The Medical Record

Bob spoke, "Perhaps it would be best if you did that before things heat up any more tonight. You see that we are all having a great time and that if it had been completely agreeable to all four, the night could have led to more sexually intimate encounters with each other's spouses. Jennifer and I have talked in depth about what might develop and we are agreed. I think you and Janet should talk of this in private and be fully in agreement before anything more develops. If there are any skeletons in your closets these should be brought out. Now you may have none but just in case, I wanted to emphasize how important it is to get everything out on the table. Sex outside of marriage can be very detrimental to a couple. Everyone has to be in complete agreement or the aftermath could be unfortunate as well as wonderful."

"Swapping can be so very exciting but the fallout must be fully explored first. You can ruin a marriage by getting involved secretly and hiding something. It is Jennifer's and my hope that we all will agree on ground rules set before we get intimate, if that should ever happen. Don't let missed communications destroy what could become a beautiful thing between a couple or between our two couples here tonight. We should put everything on hold until you all are in total agreement."

"Bob and Jennifer," I spoke again, "I have had a wonderful evening with you all. I am not

prepared tonight to do anything more intimate. Janet and I really need to talk. After that, we might very well invite you back to pick up where we are leaving off tonight."

Jennifer got up and asked Bob to take her home. She was obviously unhappy about the lack of events she had been planning on.

Janet was also unhappy at the sudden ending of what she thought would have been a swinging good time. She had planned for this without my full knowledge or prior consent.

After they left, amidst smiles hugs and promises of continued friendship, Janet and I cleaned up in silence. I knew she was disappointed. I was also disappointed but for a different reason.

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Chapter 04: The Confrontation.

"Honey," she began as the last glass was put in the dishwasher, "what was Bob talking about when he kind of accused us of having skeletons in our closet?"

"Janet, he was only emphasizing how very important it is for us to be totally honest with each other, especially about sexual things. If you and I are going to exchange partners for an evening, we have to be sure that there are no hidden agendas or anything that might bring disaster to our marriage because we don't fully trust the other. For instance, if I had been unfaithful to you in the past, and you knew about it, even if I didn't know you knew, you might not trust me to be with another woman again.

"You might get it in your mind that I would meet her at times and places in secret. Or perhaps you might think she was my former lover that I wanted to renew sex with but with your permission this time. That would be marriage destroying. Just your lack of trust in me would undermine our marriage. Swapping would be the first step to marital discord, distrust and perhaps dissolution of our marriage. I just cannot get into swapping right now. It seems too dangerous. I have a problem. You might call it a skeleton in my closet."

"Jon, are you admitting to an affair in the past that you haven't confessed to me. If you have had one, please tell me so I can forgive you. After you have confessed everything, then I can forgive you. Then we can move on with tonight's aborted plans."

"Janet, I promise you I have nothing to confess. The skeleton is not in MY closet."

I looked her straight in the face. "Janet, do you have anything in your past that I should know about before we decide to experience another sexual partner? Is there something that, if I ever found out about, would tend to make me distrust you?"

She didn't answer. I stood close to her and took her in my arms, gently loving her. She began to cry.

"Janet, you know I love you. If there is anything you need to tell me, something to confess so we can get on with plans, then now is the time. I have told you I would forgive you for anything if you confessed it to me. As my arms are around you, I feel your body trembling. You have something bottled up that needs to be released. Please tell me. I can only love you more if our communications are voluntary and total."

Since Janet didn't respond immediately, I figured that she had a confession to make. I broke the ice, so to speak by saying, "Janet, I know of your extramarital affair that began some eight years ago." She gasped.

"What extra marital affair? I never had anything like that eight years ago or any years ago. NEVER," She sobbed. "How could you accuse me of such a horrible thing?" She moved away from me, red faced in anger. She was visibly shaking and twitching.

I continued in as bland a voice as possible. "Janet, if you won't confess, I'll have to bring out the proof. It would be a lot easier on both of us if you just confess."

"There will be no confession!" she stated emphatically. "I did not do whatever you are talking about. How could you not trust me? I'm terribly hurt!"

She was just making this so much harder. Then again, my doubts rising, maybe, just maybe there was some explanation. I couldn't think of any. The chart was clearly hers and the records in it painfully clear.

"Janet, let's sit at the table for a few minutes. I have something to show you that concerns me a lot."

We sat down looking at each other, she with tears in her eyes showing signs of stress. I was tense and nervous too. How I hated this. How I wished I had never been so inquisitive to look inside that medical record with her name on it. Ignorance certainly had been bliss but that was gone forever now.

"I just can't believe you would accuse me," she whispered. "I'm so hurt by all this." Tears were flowing down her cheeks. I handed her a napkin. My heart went out to her. She had been caught.

I opened her medical chart.

"Janet, while I was working at the clinic I came upon this chart quite by accident. I know I had no right to look in it but it has your name on it. There is no doubt in my mind it is yours, yet I cannot believe what is in it. I am so sorry that I found it out. Your denials seem so real to me but the black and white facts show me that you are not telling me the truth." I looked her straight in the eyes and she never blinked. She had the look of disbelief, not denial or confession.

"Janet, this is a copy of your medical chart from eight years ago to five years ago. You were pregnant, were referred to a gynecologist for an abortion, received birth control pills for three years and finally were treated for a sexually transmitted disease. It's all documented in your

Chart. Even your driver's license with your picture is copied onto the information sheet. What can you tell me that can explain this other than what the chart clearly says? How can you change my mind? This is this skeleton that has to be cleared up before we ever think about including anyone else in our marriage. Seems you have already included someone, covered it up and kept me in the dark for eight years. Help me, Janet, my heart is in turmoil!"

She sat there in complete silence. If I had hit her she would not have been any more dumbstruck. She was frozen. Her face reflected anger, not guilt. She was not shaking or crying for me to forgive her. She had a world class act. Her training in drama was paying off for her at this most critical time. That was my only conclusion.

She began, "I have no explanation except to tell you that it was not me. I'm trying to figure out how this could be. I'm trying to think how I can prove to you that this record is falsified and why. Right now I can't think straight. You will just have to believe me. I know it looks damning. I know you must think I'm lying to you but I'm not. I just need time to try to figure this out. I know there is an explanation; I just don't know what it is yet. Please believe me. It's late so I want to go to bed. This is a terrible shock to me. Maybe during the night I'll be able to come up with an explanation."

I took her hands. "Janet, I want to trust you more than anything in the world. I'm unsure what to do. I truly love you and I truly want to believe you but I have to also believe the cold hard facts in your medical record. You sleep in our bed and I am going to try to sleep in the kids' room. When you come up with an explanation, I'll come back to bed with you. I'm going to miss cuddling with you and having sex with you so I hope you can come up with a explanation soon."

We slept in separate beds in our house for he first time in our marriage.

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Chapter 05: Trust Restored?

When I woke up I went to the main bathroom to shower and shave. Janet was gone. I hoped she had not left to commit suicide. That thought almost floored me but she left me a note. The note told me she had gone to see her younger sister. Her sister was only thirteen months younger than her. They could have been twins but so different in personalities. She and her sister had an on again / off again relationship. Her sister had had her wild days. She had drunk way too much in her earlier years.

She had gotten divorced about eight or so years ago. Then several years later she married again. We didn't know exactly why she had divorced. She and her first husband each accused the other of cheating. Both of them drank too much and argued a lot. She had no children by either husband. Rumors were that she couldn't have children. After her divorce she got into church related counseling and got her life straightened out. She and Janet seemed on good relations now that she had quit drinking and got her act together.

I still didn't get along with her sister. I had been successful in avoiding her for the past couple of years but Janet talked on the phone and visited her pretty regularly. Janet was more gregarious than me.

I called her sister's house. Janet had not arrived yet so I gave her a heads up that Janet was on the way. She asked about why Janet was coming without calling her first. I told her that it likely had to do with a medical record I had discovered which showed something that Janet had hidden from me.

I heard her gasp, "Oh, my god." The phone dropped almost bursting my ear drum. She picked it up again immediately.

"You have to tell me what the medical chart showed that is so upsetting. Where was this so called record found? Hold on. I think Janet just got here." The phone went dead. I tried to call back but couldn't make contact again. Maybe her battery went bad. I didn't have her land phone number. She lived about thirty miles away in another area code.

Now my dilemma was intensified. How was Janet's sister involved in all this? Was Janet going to get her sister to cover for her? Did the two sisters have to get their act together before telling me more stories? Was Janet going to be sure that their stories were the same? Was a big time cover-up in progress? There was just no way to tell or predict at this. It's terrible when suspicion enters a relationship. These were things that just last week I could not have imagined me ever thinking. I would just have to put up with it for the present. I wondered who else might be involved. My mind was full of insinuations and dark thoughts of infidelity, cover-up and intrigue. I thought this would be perfect material for a novel if only it weren't happening to me. I wanted to be reading about it happening to some fictitious family.

My Saturday was ruined. My energy was drained and it wasn't eight A.M. yet.

The phone rang. I answered it right off. It was Janet. Why hadn't I thought of calling Janet on her cell phone? Was I really that stressed out that my thinking was that impaired. Janet had not had more than five minutes with her sister. Janet told me she had some great news but we had to keep it secret. She said she had the perfect explanation for explaining the medical record. I asked her what it was and she said she couldn't talk on the phone as her brother-in-law could over hear so she would tell me everything when she got home.

"When will you be getting home? Janet."

"Well, now that the mystery of the medical chart is solved, I would like to just visit with her and her husband if that's okay with you. We didn't have anything special lined up for today so why don't you get a game of golf in. I'll be home late this afternoon. We can go out to dinner and I'll tell you everything. The problem is solved."

"Janet. The problem is NOT solved for me. How do I know that you and your sister are not colluding in making up a believable story. Spending all day with her will allow you two to get the minutest of details all worked out. NO! You come home right now. Hang up, excuse yourself and immediately leave. Don't spend another minute with her. Janet, I don't order you around very often but our marriage depends on your leaving immediately."

Silence.

"How could you distrust me like this, Jon? This is so not like you. What's gotten into you?"

"Distrust IS what it's called, Janet. I need to be able to independently confirm everything you say before you and her get every detail agreed to. Come home now or forget about coming home. You know how very important honesty, trust and fidelity are to me. Help me get all this back. I'm stressed out, Janet! I'm not thinking straight so just do as I say." I hung up and looked at the clock. She should be here in less than 30 minutes. That's all the driving time needed. I was all worked up like I was when I first saw her chart. I fidgeted and fumed. I paced around the house meaninglessly.

I waited only one minute then called her sister. This time her phone was on. I asked to talk to Janet. "It's important that I talk to her now," I urgently told her sister.

"I can't. She just drove off in a big hurry. All she said is that she had to get home

immediately. She gave no explanation. You must have read the riot act to her. I never saw her in such a hurry to leave here. What's going on between you two?"

"You mean you don't know? What did Janet and you talk about just now? Janet and I are having a major marital problem which apparently involves you in some way. Maybe you better tell me what's going on."

She whispered into the phone, "My hubby is coming inside. I have to talk later." She hung up.

Now I knew what ever it was, it had to be kept secret from her husband. Wow, what a marriage they have. They can't tell each other things about themselves. I would have to wait. Janet had said she would tell me everything. That was good but I had to talk to her sister before Janet could talk to her again. I had to get the same message from both sources independently. I wasn't sure how that could be done. Both the sisters had cell phones and I couldn't be around Janet 24/7. Maybe they were colluding by cell phone right now? My heart and mind were in turmoil and the beginnings of anger.

Since Janet and I had always been open with each other, the answer was to simply tell her what I felt and why. I had to tell Janet not talk to her sister and trust that she would comply.

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Chapter 06: The explanation

Janet arrived in just 25 minutes. Her sister had obviously told the truth about her leaving to hurry home. Janet burst into the house and ran into my arms with a huge hug and a, "I love you so much. This terrible thing is about to come to an end. Come on, lover man, take me to bed and let me tell you what I figured out last night and confirmed this morning. You can verify everything from my sis but you have to know she can't let her hubby know. She will have to tell him but that has to come later. Now let's go."

She dragged me, willingly toward the bedroom.

We kissed passionately. We sat on the bed next to each other with our hands clasped and the other around our waists. I started, "Janet, I love you. I trust you but I have to verify what you are getting ready to tell me. For me to do that, I am asking you not to speak to your sister again until I tell you it's okay. I want the scientific part of me to be as sure as my emotional part. I want total trust. Will you agree not to have any contact with her for a while longer?"

"Jon, I want your total trust restored in me. I'll do anything to get it back again. Get the cell phone off the dresser and let me call her right now while we sit here together."

I got up, got the phone and gave it to her. She called her sister. The conversation was short, to the point. "Sis, I'm sitting here with Jon. He doesn't want you and me to speak again to each other, or have any messaging going on between you and me until he says so. Please don't call or message me or otherwise get in contact with me until Jon says it's okay. Please do this for me."

I heard her sister say yes because Janet had put the phone up close to my ear. Janet had done this willingly and rapidly. I was satisfied and reassured. The problem however was not yet resolved. The trust was being repaired, however, and that made me feel better.

"Jon," she began, "I think I never told you about this. Maybe I did and have forgotten I told you. Anyway, Sis had her license pulled for thirty days for drinking and driving. That was eight years ago. That finally got her into counseling and she has had no more problems with alcohol. She had to drive to work. She was working at a church as a secretary. I loaned her my driver's license for a couple of weeks in case she got caught. I made a copy for me to use but neither of us ever needed to show it to the police. She gave me my license back at the end of month when she got hers back from the court. Sis never told me she used my ID for anything. It's now obvious that she did.

"She said she went out of town for the abortion because she was working at a church that would have fired her if they had found out. She was separated from her first husband at the time and having an affair. After he gave her a sexually transmitted disease, they split up permanently.

"She was dating her current husband while she was also seeing this other guy. It was the other guy who got her pregnant and then gave her the STD. The STD made her unable to have babies as her tubes had been infected. That's why she can't let her husband know what occurred. It probably would destroy her marriage if he found out. You have to promise me you won't tell him."

I promised her but wondered what kind untrusting relationship her sister had with her current husband.

Janet continued, "By that time she had the abortion, she had another job with good insurance. As a result, Sis didn't need my ID for the abortion.

"Sis will verify all this but she doesn't want her hubby to know. She probably won't tell him ever. I hope that clarifies this terrible situation."

I thought for a moment. The story had the ring of authenticity. Janet seemed to be telling me the truth. Loaning her license was not too smart but then again her sister had to work and had gone into successful counseling. Her sister had always been just a little on the wild side.

"Janet, was this affair the cause of her divorce?"

"I think so, Jon, but she said he had been having affairs too. I didn't ask her about that this morning. I think she will confess everything to you in private to help our marriage. So you should ask her if you want, okay."

"Okay, I will. Next, as absurd as this all seems, I think your story holds water for me. I still need to have my hard evidence to substantiate this somewhat outrageous tale. Can you think of anything that would differentiate you two?"