All Comments on 'Two Wrongs Turn Out Right'

What a wonderful story about grace. As I get older I hope I'm becoming more grace-full. We live by the grace of God and it is our job to give that grace to others.

Revenge and paying back harm us much more than the ones we are paying back.

In the long run love never fails.

R.

This one really got to me. 5 stars for a well written and lovely story.

That was reconciliation done right... well done!

One error that I found really jarring is that she was the principal, not the principle, of the school. The word was used often enough that it stayed in my mind. That she kept her married name is understandable, since she was already professionally established using it, and I’m enough of a sexist pig 🐷 that I believe a woman who will not take her husband’s name is one you should never marry in the first place.

The ending was a bit rushed. You had set up Hannah as trying to be accepting of the growing relationship, but at some point they had to tell the kids that they’d been married before. There was enough effort spent on making sure that the kids were going to be OK with the adults seeing each other that this omission seemed large.

A great story that could even fit well as Romance. Two people who were immature and made a bad decision (or two) when they were very young and didn't know how to handle a horrible and sad event part ways. Now, years later, more mature and wise they find each other and get a second chance.

This felt very real to me. I could see this happening.

Thanks for writing it.

Seemed very realistic, these things happen and it was interesting if predictable-the author's intro. gave away the end.

I'll charitably assume the the repeated misspelling of 'principal' by a teacher who was said to have a doctorate was supposed to be some sort of running joke but to me it just seemed dumb.

Nice story. Even though there was a cheating wife motif this was more of a romance. Since the wife wasn't burned in an unrealistic manner the scores will probably be lower than the story merits (5*).

It's "principal," not "principle."

It's 18 years after their divorce. Does it really matter how they met, etc., back in college?

Curiosity is "piqued," not "peaked."

If he was cheating too, why was he so mad at her cheating? Hypocritical much?

When the same character speaks over two or more paragraphs, only the last paragraph gets a close quote.

Unusual that it's the man not ready for sex!

Did they ever tell the kids about their first marriage? They're bound to find out eventually.

Need I say more? 5*

Well written and balanced STORY with great character development. Kudos!

Her answer to his invitation to talk was hilarious and true to life. She couldn’t just say I’d love to. She had to yammer on with 10 seconds of information squeezed into about 90 seconds of talking.

Descriptions of conversations seem to work better, and then mix in key dialogue. The dialogue seems very robotic how it is written.

Enough said

Great stuff

Good tear jerker

I wonder what the score would be if only the wife had cheated.

Yes, I understand the comments that this should have been in Romance, but it will get thrice as many readers in LW.

I can't disagree more!

She said, "I'm really not much of a morning person." is MUCH better than:

She told me she wasn't much of a morning person.

The same info is conveyed, but dialog beats narration almost every time.

Thank you for giving me a wonderful story.

So your wife had multiple miscarriages, can no longer have kids and has to have her tubes tied. You respond by emotionally abandoning her and cheating on her with a hottie from work. You neglect her and drive her to also cheat then fabricate a huge confrontation so that you can dump her defective uterus while making her out to be the bad person, forcing her to life her life faced with overwhelming guilt. This caused her to be an "old maid", have no ability to have a true and loving relationship for YEARS.

Meanwhile, you go your merry way and have the perfect life. You become a wealthy, successful lawyer, marry and have three kids. You get the American dream while your ex is stuck living in the nightmare of the Scarlett Woman, guilt-ridden for destroying her marriage!!!

Then your wife dies and you show up and want forgiveness. You had the life she wanted. She didn't throw it away. You did.

What a douchebag.

KB

plot idea, which is VERY rare here. Nevertheless, the execution became mawkish at too many points...like some idiotic LifeTime Channel movie. The creativity, though, gets it a 4.

I would have been as happy if they had both moved on separately to be in happy marriages, but finally got together to talk and forgive one another. But this beautifully as well.

Can't help but think of the similarities to Javmor's and qml1's tales where the wife cannot bear children and both husband and wife go into separate depressions which eventually leads to the demise of the marriage. I love the redemption aspect of those stories and this one as well.

Both of their cheating was nothing more than if they both had resorted to alcohol or drugs to escape their pain. It really wasn't about the other people, but a chance to escape their pain.

5 stars

You did an excellent job of weaving an interesting story of not just the challenges of trying to deal with the phenomenon of a marriage but one that had serious extraneous problems that catalyzed other problems making the challenge greater.

Thankfully they both got a second chance and making the best of it.

T.T.

Both were guilty in there cheating ways after the first marriage . You had them get back together after his wife’s death and miracle circumstances brought them together again. I love a feel good story ending. Bravo.

CG ... I once was in a cab where the cabby, intent on showing his ‘better’ profession, claimed to have worked as a “Speech TERAPIST!” @

So, please do a little research on aspects of what you write about ... or (probably better) just write about stuff you actually know about. Principle and Principal are homophones, like Peak, Peek and Pique (commonly misused as well)

Re: dialogue, IMHO there is not too (to, two) much ... but it is generally too stilted. Actually, when it is a lawyer in conversation with a school administrator, it might actually be realistic, but they are also former lovers ... plus, an author should bend towards We-The-Readers.

Something that was slipped in that I found grinchy is that Sweetie asserted that she did not change back to her maiden name because she had established her credentials under her married name. However, she did not enter graduate school until a number of years after her divorce. It also sounds like she and he married after they took their (there) undergraduate degrees ... So all of her credentials could have been under her maiden name.

Finally, the biggest grinch ... TWO miscarriages in ONE year. Did she and Hubby pay NO attention to the doctor’s warning after her FIRST miscarriage?

A great story about forgiveness and reconciliation. Two young people having marriage problems don't talk and make mistakes. Years later they reunite and finally talk. A beautiful story with a realistic tone. I really enjoyed this, as I have your other work. You have talent.

"I believe a woman who will not take her husband’s name is one you should never marry in the first place."

Oh, I completely agree. I know a couple of women who kept their maiden name for professional reasons (a doctor and a solicitor), but I still don't buy it as a justifiable reason. There's almost no benefits for a man in getting married nowadays... the very least a new wife can do is not cut the poor husband's balls off at the start and take his name. If a woman refuses, it's usually because she's a ball-breaking feminist or fiercely independent... and would be terrible wives.

"I wonder what the score would be if only the wife had cheated."

I know I would have rated it a 1 instead of 5.

In the story as it stands, they were both devastated when they realised they couldn't have children. The marriage was floundering and they both sought solace elsewhere, leading to them both cheating. They both behaved badly... the blame was equal. It's very sad, but there's a balance there, and the possibility of reconciliation.

What did she need forgiveness for exactly? Looking for love after being emotionally abused by her “perfect, loving husband”? They were married but in name only and as soon as he could, he booted her to the curb to hook up with a younger, hotter woman and only after she died was he open to reconciliation....and I have to wonder why? Why would she want this abusive cocksucker back in her life? Because she cheated? Because she felt remorse for her affair when she was st her loneliest and most vulnerable? The time when her husband SHOULD have been her rock and not the albatross around her neck.

For everyone who said this was a tale of forgiveness and grace? The only one who needed forgiveness was her ex-husband. Unless we read different stories, she committed no crime deserving of grace.

Hi, I think it was a good story, and I was very happy that you finally decided that the head of a school was a principal and not a principle!

I believe that she admitted that SHE shut him out, leading him to withdraw, I don't remember if it was stated who cheated first, but BOTH were very similar, confiding in others what they should have been sharing with each other.

Excellent story very believable and could very well happen in “real life”. We are all flawed humans who are subject to bad decisions and bad judgment. Mistakes are a big part of life and our character is built from what we learn and how we change after committing those mistakes. Having said all of that, I am not now nor have I ever been a reconciliation at all costs (RAAC) kind of a guy. I tend to like a good BTB saga but recognize that there is a place for reconciliation in interpersonal relationships. And this is a prime example of how to do it without loosing you principles and masculinity.

Thank you for sharing, a great story.

Not much interested in a pair of cheaters

I found the dialogue a bit cumbersome, in real life people don't stand still for paragraph long, formal speeches, they interrupt, jump ahead, finish each other's sentences, answer the 3rd question first, the first question second, and forget the second question.

Just some thoughts from one flawed writer.

Thanks for writing

Now that I'm in myy "golden" years I've met many couples who rediscovered each other after being married to someone else for some time. Most were dating in high school or college and went separate directions for their careers, then gravitated back to their hometown after retirement/divorce/death of spouse. Only one or two couples were previously married as in this story, but it does happen!

I wonder if Kevin wouldn't have used the internet or other resources to explore the whereabouts of his ex-wife when he decided to return to their hometown--especially since he stated that he'd always loved her and regretted their ending. I think he'd have researched quite a lot about her prior to showing up at her school, if for no other reason than to see if she might be teaching there. It's been easy to know where my ex-wife of 40 years ago lives though I've not asked anyone about her since our divorce. Again, thanks for an enjoyable read.

Two people who learned from their immaturity and ended up with a wonderful life.

If neither had discovered the others affair they might well have limped along in a mediocre marriage, like so many marriages are. It was simply a coincidence that they were both fucking around at the same time. If the wife had caught the husband there is no evidence she would have reacted any differently from him. She gave him an out of a marriage gone sour and he took it. There is no balancing of guilt or blame. When two people fuck over each other you simply have twice the guilt and shame; 1+1.

But the larger point, I think, is that after remarriage, children, deceased spouse, professional career advancement, these are two very different people than they were 18 years ago. Its almost like they have just met and find a spark of romance and future relationship potential. That part was believable and well crafted. Congratulations.

As to spelling and the use of principle versus principal, here's an easy if hokey reminder: A principal is a student's "pal."

Thanks for your time and talent. And thanks for allowing anonymous comments. I haven't read any that were as off the mark as King Bandor's. King Bandor, really? Grow up.

Unlike a lot of what is written on here. Both were guilty of bad behavior and Kevin was not exactly a saint in that he used her cheating to get what he wanted...yet in the end they both grew up and learned how to be adult,caring people and to reconcile based on the truth. At least they had excuses,they were young and faced a tough time in their marriage w no help, having miscarriages is rough,not to mention not being able to have kids. In the end they figure out they never stopped loving each other and find a new relationship. Other than needing some editing, nicely written,enjoyed it.

.....great work. I grew up in Haywood County.

and seeing that the out of work third grade school teacher has spoken. I gave it a 5

I think you dragged me through my entire emotive range.... in just a handful of pages. Well done. Amd thank you.

Seems like a Script from a Hallmark television movie.

I think he stated that his affair with the girl from work had begun X period before catching the wife cheating. She had previously stated that she and her lover had only been at it Y long. X was greater than Y, therefore hubby cheated first.

And just to be clear, I liked the story and rated it well. I just don't see the husband as Prince Charming who 'forgives' his cheating wife and takes her back. What he did to her was SO MUCH worse than what she did.

My negativity is not because they both cheated, either. That happens, and people can reconcile. The negativity is because SHE didn't know the whole story. Hubby DID. Hubby held the truth from her for what, 18 years. He CHOSE to destroy their marriage and dump her when he was as guilty, if not more than she was. But, he let her carry the guilt all that time while he was FREE from it. He remarried. She didn't. He had kids. She couldn't. He was happy. She wasn't.

So, it was not at all equal. His actions were far worse. He stole 18 years of her life then comes along like it's no big deal.

Douchebag.

Just a small thing: "I'll be waiting anxiously now that you have my curiosity peaked."

It's a common mistake but peaked should be piqued.

So we're being asked to believe that in South Carolina even head teachers with doctorates can't spell their titles correctly? Seems a bit of a stretch. See now, Strom Thurmond, Lindsey Graham...well, okay, perhaps you're right.

I was quite surprised to see a couple of commenters stating that women who keep their maiden names should be avoided because they would make bad wives. Odd opinion. I know many women who kept their maiden names, for a variety of reasons. One was her father's only child and wanted to keep the family name going. She did change her last name to her husband's after their children were born. In my own case my wife kept her family name, and then as a sweet surprise changed her name on our 20th wedding anniversary. It was a complete shock to me, but enormously gatifying. I assure you all, she had been an excellent wife indeed during the 20 years she used her maiden name.

"What did she need forgiveness for exactly?"

Didn't you read the story? Alison cheated on him! Just because her husband had an affair too doesn't mean she was blameless.

They were both devastated when they found out she couldn't have children. He tried to support her, but she shut him out completely. Instead of turning to her husband for support, she started talking to Patrick and ended up fucking him.

Allison's infertility and her breakdown afterwards were the catalyst for both of their affairs. Kevin was just as upset and behaved just as badly... that's why they both needed to forgive each other.

"One was her father's only child and wanted to keep the family name going."

That was the father's responsibility, not the daughter's. If he really cared about continuing the family name, he would have had more children and tried for a son.

"changed her name on our 20th wedding anniversary. It was a complete shock to me, but enormously gatifying."

Because after 20 years, she finally respected you enough to take your name? If you have kids, I hope they took your surname at least? What was her justification for not committing to the marriage and hanging onto the past for two decades?

I can just imagine what it must have been checking into hotels.

"Thank you for the reservation, Mr Smith. Could you and Mrs Smith sign the register please."

"Err, actually it's Mr Smith and Miss Independent... but we are married really."

"Of course you are, Sir." Cue knowing look.

When I meet a married couple with different surnames, I immediately feel sorry for the husband. It's obvious who wears the trousers in that relationship. And yes, most people think that, they're just too polite to say it.

. . . denied that to her husband? For the wives who do not take their husbands’ names, most usually give their children their husbands’ last name.

I’ll say it again: if a woman will not take your name when you marry her, something you should find out long beforehand, she is showing her lack of respect for you, and it’s time to walk away.

didnt expect that from you. Very well done, had me emotional at points in the tale when discussing his deceased wife. What a woman she was!

Your hypocritis about last name let me laugh! Two of my friends have now their womans lastname because one was ugly and the second has brothers but hers only sisters. And this name is nearly 800 years of history. But its interesting in which way you are thinking about a "good" wife.

Thank you CG for a unusual story,👍 this is i call interesting!

Words used make me wonder. Add these words ...

Principal. as in main teacher/admin of a school.

Pique. as in ''interest was piqued' so he peered over the fence.

And on the emotional side, your handling of the wife's death and remembrance of her was first-rate. Thank You.

"Two of my friends have now their womans lastname"

Wow, talk about emasculated! Did their children take the boyfriend's surname?

Ectopic pregnancies and similar problems (a big reason for ultrasounds; to detect them) are all too common. Miscarriages like her’s can cause exactly the inter-couple problems you depicted.

If Kevin had been cheating on Alison then he wouldn’t have gone postal on Patrick!. He would have taken pictures and used those against his wife for the divorce. Since he was cheating on his wife he wouldn’t have cared about her cheating!

I really enjoyed this story. Nice that the cheating wife kept her husbands name, Made it easier when they re-married. I love how hubby kicked the married boyfriends ass; even if he was also cheating. I would have also let the cheating slut believe she was at fault for the divorce just to inflict more pain on her.

In the end so why not quit bitching and be happy for them and the kids? For me the best parts were when she talked to his daughter in the office and at the end when he told about his late wife. I don't see many Rec stories being lived any better than this. Signed: BTW

The commenters who make judgements about the behavior of story characters are self righteous fools.

Given the psychological mindset of people going thru a gut wrenching divorce, why would we expect them to act in a rational, objective, compassionate manner i.e. do it the readers way because that's the "right" way?

In this case, Allison's betrayal is her offense and hers alone. It is completely independent of Kevins's actions which are his offenses and his alone. Neither is under any legal or moral obligation to confess their offenses to the other.

While Allison's sense of guilt may have been mitigated had she known about Kevin's infidelity the seriousness of her action does not change because of it.

Do we think that all divorcing couples must sit down and spill their guts to their soon to be ex-spouse?

Divorce can be a gemisch of real and imagined offenses. It is likely in most divorces that both parties have hidden reasons e.g. financial, personal, sexual, geographic, lifestyle, etc. After all it is called irreconcilable differences and they are rarely enumerated. Unfortunately for Allison, she got caught before Kevin. So what! Her infidelity may have triggered the divorce but it wasn't the underlying reason. She left Kevin long before she spread her legs.

That said, Kevin's behavior was almost a mirror image of hers. Would she have admitted her affair if the roles were reversed? We'll never know. Should we even care?

... King Bandor's comments nailed this story and mirrored my feelings on it exactly. Kevin was an asshole, plain and simple. While neither one of them behaved well, both withdrawing emotionally and cheating, the fact remains that Kevin knew everything and Alison didn't. By knowing all that went on and that he was equally as guilty for the break down of their marriage as she was he had the emotional tools to come to terms with it and move on, eventually marrying and having the children they'd both always wanted. He found happiness and success and fatherhood and got everything they'd both dreamed of.

By contrast, what did Alison get? She got a whole ration of psychological issues that essentially left her emotionally crippled. The poor woman spent 18 years in self-inflicted purgatory, unable to move beyond their divorce because she felt like a failure, first because she sought out intimacy with another man and cheated but mostly because she wasn't able to give them the children they both were desperate for. Yeah, she was a jerk for cheating on her husband when she should have been communicating with him but he was equally if not more guilty. Didn't seem like he put a lot of effort into trying to get beyond her remoteness, did it? Did he insist on counselling? Nope. Did he talk at her constantly until she acknowledged him? Nope. Did he try to bring other people in to talk to her? Too much effort! Nah, easier to just bitch and moan to the office slut and fuck her, then go on a witch hunt to humiliate his wife and the douchebag she was screwing and lay all the blame on the divorce at her feet. By being a fucking pussy who was too ashamed to call and admit to her that he was equally guilty he allowed her to create an emotional prison for herself which kept her from creating any lasting relationships.

A lot of people would probably say Alison's mental and emotional health were her own responsibility to deal with and she should have gotten therapy years before so she could move on. The fact remains, though, that she never knew the full truth. A lot of the issues of guilt she was dealing with were only partially her fault. If one breaks it down, the only thing she was REALLY completely at fault for were allowing herself to cheat on Kevin, not communicating her feelings after the miscarriages to him, and trying to shift the blame completely onto Patrick, who, despite what she thought later, DID share a lot of the blame as he took advantage of an emotionally distraught young woman for his own selfish gains. Had she gone into therapy she would have 'come to terms with' a lot of issues and accepted things for the wrong reasons.

So, in the end Alison got left holding a bag of shit for eighteen years while Kevin felt a little guilty but got over it and had the life of his dreams. Hooray for assholes! For some reason that basically comes down to a plot device, she decides to forgive the prick over the course of two weeks or so and dates and falls back in love with him in a big summarized bunch of paragraphs, then has no problems whatsoever taking over as step-mommy to his kids from his wife of fifteen years whom he was always faithful to. I know love is forgiving but there are limits.

Sadly, this isn't an unrealistic premise. I know far too many women who are accepting of emotionally abusive, entitled, selfish pricks and stay with them despite the fact that they treat said women like complete shit, so this relationship is morbidly plausible. It sure doesn't make for a happy ending in my own opinion, though. Sure, Kevin may have grown up a bit and he may actually try to be a good husband this time but that doesn't change the fact that he was a cowardly prick who never bothered to come clean to his ex-wife until he actually felt lonely and wanted to bone her again. She may have cheated on him but so did he and she deserved better than to be branded a scarlet woman who destroyed their marriage and saddled with guilt for eighteen years. She sure as hell deserved a better man than Kevin after all she put up with. Would have been a much better ending had she told him to go fuck himself, gotten some therapy after his dickless confession in the car, and moved on to find a real man to spend the rest of her days with. Maybe a nice divorced Dad with custody of his own kids that she could be a real mother to.

Characters, plot, narrative, dialogue...all wretched. What a bitter pill to read. The backstory was unnecessary dreck.

The wife who got caught cheating explains the third party in detail how she got caught ... “he was doing his third stroke“ some authors should read their own stories, maybe they realize what a moronic bullshit they are writing

Can’t believe that she would even talk to this horrible individual. Not only did he leave thinking that it all her fault he had her tie her tubes so she could no longer kids, (medical science moves on in 17 years who knows if the would have been able to help her, or even harvest her eggs and use a surrogate he left without hope), then proceeded to marry another woman and have of his own. Now that the second wife was dead he was on the hunt for someone else to raise the little bastards since it would be hard to do on his own and still have time for himself. She was never according to her able to have a long term relationship and I would bet it was because of her guilt. Would have been so much better if she had slapped hard in the resturant and walked out calling him a f...ing bastard. Hate the ending. He was responsible for everything bad in her life and gets off smelling like a rose rather than s..t.

This was one of the better communication and reconciliation stories I've read in LW. Great!

Good story thanks.

OMG trimiv is such a dickhead, has to be a female man hater.

Good story. Please get an editor. An author writing about professional educators should know how to spell the job title of principal.

A 5. Beautiful, moving. Both of them were flawed, made mistakes, but this second chance was right. Yes, that most recent comment about "principal" and "principle" was spot on - and just the sort of thing that editing software misses.

This was a lovely story. It was beautiful. -starsong1977

I am such a sucker for romance. Too many never find it.

Now here was a self righteous man Kevin ...who was as bad as his wife.. but burnt her and pretended to be oh so goody two shoes! Now that Susanne is dead he wants back to what he had before so comes clean now! She is really stupid to get back with this shallow person!

Great story, CG. Well written and I'm a sucker for a happy ending. You are quickly becoming on of my favorite authors.

BTW I live just outside Richmond so I'm familiar with may of the places that you describe. Thanks for taking the time to write.

Loved it. A great story. I am currently reading each one of your stories. I hope you will continue writing. I've been to many of the places in your stories and it is nice to read about them

Very good.

Very sadly, in these stupid times, hugging a pupil would probably get a teacher disbarred and put on a sex offenders register!

I get that the author wanted to out each cheating spouse on the same level to set up a reconciliation. But it failed. I have been married for 31 years to a wonderful wife and have two children now in medical school or working after college. And in my humble opinion, the husband was a far more grievous offender. Ignore thr dynamics of who started what when and how each "seduction" evolved. I use quotes since the husband's relationship seemed like he instigated things. First, I can unequivocally say that the woman suffers way more in case of a miscarriage or infertility. My wife lost our first baby a year before our eldest was born. It was devastating to both, but far more for her. I too was frustrated with not being able to connect with my young wife and felt powerless. But this asshole blamed her for the inability to have kids and didn't support her. No longer co nectinf with her emotionally or sexually or just being a supportive husband. I admit I turned to work and wracked up a lot if hours. So did he. But he confided in another women at work, slep with her and pulled away from his wife. It takes months of love and support for a wife to get past a miscarriage let alone infertility. What he was feeling was rough but was a fraction of what she was going through. That is a fact of life. He backstabbed their marriage when she needed him most and she was vulnerable and turned elsewhere. Is there any surprise he showed zero interest in her as she was depressed and crying after the terrible events and news but in his case was also having an affair? Yes she messed up and helped end her marriage but she did not know that her craven asshole husband had already gutted it? Also is it any wonder after he got tipped off that he set her up, moved in, then just vanished, giving her the house? He kept seeing his illicit lover for 2 months post separation and then ran away, never telling hi soon to be ex wife squat until 18 years later. Oh yeah and he was a man whore for several years until Suzanne saved him. Even if you want to argue the series of events and timing was virtually the same, there massive differences: (a) motive: he blamed her for the infertility and withdrew like a coward, while she looked for support for elsewhere as she got Jack all from her asshole husband when she needed it most, (b) her medical condition and trauma affected her emotional stability and her self worth, while hubby was oblivious to this or he didn't know or care how to help his supposed true love (trust me just holding your wife while she cries for hours works wonders, what an asshole!), and (c) he took 18 years to tell her the truth, letting her suffer with her guilt and denying her closure and running like a little boy, and then still not talking to her for how many years? Motive, her trauma, and his lying, make his sins far worse. I cannot believe after his confession she got back together with him other than she is b terribly alone. What an asshole! Really any perceived equivalency is illusionary. His actions really take the cake.

Love that story. My son just went through about the same, but it was their first marriage. Now he is searching for someone to accept him and his 2 kids. this story hit close to home.

Agree with commenter from 4 months ago, the husband (Kevin) was the much bigger asshole. Btbers on this comment section are screaming at her. Huh? If you reversed the roles, substituted miscarriage for a mental disorder or a bad accident, they woukd flay the wife alive. But in this story it was the husband. Miscarriage doesn't excuse infidelity. But it is a real problem for most women when it happens. Support by your partner is key and even then it is really difficult. He did squat. Unplugged. Had a much longer affair and had no desire for her. He broke his gows first. Not just to forsake all others but to love, honor and cherish AND in sickness and in health. And she bears the guilt for 18 years. Kevin was an execrable asshole.

Man the ex husband Kevin was a real douchebag.