This is a made-up story for entertainment purposes. The photos that have been used are Stockphotos

Footsteps coming up the stairs

Kelly hears Mark's footsteps coming up the stairs. But he is not alone. She is holding her breath in anticipation and a million thoughts are going through her mind. Were all her suspicions about to get confirmed? She knew something was off with Mark. She just felt it...

The door of the bedroom opens and the light is switched on. Kelly recognized marks shoes entering the room followed by another, much smaller pair. When the unknown individual starts talking, Kelly suddenly has a shock realization. She knows that voice!

Mark is not alone

Upon hearing the voice, Kelly unknowingly lets out a gasp. Mark immediately stops talking and starts walking in the direction of the bed. There is nowhere kelly can go now...

But how did she get herself in this situation? To understand that, we have to go back in time a little bit.

Who's there?

Kelly is a 30-year-old woman living together with her husband Mark. They have known each other for almost 10 years now and they have been married for 9 of those. Kelly is extremely happy with Mark and she feels like she has won the lottery with him. But she can’t help herself from having doubts…

Meet Kelly and Mark

See, it wasn’t love at first sight between Kelly and Mark. The couple first met on a night at a local bar. Kelly went to join a girlfriend of hers who was already there with another group of friends that Kelly didn't know. But there was one person among the group that Kelly was desperate to get to know.

Not love at first sight

And that person was Mark. Kelly knew from the moment she met Mark that it was the man she wanted to marry one day. But there was something that was standing in the way of that idea becoming a reality. And something was very difficult for Kelly to get out of her way…

An obstacle for Kelly

And that thing standing in the way was Mark's girlfriend at the time. And that person just so happened to be Kelly's friend Nadia. Kelly had known about the relationship but had never met Mark before that night. But now that she had laid her eyes on him, there was no going back for Kelly.

Mark was dating someone else

They had been in a relationship for 2 years when Kelly met Mark and they seemed to be perfectly content with each other. Kelly knew that if she was to get what she wanted, she had to find a way to make this solid foundation break down. And she was willing to go to the extremes for this…

Kelly wanted to break them up

She started texting him a lot. And she was getting responses. A lot of responses. She predicted that she would have to put a lot of effort into this endeavor, but he was responding to everything she was saying. And in exactly the way that she wanted. This all seemed so easy…

Kelly was looking for contact

Maybe he wasn’t as happy in his relationship as she thought. After only a week of texting and calling, they decided to meet up again. But this time it was just the two of them. And Kelly knew that Nadia had no idea that Mark was going to see her. She had him just where she wanted…

She wanted him for herself

Kelly was still struggling a little bit with the idea of stealing one of her close friends' boyfriend. She knew that this would most likely ruin the friendship forever. But Kelly had subconsciously already made her decision the night she met Mark. She had to have him at all cost…

Betraying Nadia

Kelly made sure that Mark had one of the best nights of his life that day. She wanted him and she was willing to do everything. After a couple more “dates”, she convinced Mark he needed to break up with Nadia. She wanted him to be her boyfriend and she was not sharing him.

They spend the night together

After Mark broke up with Nadia, she was confused and did not understand why they were breaking up. In their two years of dating, they had not had many fights or disagreed on anything serious, so that breakup came completely out of the blue for her. She demanded that Mark give her a reason and after much deliberation, he told Nadia everything…

Marks breaks up with girlfriend

Nadia felt destroyed by what Mark told her and was furious at Kelly, who wisely decided not to pick up the phone. Nadia pleaded with Mark not to do this, but his mind was made up. Nadia started to curse him out and wished him the worst relation possible with Kelly. She could have never guessed how right she would be…

Telling Nadia everything

The new relationship between Kelly and Mark seemed to blossom in those first couple of months together. They were enjoying everything about each other and soon they were already talking about moving in together. But it still wasn’t going fast enough for Kelly.

They had it good

She wanted Mark to be hers and only hers. Forever. She wanted to marry him. And sooner rather than later. Mark was not sure about this. Yes, they were having a lot of fun together, but getting married? He did not envision himself tying the knot at this age already. But Kelly’s mind was made up.

Kelly wanted to marry Mark

She managed to convince Mark in just a couple of weeks and they were married almost exactly one year after they met. Even though Mark had his doubts, he was happy marrying Kelly. He had fallen head over heels in love with her and foresaw a wonderful life together. But this quickly turned sour…

She convinced Mark

Just a year or 2 after they got married, Mark started to notice some changes in Kelly’s behavior. Whereat first she seemed to be okay with almost everything he wanted to do, she now started to give more resistance to his plans and ideas. Mainly if they involved other people.

Mark noticed her behavior change

What Mark did not know was that Kelly was an extremely anxious and jealous person. She was always worrying about “her” Mark getting away and running off with someone else. And it was not like these worries did not have a basis solidly placed in the truth…

Kelly is extremely jealous

It would of course not be the first time that Mark would cheat on a girlfriend. It had not happened yet to Kelly’s knowledge, but she had been the person Mark had cheated with when he was still in his relationship with Nadia. What would stop him from doing it again?

She was afraid Mark would leave her

At first, these thoughts only came to Kelly sporadically. Maybe when Mark was going to meet up with his friends or had to work late. But her thoughts started drifting in this direction more and more and at some point, it seemed to be all she could think about…

Getting worse and worse

Kelly started to become more and more consumed with this fear as time went on. It became a bad cycle: she felt like it was souring the relationship between her and Mark, and she knew that the more that happened, the more likely it would be for him to try and find someone else.

She got consumed with fear

Her response was to only hold on to him even tighter. He was losing all his freedom it seemed and Mark was getting sick of it. He was always used to being able to do what he wanted and he had never been smothered by anybody in a way that was happening now.

She smothered Mark

It was severely affecting their relationship. Mark started to snap at Kelly more often than before and they got into argument almost daily. Mark knew that this could not continue for long but he didn't want to lose Kelly. But talking to her felt like talking to a wall and there seemed to be no signs of changing…

Mark couldn't take it anymore

He needed a moment to clear his head and see some other people, so he asked Kelly if he could go out for a night with his friends. To his surprise, Kelly was perfectly all right with this. But she had one condition. It had to be at their house and he wasn’t allowed to meet his friends anywhere else.

He wanted a night alone

Kelly was afraid that Mark would not go to meet his friend, but instead, meet another girl. But inviting his friends over to his house was exactly what Mark didn’t want. Then Kelly would still be present and he would not get that taste of freedom that he was craving so much.

Kelly would not allow it

Kelly was refusing to let him go. They discussed it for a long time and it ended with Kelly saying that she would need some time to think about it. She only said this to stop the annoying discussion for a while because she already knew what her answer would be. But then an idea came to her mind.

Then Kelly got an idea

She went to Mark and told him that she had decided that he still could only invite his friend to their house, but that she would stay away for the night. She told him that she would be staying over at a friend’s place for the night and that he would have the freedom to do whatever he wanted that night.

Leaving for the night

Mark was very surprised by this and he couldn’t quite make sense of why this was the better option, but he had already learned that if he got an opportunity like this, he should take it. He had no intention of waiting until Kelly changed her mind again, as she did so often.

Mark took her up on this offer

They planned that Mark would have the house to himself this Friday and to Mark's surprise, almost shock Kelly wasn’t constantly asking what he was going to do that night. She seemed to be avoiding the topic as much as possible and Mark could not help but worry about this behavior.

Mark has the house to himself

Sure he had said that it would be a night with the boys, but knowing Kelly she would need to see proof of this. He was afraid she might ask to see the text in which he and his friend detailed their boy's night, or something in that direction. Which he knew he could not provide…

Mark was lacking proof

You see, Mark was not planning to meet the boys that night. It was just an excuse to getaways from Kelly for an evening and do some things of great importance that she could not know about. He was afraid this would have been impossible to keep from Kelly, but he seemed to have predicted this wrong.

Not meeting the boys

But this all would make a lot more sense if Mark knew what Kelly was actually planning to do. See, she had never even called her friend if she could stay over that Friday night. She had never even had any intention of going there. Kelly had other plans for that night.

Kelly isn’t going anywhere

She was convinced that Mark was not going to invite his friends over that night, but that instead, some woman would come along that Mark was hiding from her. She had never seen any evidence for this, but she just could not help her suspicions and needed confirmation that she wasn’t going crazy.

She is convinced Mark won’t invite his boys

Kelly knew that it would be impossible for her to get Mark to admit that he was cheating. That is why she was going along with this night alone so easily. She wanted to catch Mark in the act so she would finally have the proof she had been looking for for so long.

Wanting proof

With only two days till Friday night, Kelly packed a small suitcase she would probably hide somewhere in their shed when she would supposedly leave for her friend's house. Mark would still be at work during this time so he would come home to an empathy house. Or so he thought.

Mark thinks Kelly left alread

Because when Mark would come home, Kelly would still be there. But she would be hiding somewhere so she could spy on Mark. She decided that the best place for this would be in the bedroom, as she could best catch them in the act there. The spot she decided on was under the bed.

Kelly is hiding under the bed

That night, Mark got home from work a little earlier than usual. Kelly heard him entering the front door. The fact that he got home earlier already rang a thousand alarm bells in her head and instinctively she already wanted to come home and confront him. But she knew she needed more.

Mark came home early

The girl could still be called off and Kelly did not want that to happen. For a while, all she could hear were the very soft sounds of Mark just doing the normal things in the house. But what she distinctly did not hear was any indication that he was preparing to entertain a lot of guests…

Not preparing for guests

It took almost another 2 hours, it was about 8 o’clock in the evening at this point, for Kelly to hear the doorbell ring. Luckily she had her phone with her to pass the time and she used it to stalk the friend list on Mark’s social media to see if any girl had posted that she was going to do something tonight.

Then the doorbell rings

When the door opened, Kelly started to listen intensely. But it was difficult to pick up exactly what was being said downstairs. But what she did manage to make out that this wasn’t a large group of people. And she could swear that one of the voices she was hearing was from a female!

Hearing a female voice!

But to her surprise, there was also clearly another manly voice. What was Mark planning to do? Was cheating on her with just another girl not enough for him. She was boiling with anger and rage, but she decided she would wait for them to come into the bedroom. Unless she would hear worrying sounds from downstairs.

But she also hears another man?

Up till this point, all she can deduce from her position is that they just seem to be talking downstairs. But from her current position, she had no way of understanding what it was about. It was impossible to make out even a single word being spoken. So Kelly made a risky decision.

She can’t hear what they are saying

She would get out of her hiding place under the bed and try to silently get closer so she could make out better what was being said. She figured that as long as she stayed upstairs she would have enough time to find another hiding place when they were coming up the stairs.

Kelly comes out from under the bed

She silently came out from under the bed and snuck out of the bedroom. She got into the hallway and kneeled down next to the top of the stairs. Out of the view that you would have from the living room, where Mark and his guests were sitting.

She sneaks into the hallway

From this spot, Kelly was able to make out a lot more than just the muffled world she picked up when she was still under the bed. The first words she could understand were spoken by the female voice. These words were enough for Kelly to make an immediate realization.

Understanding the female voice

She recognized that female voice. She doesn’t know from where exactly but she is sure she has heard it before. Her thoughts are going in all kinds of directions in a matter of seconds and she gets stuck on one name in particular. And this thought made a shiver go over her back…

Kelly recognizes the female voice

Kelly suddenly got the idea in her head that this voice might be from Mark's ex and her former friend Nadia! She knew Nadia had never forgiven her for what she had done but Kelly thought she also wanted nothing to do with Mark anymore. Could she have changed her mind?

Could this be Nadia?

This sudden and unexpected realization hits Kelly hard and thinking about whether this voice belonged to Nadia means that she can’t even focus on what is being said. She quickly focuses again and tries to pick up more of what's being said before she confronts Mark…

Kelly isn't even listening anymore

She can make out that the conversation seems to be about her! And not just about her, but about her relationship with Mark. She can’t believe he is talking about that in front of Nadia and this other unknown guy. Such private things about her and she is now almost crying with anger!

They are discussing very personal things!

How could Mark do this to her? How could he discuss all these private things with other people? Some of what she is hearing from him is even new to her. Why was he keeping all this from her? What did she do to deserve the kind of treatment? Kelly just could not see it.

Kelly can't believe it

Kelly is just about ready to go downstairs and confront them, but the unknown man says something. And the moment Kelly hears the man's voice, her ears perk up and it stops her in her tracks. She is shocked because she recognizes this voice immediately.

Then the unknown man speaks up

It is her dad! And now she also recognizes the other voice, as it is obviously her mother, not Nadia. How did she not immediately know that? A wave of confusion comes over Kelly as she doesn’t understand what they are doing to her. But then Mark puts an end to this confusion.

It is the voice of her dad!

He tells the parents how hard it’s been lately to deal with Kelly’s distrust of him and her paranoia. He has never done her wrong and really wants to stay with her, but he doesn’t know if it can continue like this. Her parents agree that they have also started to notice it more and more.

Mark is telling them about Kelly’s paranoia

When Kelly hears this, something seems to break inside her. She suddenly has this wave of clarity where she realizes what she has been doing to Mark and how these actions have only pushed him further away. While he has done nothing to deserve this.

A sudden wave of realization

Kelly's plan to confront Mark downstairs is out the window immediately and while she is frantically thinking of a way to get out of this situation, she suddenly feels like she just can't control her emotions anymore. It all just becomes too much for her. She bursts into loud crying.

Kelly starts crying

Mark and her parents jump up in surprise and run upstairs, where they find a hysterically crying Kelly laying on the floor. They look at each other in utter confusion. Kelly was supposed to be out for that night. She had obviously been lying and this was just another confirmation of what Mark had known for so long.

Mark rushes up the stairs

Mark and Kelly's father pick her up from the ground and they try to ask what she is doing here, but Kelly is in no state to answer. They take her downstairs and wait for her to calm down. It takes a little while, but when Kelly can finally catch a breath, she explains what she did.

Kelly admits what she did

A long and difficult conversation follows, where Mark, Kelly, and her parents discuss everything that has been happening over the past couple of years and they try to come up with a plan to fix it. At first, there doesn't seem to be much middle ground, but they do come up with a solution.

They all have a long conversation

It is decided that Kelly will go into therapy to try and help her get rid of all these thoughts, and give her and Mark another chance. Kelly was very reluctant about this idea at first, but once she figured out that this was the only way she could save her relationship, she gave in to it.

Kelly is going to therapy

A couple of months later, it is clear that a lot of progress is being made with the therapy. The relationship between Mark and Kelly seems to be a lot healthier than it has ever been and they have even started talking about kids again. But they are not yet fully there.

A couple of months later

Kelly still has a lot of trouble trusting Mark, but she is really trying not to bring this to his attention as she now knows that this is just her being paranoid. There is still a long way to go, but it seems that Mark and Kelly will make it in the end. If they just keep working on it, as every couple should.