Some Things Never Change

It was a fight. A fight that has beaten all other fights. She had cheated on me. The anger that was inside of me, blew the roof off of the house. The hard part of this is that this isn't the only time she's cheated. Why did I give myself to a woman who gave herself to all of these other men.

I threw the gift she gave me our last anniversary that read, "Together Forever" on the ground where it shattered at her feet. She didn't take her eyes off of me as I said, "We're done."

The slam of the door shook the entire house. I wouldn't be surprised if our picture fell off the wall, but at that point, I didn't care anymore. I didn't know where I was going, I just wanted to get away from her.

There was more than just the cheating. She never appreciated the sacrifices I made. How much I tried to make this work. She was entirely fake and had broken our vows we made years ago.

I slammed my hands on the steering wheel out of anger. Speeding down through the darkness of the night, down the empty road. Empty, like my road ahead of me. How could I be so stupid? How could I waste the best years of my life on someone like her.

I turned and parked at the first place where I saw lights on. Looking at the small 24/7 diner, I sat back and took a deep breath. Got out of my car and walked inside.

I was instantly greeted by the lady behind the counter. She saw I was troubled. Asked if she could get me anything. I sat down at the bar as I ordered a piece of pie and a cup of coffee. I pulled out my phone to look at the late hour and noticed four missed calls from her. I didn't care, I texted her and said, "Call your boyfriend, I'm sure he's expecting you."

Slid my phone back into my pocket. The kind waitress slid me my warm apple pie and my cup of day old hot coffee. My fork was cool to the touch as I stuck it into my warm pie. Seeing the steam rise made it all that more appetizing.

As the diner door opened, the bell rang. She greeted this old man just the way she had greeted me. He asked for just a small cup of coffee. As I took another bite, I noticed his eyes on me.

He slid over to the stool next to me and said, "You okay, son?" I turned my head to see this old man in a Vietnam Veteran's hat. I said, "No. Not really." He continued to say, "I can tell. Want to talk about it?"

I put my fork down and folded my arms. Took a deep breath as I said, "My wife, She's been playing around on me." This nice homely old man nodded as he looked down at the counter. He said, "Some things never change huh?"

His response caught me off guard. I sat back as I turned toward him and said, "What was that?" He said, "Doesn't matter how many years go by, people will continue to be unfaithful." He continued on, "Son, back during the war, my sweetheart was back at home. My best friend was 4F. I was sent overseas and he stayed behind to take care of her. Little did I know, He helped himself. Well, long story short, a friend from high school wrote me overseas saying that my sweet wife Barbara was spending every night with my best friend."

He took a deep breath right before he said, "Needless to say, I wrote my letter to her signing off on both of them. I lost the two most important people in my life while at War. I wanted to give up and just run through the front line." He pulled a picture out of his wallet. Handed it to me. "But God has a funny way of doing things, my boy. I was wounded a few days later. I woke up in a hospital and over me was an angel. Not an angel like you think, my angel was wearing a nurse's uniform. The second I saw her, something hit me. Something I never felt with my wife. Well, Lyla is her name, felt it too. She would sit with me everyday, she is the reason I had a fight to live. My wound was bad enough to send me home. I exchanged addresses with Lyla and wrote her every week. As soon as the war was over, Lyla's flight was right to me. She changed my life. From there we had a kids and full family. I lost her just last year. Know this son, life isn't forever. There is a plan for you. Staying with the wrong person will only hold you back. Hold your head high and walk away from her. Just know you will be walking to something better."

He finished his last gulp of his coffee. Laid a $20 down and said the waitress to include mine. He picked up his hat and stated, "Be strong Son, your lyla is waiting for you. Stay blessed." The bell rang as he walked out to the darkness.

I thanked the waitress and rushed to the car. On the drive home, it was dark, but everything seemed lighter. I pulled in my driveway and walked through my front door. Her necessities were gone and had a letter on the table as she stated she was staying with her mom til further notice. A sigh of relief overcame me.

I turned on the living room light then turned the lock on the door. I'm not opening any door again unless it's for my Lyla.