All Comments on 'The Choices We Make'

Skriff101 hit the nail on the head.

The wife in this instance was so stupid it's a surprise she managed to cope outside of an institution.

It was well written but the whole story and all stories with this plot rely on one of the spouses having an IQ that is half of the average.

Ridiculous premise- he hates the idea of sharing and an open marriage so much that he's DONE with his wife. BUT, soon after, he does the same thing with his four girl friends while keeping his 'best friend for life', Emily, on a leash. And of course, altho she loves him dearly, she's ok with him sleeping around. Hypocritical much?

The story was well written, I'll grade it on that.

In this reality, Emily was incredibly brave.

As the story was set up for Mark to continue as he did so he was never a part-time father, he was not going to divorce Louise until the time was right.

That said, Emily would not have been able to share if she established a full relationship with Mark, so she kept that side of the relationship closed.

That's why she encouraged him to take lovers... so he was emotionally buoyed, did not feel like a loser... and most importantly, make sure that it was not a rebound marriage once the time was right.

Not sure to many people, man or woman, would be able to do that and keep it together.

But that means, in this reality, once they took the plunge, Mark would never, ever have the slightest doubt just how much Emily loved him and now their future is absolutely and utterly assured.

Good on her, she deserves it and so does Mark.

It seemed to me that some unpleasant turn had to happen in her relationship with Tom. But with John, it was also quite painful and instructive.

So I had two friends who went through this almost exactly as Mark did. Not gonna lie, it brought in some PTSD for me because of how hard I tried to support them. One handled it similar to Mark and the other far more poorly. The fact that you do invoke a reaction like that from your readers is a testament to how well written this is. Gave it 5.

What eas the point of the rules? She had sex without a condom on Day 1.

While a very good story with a somewhat pleasant ending, I was hoping that it might go another way. That maybe Mark would end up with his own little harem, Emily, Cindy, Jessica, the 2 unnamed women he dated and, this is a bit of a stretch, his daughter, Zara, since she was such a daddy's girl. Nothing wrong with a bit of incest. He would've had all of these women fawning over him regularly and Louise would end up alone. 4*

The ending touched me, and I feel like if a writer can stir emotion, you have done your job well. A few typos here & there that likely could be caught by your own proofreading, but any mistakes were of a minor variety and did not harm the story. I like stories where the characters are not one-dimensional and all good or all bad, as I feel the real world is much more grey than black & white. Well done, 5 stars.

Powerful. I felt it started out as a bit of a 'har har, cuck the cuckold and give me all the dicks' trope, followed up by your average Burn the Bitch style story, but I think you managed to avoid most of the pitfalls in these sorts of stories. Even though Mark and Emily ended up together, I have a feeling both of them would have been if not happy, at least content if Louise had never wanted an open marriage in the first place. You managed to write a story with if not likable, at least believable characters allround. Worth the 5/5 stars IMHO. Modern dating and the modern relationship styles man. An expression of a Youtuber I follow sums it up: "Sodom and Gomorrah 2.0."

Enjoyable but a bit too long. I don't see how a woman 18 years into a marriage doesn't spend some time analyzing the risk of asking. I mean there is a lot to give up if he says "no" and goes divorce or does what he did in the story. There was really no dialog or writing of that. IRL a woman would spend some time going over risk reward speech even if in her own head.

Love how he gets his girlfriends, has the kids on his side, and an old reliable girl as a fallback just waiting.

Super surprised the author didn't write in an STD or pregnancy for th ex wife.

This is a poignant, sad, extremely well-written story. Five stars ⭐️ for this one.

very good story.

I read this whole thing last night. I needed a day to digest it. The story is very well written although the plot line is somewhat trite and hammered home by too many jilted writers on this site. First off, the prospect of a "happily married" woman going off and screwing a dozen or so guys right out of the box is well, somewhat unbelievable. Also, the reality of a husband having an immediate stand in that has been in the wings waiting for 35 years is also over the top. Relationships are tough and I am sure that Louise was looking for more than a good fuck, although she never acknowledged it. There is lacking here on both parts and it has a very one-sided portrayal that seems to be a theme in most of these BTB stories. Good writing, good character development, overused theme.

Sorry, it is simply impossible to recolncile the two Louises, the loving, caring wife and mother who grieves for the loss of her marriage, and the ditzy airhead who thinks she can fuck other men and keep her marriage. Those two people can't live in the same body.

I don't know; if he had simply divorced her immediately she would have gotten custody of the kids and that would have interfered with her new lifestyle. It wouldn't have been long till the kids were back with him and he could have married Emily a lot sooner. I actually knew a couple where this happened.

It was a good story, but didn’t break much new ground. It was written fairly well, but I think it dragged in places, so maybe too long.

Very well written, but just a storyline that I didn’t care for.

Good long, story, full of people determined to do what they feel strongly about, taking advice, making their own decisions, being human, and living.

Five for you

Logistically, Mark's life after Louise starts dating other men shatterscthe laws of physics. He attends all his children's events, while juggling 4 different women (that he doesn't bring in his own home so beds elsewhere), becomes master chef and develops a relationship with Emily. Is Mark The Flash?

The whole stay for kids is the terrible

It’s a common theme on this site, but the boredom bred by success really is common…to people lucky enough (or committed enough) to get there.

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I thought you handled it well, especially considering that you allowed us to be privy to Louise’ thoughts, motivations and ultimate regrets. And we were also privy to her failure to listen to her husband’s actual response when she was getting so excited about sharing her upcoming debauchery with her coworkers.

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Just once, though, when presented with the “open marriage” demand, I’d like to [hear] a husband respond with: “So let’s see if I understand you correctly: now that you have a successful marriage, family life, and career; you’re still young and fit and beautiful; and your parents are still part of your life and so proud of you—you want to blow it all up and start over?!? ——-Oh, not everything, just the marriage part?!? ——May I make a silly suggestion first? Since the average person has 7 jobs and 2 spouses over their lifetimes, that means they change jobs 6 times and spouses once; wouldn’t it be wiser to save your spouse change until later in life and make a JOB CHANGE now? Especially considering that it is the people on that job who are making you so unhappy with the relative success of all the rest of your life?!? Just a thought.”

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But nevertheless, we all know that the spouse (sometimes it’s the husband) who is bored with the marriage is not usually capable of listening to reason at this point.

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But I thought Mark’s response was solid as it was.

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Oh, one more thing: when Louise insisted that she wanted to spend time with her family, I kept waiting to hear someone talk about how boring they were, and how she must not be entertaining as many offers anymore if she was willing to hang out with her boring family. Had Louise already saturated her market?

At least 5 commenters missed Mark's reason for staying in the marriage because they want to misapply a false truism: he didn't stay in the marriage "for the kids"; he did it "to avoid becoming a part-time dad."

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Please tell us: if Mark had her served immediately with divorce papers, who would have parented the kids while she was out getting banged (which she was determined to do)? Or would Louise have just brought her boyfriends home so she could "be there" if they needed her? Would that be "better for the kids"? Or would they always stay by themselves until 2 am? (No safety issues there, right?)

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Or if Mark had taken your oversimplistic path, maybe Louise would have short-circuited her playing the field and gone straight to marrying up so the kids could have a new step-dad and force Mark out of the parenting business altogether.

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Maybe that's your personal preference, but it wasn't so for this fictional character.

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If abdicating all your parental responsibility besides writing a monthly check is your suggestion instead of "staying in the marriage so you can keep a relationship with your kids", there are lots of older authors who wrote things your way. Your criticism is obsolete; the writers in LW are evolving and expressing themselves better, and your brain is still in the Stone Age.

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In this fictional story, it is ridiculous to suggest that any of the 5 main characters would have ended up with healthier relationships if Mark had filed for divorce immediately. Please tell me why it would be better for the children if the selfless parent becomes equally irresponsible as the self-centered parent has just vowed to become.

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I really am willing to hear this explanation.

Five stars from me for this one.

Liked the character development, and the schadenfreude that Louise ultimately faced as she wound up alone.

Not an easy set of results for her to face after blowing up her marriage and her family, but it seemed she at least became an honest person when she found the last man she was dating was married.

What goes around comes around...

Difficult to read without wanting to burn the bitch hard. Also after a year of marking time he had more than enough time to protect himself financialy

I really liked it but glad it was not me.

I'm with Frank66 - the premise is beyond absurd. But the writing is good, even if changing PoV is a tired device (at least it doesn't swap forth and back between first and third person; the hallmark of truely talentless hacks).

🌟🌟🌟🌟 - the last ½ star for the Aussie references.

Great story, thanks for writing It. A Little bug... Emily was 5 months pregnant when they married... And now After 5 years they have a 3 years old daughter ?

U need an editor badly. Louise disappeared the day I moved out, taking Matthew with her as she was heading over to her parents. So, did she disappear, or did she go to her parents?

I know you wanted an open marriage story, but one party doing it under duress is just stupid. It was so stupid i couldn't get past the second page. Why say yes when he didn't want an open marriage? Say no and make her cheat. Tell the kids everyday when mom isn't home that she is out being a whore. When she doesn't show up for days sue for divorce and any sane judge would award him custody based on he being the primary care giver.

"I never stopped loving you. Not for a second". This was the sentence that summed it up for me. If she loves him, its a small weak love. This proves that she doesn't really love him. If she did love him, she wouldn't have subjected him to the pain of blatantly slutting it up, regardless of his feeling. She loved herself way more. She probably loved him like having an orange for a snack. God spare me that kind of love.

Interesting story. Another person who thought having sexual relations with another person/s while being married would not hurt the marriage relationship. Too sad that it happens in real life also. Take a real cold shower. Maybe it would help a bit.

Ahh, if only every story was so good in grammar terms.

But the plot? Did not enjoyed it too much, too civil for what she'd done. And no, Im not talking about complete btb either, but with her constant absence? Its an easy win the custody divorce case, why delay the inevitable, especially if have someone waiting for you? Does not make sense.

4/5

I really enjoyed this one!

Another well-written story, as yours always are. That said, I don't know why I read stories in th LW category - I hate them, they seem to cause a good bit of anxiety in me that usually takes a day or two for me to get over, and this will be one of those. Nice job, though!

Re DaddyWarbucks:

Not disagreeing with you about the power of a Family Court judge, but citing HB as an example of a po’ daddy the courts done wrong is a pretty big stretch. I’m not sure why it’s relevant how much the little girl’s neighbors earn, but it is VERY relevant that HB acknowledged in court testimony that he has earned some $5 million in the last 5 years AND NEVER PAID A DIME TO PROVIDE FOR HIS CHILD.

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Just because he literally blew a large amount of it doesn’t free him from responsibility for his child. The child is innocent and not a political pawn. HB is not.

In the end, it closed shut on her!

5

Great story.

She loved him more than life itself but less than she loved strange dick experience.

She was balanced.

Great story, but all got a bit confused at the time of the divorce.

Mark won't give up the kids, but effectively does at this point, as Louise heads off to her parents with Matthew. Louise also seemingly keeps the (what must be a barn of a) house, as Zara visits at least every other weekend.

Zara, though at university in the same city and not taking the away from home university experience, comes home to "The Barn" at least every other week, when does she visit her beloved daddy?

You make the plot adjustments you have to, but it was very convenient Louise never had to think about her job and could just email the work in. The lover Tom having work on 5 continents and God knows how many time zones must have made phoning in about work and any Zoom conferences interesting for Louise.

John was a bit interesting. He had made plans for Christmas with Louise, knowing he wouldn't be there? After finding an address, Louise went over there on Christmas Day, knowing he might have kids? Class act Louise.

Mark then offers to assault John, presumably because he had shagged Louise without telling her he was married. Mark, not thinking that Louise might have ever done the same or that he might have only got half the story from Louise?

Very well written story that gives a picture of life.

Ironically it is a loving wives story of a wife who truly loved her husband and finally got to understand the meaning of true love.

The Hoary Cleric

play stupid games, win stupid prizes. It's heartbreaking in a way, but honestly what did she expect?

Another brilliantly written story. 5*

Well written but the plot basis that she can just open up the marriage under duress after so many years while he takes care of the kids is absurd. She would certainly lose child custody if he documented all her absences. It was a surreal premise. The whole ultimatum thing about taking another lover, just doesn't happen in real life without dire consequences. Yeesh.

Well barring some of the psycho LWs trying to kill their husbands or forcibly cuckold them with violence or similar threats (kind of like Janet in this story?), or the second life wives like in Another Love by RG, Louise rates pretty high as one of the worst. She is definitely delusional and basically not only abandoned her husband but also her kids for strange c$ck.

"I love you, Mark," I whispered, resting my head against his firm chest, "I never stopped loving you. Not for a second."

======> delusional much? Guess her definition of love is just short of radioactive. Wtf? Not for a second? Lol. She was knee it wouldn't be "fair" pushed her agenda and then never tried to stop and make for reconciliation (wouldn't have worked anyways) until like 1.5 years later. When she was out of control for six months did she think of her husband? Not just delusional. Demented. She was delusional also that she would have never cheated. She lies to herself.

Not sure how divorce laws work in Australia. I guess 18 is the age for determination? Not so in many states in USA. This story started with Zara nearly 16 and the son at 14. In many states if he files right away, then by time goes to trial then Zara is 16, picks him, and family court won't split up siblings. Pretty much a slam dunk. May take a while and cost money but he gets minimum shared custody and probably full custody with the house. Regarding the house and finances. He is well enough off that he doesn't need the house. Only in connection to the kids. Yeah might suck with some alimony payments, since she can't afford house on her own, but meh better to be a broken family that stay with this crap. Emily waited 2 years for him to get his head out of his a$$.

Also in USA, while every state recognizes no fault, and 17 including California are only no fault, many states have fault divorces and differing impacts on financial split and custody. Mot fault divorces with adultery and her open marriage thing, would probably lean toward joint custody. I also don't think she would have lashed out and kept him from visiting the kids. She is delusional but not vindictive. She had a hunger in her heart that she tried to fill with sex. Having the kids all the time woukd cut down on her sexual gymnastics. And later on Tom would not meet the kids.

Also not sure about Australia but in US, after her six months sex romp, averaging 1-2 nights a week at home and thr occasional weekend. He had her dead to rights. If he stays celibate during that time and denies he agreed to the open marriage (easy to lie about), then when he files he would get primary custody and house, because she has essentially abandoned her kids. All it needs is to be is documented with also witness testimony and Zara seals the deal. Full stop. CPS will not look kindly on her being out all the time and not coming back home.

He could also file for separation. Fight to try to stay in house, then her antics bury her in custody after a few months. Or he moves out and her sex life is unduly impacted. Though that is more of a risk.

Lastly once she travels with Tom after a year of her insipid, evil request, working remotely, then she is absolutely dead meat in custody. She is not traveling for work purposes. She is traveling to be with her second love. Total abandonment. Give it 3 months. Record dates. Kill the marriage.

The fact that this was so drawn out is strange. It was like first 12 months he was enraged. Then he settles into a new rhythm and waits till Zara hits 18. In the end he is a part time dad for his son at age 16? Huh? What made him change that timeline? So what did he gain by waiting? No financial benefits. He actually could have had primary custody much earlier and he let Matthew live with his deranged wife. Wtf?

And the very end was a weird trainwreck.

I am going to be honest and say u write well and also enjoyed this story. It amazes me of the talent this site has and u solidify my reasoning. On the story, it also is mind boggling how when she starts to feel remorse and regret, that she didn't stop and just stay home. Although I loved these endings very much over any RAAC, I think had she done that, then maybe it might've help alil bit and could've seen a reconciliation had she done so, especially on this site when most would've probably went that route. Glad the author didn't though and it's too bad the author doesn't write more in this genre.

Good story. Thanks.

Awesome story showing how I believe a open marriage would end up

Louise is finally looking for permanence that she had, to start with.

Her son loves her. I only hope that he doesn’t follow her path.

Sadly, this a very realistic depiction of how it usually ends. Very well-written.

Well written story that does have a few spelling and context issues; but a good Loving Wives story. However, we hate the overall issue of open marriage and the absolute stupidity of any wife who thinks it will be sooooo perfect! Sad in the story that through the years there was no attempt at therapy or counseling. Someone is soooo lost with their head up their arse that they wonder if they will ever figure out who they are and what they really want - and lost! So typical.

The story did drag on quite a bit, and then the ending happened rather quickly. We felt we were left hanging a bit.

Reading it again, still a good story but he should have cut her out of his life for good.

Ok she was an idiot but the main problem I see her husband never truly loved her not like a husband should if my boyfriend did what she did I’d be heartbroken but I wouldn’t stop loving him it would be impossible we have been together 20 years I couldn’t just fall out of love in 24hrs

A well-written heartbreaking/heartwarming tale and in the end, uplifting too! You're surely no amateur.

I know that most of the .002% of the readers who actually write a comment lean heavily towards the BTB side of the ledger, but so many others read and appreciate a realistic and well-crafted story like this. Yes, there's emotion and conflict, but wonderfully missing is all the trite, cliché-fueled, over-written angry tirades and physical violence. No, this writer nailed it perfectly. It started with a marital nightmare and ended as a Hallmark Card, circa 3rd Millennium. What makes this so disturbing is that all the characters are realistic in that they are authentic, flawed, and believable. Fifty stars aren't too much for this story.

Well written but could not agree with the husband decisions. When a boat is sinking bail!

A well written story it but I wouldn’t have put up with the open marriage idea.

What’s the point of even being married?

Re-read this, still very enjoyable. All those saying they would have dumped the bitch as soon as she asked for an open marriage, well he looked at that and couldn’t give up being a full time dad. He made the best arrangements he could to keep his kids close and her at arms length. Had he been in the USA and filed for divorce, he’d face child support and be put out of the house until his youngest turned 18. He’d get to pay the mortgage on the house while she brought a parade of guys home to fuck in his former bed. Maybe he’d even have to pay her support, and carry all of them on his insurance. So his solution seems pretty smart!

Very good author... keep writing!

7 pages?

Louise clearly didn’t have a clue about what love is. If you love someone, you would be incapable of doing what she did. I think Tom took the best route he could, all things considered. I’m glad he got his happy ending with Em.

Dunno, I know that technically, Tom didn't do anything wrong, but I still think somebody should have kicked the shit out of him.

As for Louise, well, let's not kid ourselves. A beautiful woman isn't going to have too much trouble getting a man, even if she's older. These lonely endings for the cheating, beautiful ex-wife are always so over the top.

As for his decision to stay married, that was just bizarre. Especially since he only stayed married until his daughter turned 18 and not his son.

The idea of love,open relationships,and cheating is very greyish area for me.Here are some aspects that I consider plausible and absolute dealbreakers and they are.If your married or in a relationship and you and the one your with have clear boundaries of communication and not hide the AP like your ashamed that He or She is better in bed than your Spouse or SO is an automatic no no so that's it in my book.

Also when it comes to multiple partners say like siblings and incest with however many there are is not considered a normal relationship so unlike non-family sex it should basically be a free-for-all to be with who you want at that time without expectations or jealousy(well maybe a little if you like him or her) but my point is whether in a regular relationship or in an incestuous one make sure you both are open and honest and it should be fine.That is all.

Interesting and well written. But a hard time believing after she makes her request and bludgeons her marriage the next day, that Mark doesn't just get a divorce. Zara was already 16. Most states she could choose. And even if Louise got primary custody, having weekends and time in the summer for several years is not going to crush his soul. In the mean time he coukd get a jumpstart on his new life (with Emily). Two years of drawn out agony in an open marriage made for an interesting story but seemed unrealistic. Still 4 stars.

Very good story. One observation, Louise was written as constantly saying she loved her husband but continued to sleep with just about anyone she met. At some point he would have had to called Bullshit. Whatever she felt, it definitely wasn't love.

The characters and their actions are a bit inconsistent with each other. I can't see why that dude would stay in that farce of a marriage for that long, considering the kids were almost adult. I also can't see how the tumor called Louise would ever be allowed in their home. She is a woman with no morals and she still wants him. Portraying the new wife as some kind of saint doesn't make her endearing. It just makes her an idiot. Being secure in your relationship doesn't mean you want to actually invite poison into your home. Just like a trained fighter isn't picking up street fights left and right if he has any brains....

there was only missing a therapist for the wondering wife to comprehend and heal character, other than that 5/5