All Comments on 'Lyin' Eyes Ch. 07'

The three additional chapters expanded the story helping the answer the "why" question. I expect that some will show disdain for the psychological answer. However, we all have demons we must confront if we are to live happily. Great job!

John

SHOULD HAVE JUST ENDED THE STORY IN CHAPTER FOUR. THESE LAST TRHEE CHAPTERS JUST GAVE THE WIFE AN EXCUSE FOR AN AFFAIR. I DON'T CARE WHAT SHE WENT THREW IN HER CHILDHOOD, SHE KNEW WHAT THE FUCK SHE WAS DOING WHEN SHE WAS HAVING THE AFFAIR. I WOULD HAVE DIVORCED THE WHORE. I WOULD HAVE NEVER LET HER BACK INTO MY LIFE AND ESPECIALLY MY DAUGHTER'S LIFE. I WOULD HAVE TOLD HER TO GO FUCK HERSELF AND GO TO HELL. THATS JUST ME.

Some people profess love. Others find it a thing worth the effort of fighting for. There is much in the human mind that gets in the way of our daily lives. This story shows that to a large extent. Good Job.

PS.Flamers should burn their keyboards if they haven't the balls or integrity to leave a name! that's just me though.

I'm sorry - well no I'm not - Without a second opinion and maybe a 12th, this was still the crime of the century - it is as though she shot someone - her husband - then said it was because the dog bit the cat 17 years, 13 months and 39 days ago, so lets make a few more kids to show me you still love me and I promise to never shoot you again unless something else sets me off.

Now the child, who was subjected to all this without explanation and certainly without understanding, sees and remembers how badly she was treated by a bad person whom her father now sleeps with again.

So the next chapter is about warning his daughter's 3rd fiance that she will likely cuckold him due to what she has been through, but not to worry as I've got a great doctor for you after it happens. Some traditions are just worth savoring.

See it all makes cents to somebody - who - we don't know - he's on second - but not credibly!

It would seem they have come a long way to get the equivalent of 'time heals eveything' maybe a little quicker.

Love happy endings, though!

This story and your other story Obsession show that all relationships have different breaking points and only those in the relationship can set them.

I have no problem with the reconciliation if it is justified but this was just weak. Sorry, you blew this one. It's your story and you can do what you want but I don't have to enjoy it.

Typical wimp husband story by a woman writer. It IS the sex with other men that a man hates the most and will not forgive -not the simpering "betrayal of trust" that women dwell on forever.

I enjoyed chapters 1-3 but had issues since that time. In chapter 4 I asked for an expansion, but the expansion wasn't great. I thought the last chapter of him suddenly waking to taking her back was quick. Overall I like your writing and please keep it up.

A very satisfying ending in spite of the naysayers. Life doesn't always deal us a pat hand - we have to put up with the cards that we have. Mark was dealt a crappy hand. He could have turned his back, but he learned to deal with his wife's betrayal and was able to turn the corner. It doesn't always happen this way; there at times when this kind of thing leads to a different and sadder ending. Me? I like ending that are happy and, yes, realistic. Good work - looking forward to more tales from you.

I enjoyed this story because it is very realistic. The emotions and thought process are easy to follow. Every relationship has problems. Its how you work through them that showed character and defines the people in it. Well done.

and the most stupid fucking thing a man could ever do unless he just coveted and wanted heartbreak was to have two more kids with this cheating bitch to support to age 21 from this insecure phychologically fucked up bitch.

When she broke into that spiel about leaving his sorry ass when he questioned her about her afffair in an earlier chapter, that was the last nail in this coffin as far as this marriage was concerned. The icing on the cake and the cous de gras.

Very good writing but the story line was irrational. very touchy feely ending and totally unfucking REALISTIC too.

She could go off on a wild assed crazed fucking spree again at any time because her favorite soap opera was pre-empted by a world series extra inning or her soup got cold while talking on the phone.

Sorry, I do realise that it is your story, and it was written in the way you saw it. But I believe that you changed Mark's mindset too fast for me, and into a direction that I can see him getting. Having said that, I need to say that I like the way you write, and look forward to see more from you. Tks.

Encountered any problems with your plot? Want to change direction belatedly? The literary world offers you a garden variety of traditional and more contemporary easy maneuvers to help you do just that. First, the traditional ones: 1.Claim it was all just a dream 2. Let God or a super natural power intervene. Next, are examples of more modern versions: 1.Let a psychiatrist re-tell the story by inserting a new narrative about one of the characters 2. Leave it unexplained under the guise of the absurdity of the world. As you may imagine, all of these maneuvers come at a price. The price is: abandoning the organic narrative line; forgetting characters initial presentation and later developments; putting all of that in parenthesis, and asking the reader to believe something new which has not been worked into the plot earlier. I never cared for any of the above, which amounts to writer’s short cuts maneuvers rather than going back to the drawing board and building a sounder plot right from the beginning. It seems to me that I am not alone with the feeling of disappointment for being ‘switched on’ in the last third of the story. Quite a number of readers reflected a similar sentiment in different ways. How about less Ego constructs and such and more work on sound story telling?

As I said in the last chapter, "once a cheater always a cheater". Get a DNA test for the kids all three of them, that quack Dr. has and is making a fortune from stupid Mark. Hell maybe Laura is getting screwed at the Drs office with the Drs help.....Mark I think gave in way to soon.....Naaaaa no more you should have stopped sooner.. You are a very good writer though.

Paul

when it comes to issue of forgiveness. sorry, i'm not commenting on the story, but on one of the critics replies. we men can forgive the physical act of sex, it's the lying, hiding, denying, deceiving, and cover-up that leaves us in a quandry. we prove that we can forgive the physical act of sex because very few of us marry virgins. forgiveness for all previous actions is the start of any marriage. the problem we have is the lying, it shatters the trust, and that is the basis for pure love, just plain simple trust. you can never have any sort of relationship without trust. i'm reminded of a story by another author, where the wife has a single one night affair after a party while her husband was out town. she immediately confessed all to him upon his return. they definitely had issues to deal with, but doubt and trust was not one of them. by ner not lying, hiding, and deceiving, he knew he could believe what she said. once you are lied to by the person who is supposed to be your best friend, your lover, your confidant. the one who walks side by side with you thru life, watching your back while you watch theirs. the person you should never feel vulnerable with. the person who you should be able to tell your deepest and most emotional secrets to. a lie shatters all that and more. how can you believe anything they say. do they mean it when they say, i love you, it was just a mistake, it will never happen again, it meant nothing, i don't love the other person, i didn't mean to hurt you, i'll never hurt you again, i'll never lie to you again. as i said, forgiving the physical act is not near as hard as forgiving the lying. now for a comment on the story. i think this writer is fantastic. that said, i did have troubles with this story. but only in regards to the doctor. i have a very good understanding of human nature, but absolutely no comprehension or understanding of psychiatry. therefore, while reading the story, i didn't feel emotionally attached. i felt more like a student listening in a classroom and wondering if what i'm hearing is correct. didn't know whether to accept it or reject it. the story left me feeling detached and walking away saying " i hope they are all correct and it works out for them".

Longhorn:

You sure do know how to attract the anonymous boo birds. The problem as has been stated by others better able to express it, is that no man alive knows what his reaction would be in similiar circumstances. WE THINK WE KNOW. Just like going into combat, how'll you react? WE THINK WE KNOW. I have your original version, but I like your edited version better, because you answered some of the criticisms in the earlier version, but still not enough to calm everbody down, I see.

Hell; I hope your happy with it 'cause I am, but I'm a sucker for a happy ending. Thank You! Ronnie W.

I liked the story very much.My ex-wife is sorta like this wife.If i known what i know now i would had put a stop to my wife's affair.It's been 19 years now.

A good story with an interesting ending

Mushy wordy and totally incredible. I have seen or heard of a single husband accepting this kind of behavior from a wife for this length of time after being fed fairy tales from a psychiatrist (?) – Not in my life time. Give me a break!

The fact that the author is a very good story teller does not imply at all that he knows everything there is to know about everything. The author here stepped into an area not his and unfortunately screwed up big time.

When you have no psychology training (beyond grade) school, you should not set yourself up to resolve a very complicated situation with people bordering on the insane.

The last four chapters are not worth the keystrokes they took to come to life. I am not against people repenting and getting forgiven. I am only against writing piles of nonesense. Author, I bet you would never take Laura back if this happened with you, so do not try to make us believe someone apparently smarter than you would do it.

I apologize for being harsh, but this is not the first time someone tries to pull on us a similar truckload of crap.

Thanks for the effort and keep trying.

Most people that have commented so far just are upset that a great writer and story this really is is above what they themselves can accomplish. I thought it was one of the best I have ever read and I love happy endings that make a man a true man and a woman a true woman as a result of what love and understanding and forgiveness can do for us humans...WONDERFUL!!!

I just wanted to tell you how realistic and wonderful your story was. The first three chapters were great, yet incomplete without the last four. For all of those out there who believe any persons emotions have to only follow a set story line, dump her, or be a cuckold, well maybe it's time to put that nonsense aside and look into yourselves. My own life has had ups and downs in the last 58 years that I wouldn't have believed. Author thank you for an in depth look at two honest people, one who was able to look past his own heartache for the happiness of his daughtor, and one who looked her selfish sluttiness in the eye, realizing the terrible pain she caused; vowing to not be that person again.Again author thank you.Signed Anonymous:

A truly outstanding story. It contains such a range of excellent ideas and subjects from cutting edge technology to psychological analysis and true love for family. A story with a much to fast opening and little preliminary history on Laura and Mark which recovers with to a detailed analysis of what went wrong in Laura's life. Excellent ending. Write more of the same!

RAGiolli

Not wanting to sound righteous I enjoyed the act of forgiveness. He didn't have to forget it.

Although the story doesn't do much for me, the imagery and detail is just amazing. I'm in the middle of my first story (which I was inspired to do by reading Separate Lives), and now I don't want to finish. Please keep writing more of these.

I am rather amused by all that say that a husband that takes back a cheating wife is a wimp. More so that it is unrealistic. Hehe, that just cracks me up as those peaple live in some other world. Or maybe they have not been in a serious relationship themself.

To me being a wimp would be to end the marriage. It may be that it is necessary to get a divorce. A wimps way out is to end the marriage right away as that is the easy way.

To stay and try to figure out how, why and mayby try to fix it that is the strong man´s way. If it don´t work. Thats´s another story.

very well written with an exelent ending.........keep up the good work

Ihave read thsi several times. I enjoyed the second an dthird tiems more than the first. I can understand how a husband could forgive a woman he loves. Isnt that what love is...issnt that what a marriage is based on.. Excellent andthe epilogues make it even better...

I almost can weep at the ending,something as tender can only be expressed by a great writer.Thank You.

I think Mark was right about the psycho-babble. It was "some crap designed to give my wife a free pass for screwing around and betraying our marriage." Better, perhaps, to have just laid out the frameworks of Laura's childhood and let the Dr. suggest that Laura saw her husband as ruthless (Ruth-less). She then tried to make herself more Ruth-like believing thatif she behaved like that slut Ruth (and who but a slut would sleep with her brother-in-law?), then perhaps Mark/Daddy would love her.

after watching the tape of wife fucking another man.the shit she talk to him.

"I think some men will see me as a cuckold in the ancient sense of the word, a wimp to be scorned by every man I meet,"

I think that about sums it up.(zed)

Longhorn that was so moving i started to cry with happiness and sorrow i honestly loved that series of stories i hope to read more of these stories the next time you write more.

i give it 100 points for sincerity and heart.

Pat Murray

Atlanta,Ga

I've read this excellent psychodrama several times and decided to comment this time. Longhorn__07's prose is quite good (and he's gotten even better with time), the plotline is rich and complex, and the characters believable and realistic. It's good fiction and I enjoyed the story on multiple levels.

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By dint of their comments, it's clear that many of the posters don't accept the idea that Laura is mentally ill when she sunders their marriage. It's too bad that they are so narrow-minded. Just remember: idiots also thought that the world was flat for quite a while. Many of those individuals passed to their eternal rewards believing that "truth".

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While psychology isn't an exact science yet, our understanding of the physiological causes for some forms of mental illness continues to grow. I'm thankful for this because modern physiopsychology helped me overcome chronic depression. So nowadays, when assholes want to engage me in flame wars, my standard response is, "You do understand that you're engaging in a public discourse with someone who's crazy, right?" Shuts 'em right up. ;)

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Thanks again, Longhorn__07, for an enjoyable read, and I look forward to your next story.

I think it was well written, I enjoyed the part when Mark lowered the boom. Especially, the way she had treated him for the last six months and I don't just mean her infidelity or her lies but the hostile way she treated Mark and her daughter. When confronted, she became belligerent and started verbally attacking his sanity plus when it came to their sexual relations she had all but cut him off. I sorry, but like others I don't think the therapy explains Mark's turn around. Especially since they really never come up with a plausable reason as to why she did it. I have two degrees in Psychology and have worked in Mental Health for close to 20 years. I had to read that section of the Doctor's analyst several times and finally decided that it didn't even come close to any sensible explanation. So, I was quite pleased when Mark walked out. Just stating that she was abandoned when she was a child and sexually abused. Abandoned children want to always please people so they will love them and not leave to avoid separation anxiety. Sexually abused children often grow up thinking that love and sex are the same thing. So, they tend to have sex a lot with different people because they are trying to guard themselves when the relationship goes bad. In their minds it always will. Excellent job describing Mark's pain. The hole in his stomach, his heart riped out,etc. are all examples of autonomic behavior(behavior we don't have direct control over like anxiety,salivating, pupil contraction) these are all behaviors that are very difficult to rid yourself of. That's how most phobias are conditioned. All I can say is that Mark is a lot stonger man than I am. I experienced a similar situation about fifteen years ago. We too went to counseling. Why is it that when one spouse gets caught cheating, the perpetrator always wants to go to counseling and when the victim is so hurt they don't want to sit around and talk about it, or if they do go they didn't take it seriously they get blamed for the divorce. To be honest, the standard counseling practice for this is to prove the point that it takes two. Putting part of the blame on the victim. Anyway, all I know is it didn't work for me and of course it was my fault for the divorce. The point I'm trying to make is trust is not the only hurdle. Your body will pick up an subtle stimuli, such as smell of perfume she uses, the same type of car she drives, sombody that laughs the same, etc. and all of a sudden you start feeling anxiety. Something as traumatic as betrayal conditions your autonomic system. It's a survival mechanism built into our bodies thousands of years ago so we won't make the same mistake again. We ended up getting a divorce and though I've dated I just couldn't commit. So, Mark must be one hell of a guy to be able to control those feelings in a year and a half unless he really didn't love her as much as he thought he did. Your description pretty much sounded like their first true love. Maybe I'm just a wimp but no matter how much I tried I wouldn't allow myself to become vulnerable again. So from my experience, she cheats ,she's gone. To your credit you did put the part in that it would take a lot of time and hard work but I bet the relationship will never be the same.

g. The woman acted totally self centered caring nothing for her husband nor her child. It was a long on going affair carried out by a planning, lyingd, cheating, disrespecting woman who was bent on self destruction. Yes she was mentally unbalanced, no one in their right mind would have acted in such manner. She may be well now, but he fell in love with anothe woman to even consider loving the new woman would require a completely new courtship process and romance with feelings. After seeing those vids of her in action there is no way a husband could ever look at her again without seeing the action in his mind. There is no way a husband could remember the lies and deceit and trust her again, looking over your and her should 24/7 gets very tiring very quickly. She was emotionally and physically put off by the child. She mentally, emotionally, and physically abandoned the child. It would be child abuse of the worst type to bring that woman back into the childs life is there was even a remote possibility she would again put the child thru this wringer. Actually the husband would be the one committing child abuse by letting her back. I can only find one reason for the man to allow her back or for that matter to even look at or speak to her. He himself is mentally ill and suicide prone. There comes a time in life when must shit or get off the pot, in this case as always throw out the trash. If she is recycable let someone else be the one to use damaged property.

What a tender, touching, psychobabble of chick flick this one is.... I just wonder who is the father of Chris and Marissa?

What a tender, touching, psychobabble of chick flick this one is.... I just wonder who is the father of Chris and Marissa?

Interesting paradox. Laura betrayed her husband and daughter because of her mental crisis; however, the mental crisis ultimately provides her with a “Get out of jail FREE” card. Did Mark actually forgive Laura or was he merely convinced that helpless and innocent Laura was temporarily replaced by her evil twin who actually “done him wrong”? Would he have forgiven her without this consideration? I’m guessing not.

Not trying to take anything away from the story. This is one of the best on the site.

(I think he sums it up best on the last page, let me quote;

"I think some men will see me as a cuckold in the ancient sense of the word, a wimp to be scorned by every man I meet,"

Truer words were never spoken. I didn't know there were any wimps in Texas, a few pussy's maybe, but no wimps!

No. I'd say he wasn't a wimp. And i also don't understand the people crying why Mark become a wimp to accept Laura back. Longhorn__07 DID tell at the very beginning of Part 4 this not for "You" guys. And for the guys who didn't understand to what extent one's subconscious play role to their behavior, I'd say they are at best ignorant. Longhorn__07 told everything very elaborately, depicting each session with the doctor to make us reader understand the way Laura turned into the "evil" one after Aunt Ruth's death. Someone said human mind is full of Grey areas, instead of stark white or black areas.

Had she not had a psychological problem, then Mark's action would have been a wimpy one. But at every line of the story from the beginning we saw that Mark couldn't deduce why there had been changes in Laura. And it also wasn't all of sudden but gradually over 16 months. she was getting ill.

I'd say that Mark's decision was good. Yes he certainly had gone though a hell. Laura's action's was a blow to his ego. His beliefs. But he was conscious of Laura's "illness" when doctor told him about that. If you see the ending you will see that how Longhorn__07 depicted a picture where Mark is indeed blissfully happy. He has a full family. A happy daughter, who could have been a psychological mess herself, or at least torn apart by her mother's abrupt departure, but didn't because Mark chose not be blinded solely by his masculinity, ego and anger. And other two kids as more reason to his happiness. And last but not the least his wife - a devoted one who had learnt in a hard way not to take for granted the bliss of family she has.

I must say Longhorn__07 had done a very good job with the story with providing every possible insights into the story and the character. Good work. Keep it up.

the force plot was a craper,and the bullshit the hubby took.any man take that crap in front of his employee and face them at work,don't jive.this abuse the wife put on the hubby was out of hand.to much abuse to take her back.she could indanger their child and hurt him.author onemindness to put them back together killed plot for me.

The number of people that do not believe in the sub-conscious is probably is greater than the number of people who like baseball! Theories that can not be proved do not function

well to convince someone who does not believe.

One thing that I have noticed is that when we are young we live in the moment without reference to the future or the past. Maturity brings a lot of responsibility to those who have it. In this case I believe that husband wanted his wife back and convinced himself that she had learned enough about herself to be able to live up to her vows if he allowed her to renew them.

Bad storyline. Not credible to me. Real life? He wouldn't even know (nor care) where his former wife was anymore, she would have walked a sea of broken relation by now, or being inside a mental institution. Sorry, no cigar. And their daughter would be abused mentally, first by the mother and then the father (telling her that her mother was gone). This Story is not to my liking. Cheers Yoron.

Everybody has problems. Everybody has scars and issues and deep seeded traumas that we have to deal with throughout our lives. It's not about what we are feel underneath, or what our subconscious mind is bullshitting to us. It's the choices we make, and the things we say and do that really matter. You were right at the end of chapter five. "This is bullshit." In the end, she made a choice. As do we all. And that choice was unforgiveable.

Your story here, Longhorn, is like pearls before swine.

poor alyssa having that piece of shit for a father, oh well when she turns ten she will be ordering him around anyway.

poor alyssa having that piece of shit for a father, oh well when she turns ten she will be ordering him around anyway.

poor alyssa having that piece of shit for a father, oh well when she turns ten she will be ordering him around anyway.

poor alyssa having that piece of shit for a father, oh well when she turns ten she will be ordering him around anyway.

poor alyssa having that piece of shit for a father, oh well when she turns ten she will be ordering him around anyway.

This was well-written, the characters were developed, the grammar was generally good, and I liked the romantic nature of the story. That said, I am a bit skeptical of the "insanity defense" for Laura's actions. I believe she clearly knew right from wrong -- she planned the whole set of meetings with good old Brian -- heck, she even made him use a condom! So I have a problem with the idea that she just blanked out, she was living in a dream, her subconscious took over, she did not really know what she was doing, etc., etc., etc. I think the same way of looking at a person in criminal court who kills his/her spouse and then claims "insanity" should be applied to Laura; that's why Mark is so ambivalent for so long in accepting her affair. Mark's associate, Carl, has a son who has some type of paranoid schizophrenia similar to that depicted in the movie "A Beautiful Mind" but I don't see evidence that Laura is psychotic (legally insane). The last half of the story just did not convince me that Laura's actions should get a pass. What if your spouse tried to kill you and was judged to be mentally disturbed because of repressed memories about her father, do you really want to trust the shrinks who say she's all better now, and allow her a second chance to kill you, this time successfully? I don't think so . . . .

nicely written but the story is pure crap. this is pure abuse. "its because of"........whatever!!. life is hard enough as it is. taking her back is like having a cancer cell in your body. it could kill you.

What do you do with people that arent responsible, you put them in homes of course. Now a real question. If she cheated and was not mentally stable at the time, and what married person that cheats on their marriage is stable anyway. The spouse is supposed to forgive and forget and take them back because they were "not responsible". Now tell me, if as a result of that cheating the spouse got a very bad HIV/AIDS case would the spouse have to forgive and forget and take them back? Forgive them for ruining their and your and your childrens lives? Forget they have AIDS? Take them back as a loving spouse and enjoy sexual relations and have new children? Dont know about you, but, it sounds very stupid to me!

pearls. The wife was trash, pure trash, always throw out the trash, it rots and stinks up everything around it.

Those of you who condemn either Laura or Mark should be ashamed of yourselves. There is no such power greater than that of the human mind and when it becomes corrupted it can have devastating effects. Even more surprising is how little is required to initiate a "downward spiral". Mark got his "pound of flesh" in return for Laura's betrayal as well as her love in return for his forgiveness. Laura felt the utter anguish, not only of loss, but of confusion as to the reasons why in exchange for her deception, and Mark's forgiveness in exchange for her acceptance of responsibility. Everyone got what they deserved at the end of this story. Is it COMPLETELY realistic? Maybe not but I come to this site to ESCAPE from reality if only for a few paragraphs. To you, Longhorn_07, I say well done. This was a fantastic story. Enough realism to make it work but also enough "magic" to make it a FANTASY which is all most of the stories on this site are and why it is so popular.

... or was, an Engineer much as Mark. I can never expect to divine the miracle called the human mind. I did, however, see 'A Beautiful Mind', a wonderful canvas on which to exhibit the genius of Russell Crowe. I have also experienced the devastation that can be the result of mental disorders. As a result, I have absolutely no problem accepting the conclusion of this story by Longhorn_07. I treasure this as a well-researched study and creatively displayed tale of the subject matter. Thanks! Jim

needs clarification. Who wants to be married to a woman who is basically insane. Remember the woman in Houston that drowned all of her children? Because of her mental issues. Do the children care about her mental issues, no they are dead. Who cares why she betrayed her family, she did it. In 99 % of reconciliation cases where the wife has run off and had affairs and virtually abandoned the family, they do it again after the reconciliation. A one very famous writer once wrote, it doesnt matter why she cheated, it only mattered that she loved her husband, her child, and her marriage so little she cheated. There is no excuse for totally betraying your family and yourself, none! If you cant write a realistic piece why write?

mark is stupid wimp,slut "poor" wife ha ha ha

I feel that the story was developed excellently. Those who decry the good Doctor's input as "Psychobabbel" have never had the reality of dealing with persons inflicted with psychotic behavior.

Years ago it was called "insane", then "paranoia" then we were told that these people were "schizo" and now the term seems to be "bi-polar." These are all terms meaning that there is something wrong and we are not sure exactly what can be done to solve the problem.

Shooting your wounded is not civilized behavior. This seems to be what your "anonymous" comment entries want to happen.

I admire Mark and the Doctor; however I feel sorry for Laura. She needs help and doesn't know how to seek it and her husband is a problem solver that moves from A to B without realizing that human interactions sometimes take you all the way to XYZ before ever getting to B. Mark is not so ego-bound that he can't learn and does move into the correct problem-solving mode -- use the best professionals when you are out of your depth in material that is obscure at best.

When you are trying to drain the swamp and find yourself up to your ass in alligators, you get a bunch of alligator hunters to help you solve your problem. The Doctor turned out to be an excellent alligator hunter!

Epilogue to epilogue:

"I still haven't figured out why my last two children look nothing like me...and why their skin is so dark..."

Good story!

of this. I really liked the comparison of a woman undergoing cancer treatment, losing weight, loss of hair, loos of breast, (I have already lived thru this with my wife), and a woman who is mentally ill and treats herself as a whore, and intentionally harms herself, her spouse, and her child. Yes forgive her due to her illness, take her back, not a chance in hell. Caring for a person that is ill is what you do if they are yours. He put the grandson in a "home". Cancer patients get treatments and care. A person so mentally ill to do these things first does not need to move that gene along and second should not be married or for that matter have children to care for. What head doctor is actually going to come along and say she is totally cured and will never ever under any circumstances do anything like this again. They cant, because they have no real way of knowing. Your forced reconciliations may be pc but the are damn sure not logical, legal, nor based on love.

The periods of the wife betraying the husband, abandoning the child, and being a slut and whore, how does the husband and baby girl come out alright with that? How did the exwife make it up to him? Take a supposition, suppose in her mental state she shot and killed her husband for wanting to control her. Exactly how would she make it right and make her husband ok? You cant erase what happened to the husband and the daughter, it cant be made ok or alright. Damage was done and the daughter and the husband will have to live their lives with the "damage" this woman did to them. Carl's grandson is being cared for, he is a danger to himself and to others. There is no real shame in him being cared for. The wife is not mentally stable, you can give her pills control what happens, but what happens when she decides to not take the pill one day or if she just cant get to the pills? Just because she is technically mentally alright now doesnt mean the husband has to take her back, why not let her go on and live out her life and let the husband have the opportunity to heal from the damage she has done to him and their daughter. The victim here is not the exwife, it is the exhusband and the child, they should come first in all considerations. Saying I sorry does not removed blame or guilt it just allows the other person to have the opportunity to forgive you so they can get on with their lives.

I'm not sure that I could be as strong as Mark is, I hope I could be but…. I'd probably just have snapped, killed both the wife and the boy friend and the consequences be damned. Specifically the consequences to Alyssa. I think that people can in fact be mentally ill and definitely not know it. To me the real story here is that of true love, he loved her so much that he managed to overcome his own revulsion of her for his daughter’s sake. The fact that they managed to get back together is a further testament to that love, on both parts. To those who continued to read after part three and then bashed the writer, grow up. You were told you wouldn’t like it, why not take that at face value, not trash the author’s scores and let it end there. It actually worked well as a standard cheating wife story with a pretty logical ending at that point. All in all an excellent story.

Anonymous in Boston

I didn't think you could pull this one off...but you did. The reconciliation was the best result. I had to read further. I just had to see if you could justify her actions and you did. Mental illness is a common problem with women and one can read every week about a woman killing her babies and worse because of it. Great job author. Foo on the "Torch the Bitch" commenters. The are pitiful...

well written. nice to see such an understanding of mental health problems and forgiveness. loved the story. very well written.

Good Story but,CUCK, CUCK, CUCK, CUCK, TWO crazy assed women pulled the wool over your eyes stupid--You took back a crazy assed whore, slut, skank, she came from a a crazy assed family. Well you are fucked now ass hole. Hey Horn what kind od wackey weed did you smoke to write this story. I guess it was cuck weed. HA HA

Did people intentionally read on when they were told not to if they didn't like the fact that they would get back together? And then to leave retarded remarks and low scores. Asshats like the Anonymous people who like to take crap should not be allowed to comment. This story was well done and did not deserve to talked about as badly as it did. Some people need to get a life.

I don't think the good doctor or Laura were trying to "justify" her infidelity, but rather to show there are many factors that can cloud our perception of reality. There is no justification what she did and do not agree that her actions were not her fault, they were her fault. But her emotional state that put her in that place was not her fault. She still had a choice and she chose to continue in her affair. Mark confronted her numerous times, begging her not to proceed. He really was warning her of what was coming if she continued.

But I know we do things out of great need we do not always understand. We deceive ourselves into thinking we are not that bad. We try to justify our behavior in our own minds even though we know they are wrong. There is a place for searching the deep emotional and mental mysteries, but at the same time, we still have a choice. We are still accountable for our actions.

THE solution? Put the puta into the same cage as the boy/man and let her have a neu experience !

it's the readers who can't stand it when a story doesn't have an ending to their liking. there are readers here that see life only in black and white. no compassion, just hate and flame. the author did a terrific job of telling a story, worked most likely hours and hours developing a plot and keep the reader interested, but instead of his effort being appreciated some taunt him with torches and flame. shame on those that can't acknowledge a well written, thought out tale.

i wouldn't have any kids with mentally ill woman.

very well written story, as are most of what you've posted. I've gotta love a happy ending. That said, I really don't buy the psychology behind it. Sure her issues explained they whys and wherefores but at the end of the day she's still a grown adult and should be held responsible for her actions. Will she cheat again? Probably not, but will it be because she's resolved her 'issues' or because she decided she doesn't want to risk what she almost lost. Maybe it doesn't matter. Its your story, you can end it how you want (and after all you did warn us what was coming, stop reading if you don't want to hear it!). I enjoyed it, long and engageing, well written and captivating. Great job, this was my second read and I enjoyed it as much as the first time.

You were told not to continue reading if reconciliation was an issue with you. Yet you continued reading anyway and now moan and bitch at the outcome. What a bunch of nerds. Can't follow instructions very well can you. Author this was an excellent read. Doesn't matter how it ended. It was a well written tale that kept ones interest, that's the main reason for reading any story. Thanks.

great story-loved the ending!

Al

Good start in the beginning then it turned to shit. Completely implausible. She was NOT mentally ill, she was a SLUT!!!

I liked this story very much and loved the ending. It is possible to repair a loving relationship that has gone bad.

Remember one thing for better or worse ALL of us reviewers are morons and our comments should be taken wth this in mind. And to those who try to apply lifes experiences and logic I would say this is FICTION and totally belongs to the author GREAT JOB. Lastly those of us who have and or still do carry true love for our wives can see this story and its outcome as more than possible

I agree with RePhil about this being fiction, but I do not agree with his conclusion that it shouldn't be realistic, because the reason a good story truly hit's the reader is because it is so realistically written, that the audience believe it could happen to themselves.

I like how you developed your plot, though I saw disappointingly little character development in anyone besides Laura. Who though you wrote her extremely well, and I honestly have no complaint about how you developed her at all, is actually the only person I actually didn't feel disappointed reading about, and Alyssa as well (but that was only because she was such a flat and two dimensional, and barely existing character).

Mark however I could talk about for a long time, however I will curtail all rambling and sum it up with my own conclusion about him; he sees the world through rose-tinted glasses. Either he is so desperately enamored (dare I mention puppy-dog love?) with Laura that he will forgive her anything, or is he simply that afraid of actually standing alone?

I know there are many relationships that survive one of the partners having an affair, however there are just as many that don't (if not more), and those are just with the knowledge of the cheating. If you add that to the continuous and persistent neglect and outright scorn, spite and and disrespect (or just the mere lack of it) and not many relationships will weather the storm, because in the end the injured party will have enough self-respect to at least simply walk away, unless that person is the world's greatest doormat.

Which I from your description of Mark never took you for wanting him to appear as. Which in the end, simply leaves poor character development of the main character.

By now I feel I should mention for all those 'true love'-believers out there, that I do not in fact believe in true love. That is not to say that I do not believe in love, because I do, and I have experienced being in love and the joy and certainty of your place in the world as part of it. But I simply believe that for every woman, or man for those that it concern, that you can love and actually settle down with, there are dozens of others that could provide you with the exact same feelings.

I'm not saying that to get flamed, or get into a righteous debate about destined love or star'cross'd lovers. It simply offers you the reasons as to why I, despite the excellent build-up in the story, in the end feel let down.

I believe in the adage 'once a cheater, always a cheater', and that is despite possibilities for working out problems, the injured party will always live with a nagging doubt while still together with the perpetrator.

Which is why I sincerely hoped that they would end up divorcing, despite everything, because (and here I refer to my earlier belief in more than one possible love) there would have been a chance for him to find someone else, and despite how you portray Alyssa as a frail little girl, and generally use her as a plot booster, when Mark wouldn't rationally have gone so far out of his way to help Laura, she would have survived a divorce. The evidence is easily recognizable in our daily hum-drum we call lives.

Divorce rates have rocketed, and basically for every successful marriage, there is one or slightly more that end up in tatters, and odds are half the children today live their daily lives with divorced parents and besides growing up with a few mental bruises, they are fine.

My conclusion is thus that Mark would have probably been able to find a new woman, and Alyssa would have survived the divorce.

Hopefully, I have not appeared as a flamer, as I think I presented my thoughts reasonably and with my reasoning backing it up. Likewise I also hope my input have provided food for thought, and will help you later on.

Cheers,

-Agrabah

It's only a STORY...it is NOT real life. Get over yourselves with the over-the-top comments as though the characters in this tale actually existed.

I reserved comment until I had completed all seven chapters because I don't think anyone can understand a story until you have digested all its parts. I think you did a masterful job of drawing out the affair, the husband's angst, the destruction of the guilty parties, and finaly the reconstruction of the failed marriage. However, I don't believe any reasonable person could accept the physcobabble bullshit excuse of her infidelity. Your attempt to lay the groundwork of her emotional dilemma because of her lack of place within her family is flawed. If she was so damaged she should not be allowed around any children especially her own. She is a sociopath who can divest herself at any time of any normal human feeling or the ability to form or maintain a marriage.

A great story. Thanks so much for this great read.

Despite warning..I read this crap. Can only assume author is a cum eating wimp cuckolded asshole.

OK nasty mouthed critic, how would you write it? How would you write if you were getting paid? Please let us readers know where to find something you have written for the benefit of us Literotica readers. I'm sure we can find something in your writings to make us understand how much better than this writer you are. NOT!

Boy are there ever some idiotic comments hiding behind anonymous. I think you handled a sensitive subject extremely well. Thanks again

I too waited until the last chapter to comment - but voted 5's on all of them.

Unlike Bigjon I felt you covered it all well AND used the right psychobabble - it is real and not even uncommon to suppress memories you cannot resolve and they do not surface easily and DO shape your life whether you deal with them or not

Worked well for me and very well written

thanks

My one reservation is that she caused so much pain to people who didn't deserve it for nothing.

I do have a subscription to Gentleman Cuckoldry and belong to the Creampie of the Month Club.

The true smokescreen in this story is not the wife hiding behind the psychobabble to justify her behavior, it is the husband hiding behind it to justify his embrace of cuckhood.

I have been on every side of of this story in my life. My father fucked anything that stood still. So did my mother. So did most of the girls I dated. And I absolutely did every woman, girl or ...female that would allow me to remove their underwear until I was nearly 50, even stepsisters and cousins.

I am now able to communicate with a woman that I was engaged to in 1974. She is on her fifth marriage now and 58 years old. She has fucked well over 200 men, pretty well by her 42nd birthday. I had sex with her from 74 to 89 when she moved 750 miles away with the fourth marriage.

We have discovered, together, that we never quit loving each other but that our love has been of each other's minds and the sex just complicated the relationship. I have found that the more she fucked around the more I was attracted to her but had the attraction all wrong in my head. She had a hard time believing that until recently. She was looking for an impossible love all those years and the promiscuity just led to a hardening of her heart toward a successful relationship. Now she finds herself floundering with a husband sewn up in his vocational relationship and nothing left over for her and she can't get out because of the financial side of it.

The point of all this is communicate with your lovers, married or not, and communicate the truth. Tell them of your needs and desires early on and then deal with them and theirs, too. The game of life is not really a game after all but is still much better played out with all the cards on the table turned up to read. My advice is to deal with yourself the same way.

I'm in an interesting spot now having finished this chapter. I'm admiring the principal characters in the story for their commitment to healing themselves and each other, and for finding a way for the marriage to survive and later thrive. That said, I'm quite sure I couldn't have found a way to trust her again.

Either way, you've created a well-written, thought provoking story. Thank you.

Total BULL SHIT--CRAP--CUCK-RAT SHIT--Chicken SHIT--DOG SHIT--CAT SHIT--AND ALL OTHER SHIT

Use lots of psychobabble and throw in some hormeonshit, stir well and you wind up with this shit story.

One of the very best I ever read. I am deeply impressed. Excellent writing, great analysis of human behavior and emotions, and restores one's faith in the ability of a human being to transcend primitive reactions. Any animal can bite and maim if offended but only a true human being can demonstrate patience, understanding, and forgiveness.

Longhorn, I wouldn't worry about people not liking this kind of stories reading this story, actually I would encourage them to read it and hope they will learn something in the process.

This man went further than I would have. It made a great story. Please keep writing.

excellent writing, but he went to far, it's almost like a Matt Monroe story, no matter what i'll be there for you. that doesnt happen very often

yes good intentions and guilt are great but the mental defect that let a person cheat in the first place is still there. It is simply a matter of time, opportunity, and self justification before it happens again.

I'm like a lot of men. Infidelity, on the part of either party is a deal breaker. I know whereof I speak. Been there, done that, got the t-shirt. The pain, the hurt, the lack of respect will almost always doom any attempt to patch the relationship back together, assuming the couple even bothers to try.

I know many will come down on Longhorn for the way he wrote this story. Normally I would be in that number. But there are two main reasons I did not, and I rated the story four stars for those reasons.

Reason number one is the conduct of the husband. Many would call him a wimp. He clearly was not. Once he knew of the infidelity he took definitive action. He went in like Grant took Richmond and leveled the opposition in a most ruthless fashion. He protected his number one responsibility, that being his little daughter. Yet even through his pain he acted in a civilized fashion that was nothing short of remarkable.

Reason number two is very simple as well. The wife in this story was not your typical selfish cheater. She was not out to gain exitement, looking for some stud with a nine inch cock, or trying to find some sugar daddy to trade up. She had psychological issues that had scarred her deeply. She worked through these issues with a desperate determination to redeem herself. Her husband, to his credit, assisted in this process.

This couple has a future. I think they will survive the trauma and be better for it. And I believe Longhorn wrote a beautiful story that shows the power of true love and forgiveness. I may be in the minority on this one, but I congratulate you Sir!

The most fucked up excuse in the world is - psychological! That is why you go to school, college and work and have friends and become an adult - SO THAT YOU DEAL WITH THAT SHIT and NOT USE IT AS A CRUTCH.

It is sad that this psychobabble excuse has been thrust into the mainstream thoughts of consciousness so much, that folks are willing to allow it as a legitimate reason.

Man, Woman, it doesn't matter - if you cannot handle your crap as an adult , that too after becoming a parent, then you are not going to do a better job later in life because

- trust is going to be a huge issue ( the author rushed through this with the birth of multiple children within just a few years) who the fuck does that!

- both the husband and wife will resent the other for the behavior (it is only human to be so - even after a reconciliation)

- small things will remind them of events past and trigger bad memories leading to upset households.

- wife will not be able to take this crap and cheat again (justifying it in her brain or just not caring)

- husband might cheat , using the past as a get-out-of-jail card

In spite of 7 installments and the author being a popular one here , I feel that is not logical, given human nature.

Poignant with a beautiful ending.