what my daughter had said, though, I knew there was, in fact, more. I looked at her intently for a few seconds.

"I've talked with AJ..." I said, leaving the rest up to Robbie.

"Oh," she practically whispered.

"She didn't just fuck him once. I'm not stupid, even if I didn't know some of the rest," I said pointedly.

"No. They got it on a lot before she had the baby... and since then they've kept at it through the years. They became a lot more than good friends, right in front of me. They became lovers... I didn't see that coming. By then I had only one choice... to accept the situation. I had my child... and I loved Jorge and Carrie... so I chose to be a part of what they had, rather than chase off both of them.

"Your other two deployments, your two weeks every year, other vacations when they came without you... then when Carrie figured AJ was old enough to know something was going on, they started to go off together someplace, and the kids would stay with Sergio and me.

"Don't be mad, Josh. We all got something out of the deal. I got a son, Jorge and Carrie got some time together and your son got a new kidney."

"That's not how I look at, Robbie," I said. "The kidney was a fluke. I look at it like everybody got something except me. I just got plain fucked. I wasn't in on the deal with the three of you. I didn't agree to my wife getting pregnant and carrying a kid for you. I didn't agree to my wife having an affair for 19 years... although now that I think about it, maybe it was me that was having the affair with Carrie. Maybe I was her second man. He was her first love, and I was the side piece.

"You might have accepted having just a piece of your husband's heart, but I don't accept having just a piece of my wife's. I'm an all or nothing guy, Robbie. You should know that about me. My wife definitely should have known that about me."

"So where do we all go from here, Josh?" she asked.

"I don't know, but I've promised Sergio that I would stay with Carrie at least while Troy is still living at home, and I wouldn't hurt your husband," I said.

"How could you and Jorge have done this to me? I thought we were friends... hell, just about family. Family doesn't do this to each other, Robbie."

We pulled into the driveway, so the conversation ended for the time being.

Both boys were out of the hospital and home within the week. Modern medicine is absolutely amazing. Barring anything unforeseen, Troy should lead a long, normal life, and so should Sergio for that matter.

The elephant stayed quietly in the room until the night before the Santiagos were ready to fly back home. I had arranged for AJ to stay with the boys in the family room and stream some sort of zombie series while munching on pizza and drinking pop. The adults went with me into my home office, where I had a loveseat and a chair in addition to my desk. I grabbed a couple of bottles of wine and had picked up a charcuterie board from a local shop.

As I walked into the room, it didn't escape me that Carrie and Jorge were seated together on the loveseat, and Robbie was by herself in the chair. I arranged everything on the coffee table and pulled up my desk chair for myself.

As everyone filled their plates, I started the discussion by again praising Sergio for stepping up so readily, and what that says for the way Robbie and Jorge raised him. Carrie seconded my statement, and I know Sergio's parents had to be bursting with pride.

"That said... what can I say beyond the fact that I'm incredibly pissed at both of you," I said, looking over at the pair on the loveseat. "If I hadn't made a promise to Sergio, you might both be dead right now."