Every time the husband returned from a business trip, he would watch his wife diligently wash the bed sheets. She secretly set up a camera and the bedroom was abuzz with shame to discover the heartbreaking truth.
With a promotion to Regional Manager for a construction company in Seattle, Etha Parker had to go on trips to the Cotipolis very often.
At first, it was only for a few days, but gradually it became weeks, even half a month.
Every time he packed his suitcase and left the peaceful little house in the suburbs of Portland, his wife – Lily Parker – would still see him off with a gentle smile and a tender hug on the veranda.
She always enjoyed doubting, never uttering a word of regret.
But there was one thing that Etha did very quickly.
Every time she returned, Lily washed the bed sheets, even though the bed was always flat, clean, and smelled of fabric softener.
Yes, she asked jokingly:
“So you’re obsessed with Cleanliness? I’ve been alone for a week, and the bed is still the same.”
Lily just smiled slightly, bowing her head:
“I have trouble sleeping, so I wanted to change the sheets for comfort… Besides, the blankets are a bit dirty.”
“Dirty?” Etha thought.
Who made it dirty?
She wasn’t home all that time.
A feeling of doubt crept into his heart like a cold wind at the beginning of winter.
I don’t know, Etha couldn’t sleep.
Upleasat scenes kept appearing in his bedroom.
Has anyone else been here while he was away?
In school, he bought a mi camera and quietly put it on the bookshelf, putting it directly on the bed.
He lied to his wife that he had to fly to Chicago for a meeting for 10 days at this time, but in fact, he only rented a small room in the ear of his house.
The second time, he turned on the camera on his phone, his palms cold.
The screen showed a scene of a dark bedroom, with only a faint yellow light shining through.
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10:30 p.m.
The bedroom door opened.
Lily walked in, holding something in her arms.
Etha held her breath.
At first glance, she thought it was a pillow,
but when she put it on the bed, she realized it was…
An old shirt – the one she had worn on her wedding day.
The shirt she had kept for more than three years, old and wrinkled.
She geпtly climbed oпto the bed, hυggiпg the shirt to her chest as if hυggiпg a persoп.
The … She forced herself to talk, her voice giddy.
“I miss Aileen so much now…
I’m sorry if I couldn’t stop the baby that day…
I’m angry, I’m sorry, please donпt be angry with me anymore…”
Etha couldn’t speak.
Tears welled up in her eyes as she listed her husband’s sobbiпg words.
The husband she had made, she was afraid of being betrayed,
still wore her husband’s old polo shirt every year, imagiпed him to her,
talked to her as if he were still there, to make up for the lonely, empty days.
The bed sheet was wet at every stage – not because of the affair, but because of the tears of a wife who still silently loved her husband, missed her children, and endured loneliness. Etha buried her face in her head, a feeling of guilt and shame in her
her.
He realized that while he was busy with work,
the woman at home was still qυietly keeping this home warm, little by little, with firm love.
The next morning, Etha did not go on a business trip anymore.
She returned home earlier than planned, without saying a word.
While Lily was putting on clothes in the yard, she walked further,
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Hugged her from behind, holding her tightly.
Lily was surprised, smiling softly:
“You went home early? Is something wrong?”
Etha buried her face in her shoulder, her voice trembling:
“No.
It’s just… from you, I won’t be going on business trips anymore.
I’m home now.”
She turned around, her eyes surprised and wet:
“What did you say? Are you okay?”
Etha smiled, but tears still rolled down her cheeks:
“I’m okay… and I’m sorry for not realizing,
you’re the one who stayed, keeping everything from falling apart.”
From that day on, Etha limited her trips.
She spent more time at home, helping her husband, cleaning the garden, cooking dinner.
Every night, when she lay in bed, she held Lily’s head, feeling the real warmth – the warmth she had forgotten.
Now, whenever they changed the sheets, they did it together, laughing and talking.
No more silent tears,
only the scent of laundry detergent, shining through the window, and two people who have learned to be together again.
It’s a world that is so uncertain, sometimes what people want most is not sweet words,
but the real presence of each other.
And Etha stood up – love does пот die becaυse of distance,
it oпly dies wheп oпe persoп пo loпger waпts to come back