Emma and Mark moved into a bigger house, and Emma discovered something strange while cleaning around. It was a secret room with a two-way mirror, but then she saw something no one wants to witness.
“This house might be a bit old, but it’ll be great for our child. It’s a nice neighborhood. We need to fix it up, and it’ll be perfect. What do you think, Mark?” Emma asked her husband while the realtor smiled at them.
“Yeah, I guess it’s fine. It’s a good deal. We’ll take it,” Mark said. He wasn’t particularly excited about it, but at least Emma wouldn’t keep nagging about moving to a bigger place. Mark was also less than pleased about his coming child, but that was another issue.
They moved in a month later after all the paperwork had gone through. Emma started unpacking and cleaning slowly throughout the house because she was 5 months pregnant and needed to take things slow.
She began with the master bedroom, where she had fallen in love with the mounted mirror on the wall. It was huge and reached the floor. She had never seen something like it before. It’s almost like a doorway, Emma thought.
But it needed a good scrub, so she got to work. Suddenly, she noticed a little nub on the side of the mirror and pulled it. “OH!” she almost screamed. The mirror opened. “It IS a doorway!” she said out loud. “This is crazy!”
The previous owner had actually mounted the mirror into a discreet doorway. We would have never discovered this! It’s like a movie! she thought. The realtor had not informed them about it either. But Emma needed to check it out.
She opened the door a bit and used her phone’s flashlight to see inside. It was tiny, and there was a chair in the corner. But then she looked at the back of the door and noticed the other side of a two-way mirror. Whoever built this house must have wanted to spy on the people in the master bedroom.
That’s odd and creepy, she thought. Then Emma had an idea. Mark had been so distant since she got pregnant. Her intuition told her that something was going on. It was time to find out. So she called him at work.
“Hey, honey. Listen, I’m going to my mom’s house tonight. She wants to have a girls’ night. I might stay over. Is that ok?” Emma asked sweetly.
“Yeah, yeah, cool,” Mark said and hung up. He normally got home at 5 p.m., so Emma went into the secret room a few minutes before. Oh, I forgot my phone, she thought.
Bam!
The door slammed in her face before she could go out, and she had no idea how to open it from the inside. “I’m an idiot,” she said out loud. But there was nothing Emma could do until Mark got home. So she sat on the chair and waited.
Suddenly, Emma heard his voice, but there was another person with him. “This is your house?” a female voice asked. Emma got closer to the two-way mirror, hoping to see who was talking. Then Mark and the woman entered the master bedroom.
“Yeah, Melissa. I hope you don’t mind. I just moved in,” Mark answered.
“And you live alone in this big place?” the woman asked.
“I’ve always dreamed of getting a big house and starting a family. But I haven’t found the love of my life yet. That could be you, you know,” Mark added as he moved closer to the woman. She smiled at him while Emma’s heart broke into a million pieces.
They started kissing and moved things to the bed. He’s cheating on our bed, Emma thought. I can’t believe this! She closed her eyes and tried not to hear what was happening. Later, Mark got up and left the bedroom. Melissa stayed in bed, browsing through her phone.
Then Emma heard Mark’s voice but couldn’t see him. “Listen, baby. I’m going to get us some pizza. Deliveries take too long this time of night. It’s better to pick it up. I’ll be right back,” he told her and left.
In spite of what she was feeling, Emma knew she needed to call out to Melissa, or she would be trapped in the room forever. So she started yelling, “Melissa! Melissa! Melissa!”
Melissa turned around trying to figure out where the voice was coming from, scared. “Who’s there? Where are you?” she yelled at nothing.
“Melissa, my name is Emma. I’m Mark’s wife. Please, I’m stuck behind the mirror. Can you help me? There’s a nub on the side, the mirror is a doorway. Please help me,” Emma explained.
Melissa rushed to the mirror and opened it. Emma got out and looked at Melissa with tears in her eyes. “You’re really his wife?” Melissa asked, still in shock. “Did he lock you in there?”
“I’m his wife. But no, he didn’t lock me in. I got locked in accidentally,” Emma said and explained everything.
“I can’t believe this jerk is married! He even fooled me into giving him some of my clients. The paperwork is already done,” Melissa continued.
“I take it you’re his colleague at work? Listen, I have an idea if you’re willing to help me,” Emma started. Melissa agreed immediately, as Mark had fooled her into becoming “the other woman.”
Emma wanted to divorce her husband, but Mark would never do it because her father was rich. He wanted her family’s money. But Melissa was the key to getting those papers signed. “Do you still have more clients he wants?” Emma asked her.
“Yes. There’s one he has wanted for a while, but I always said no,” Melissa revealed.
“Ok, can you pretend that everything is ok for now? Then I’m going to give you my divorce papers soon. Would you get him to sign them?” Emma asked.
“Of course, I can! I’ll do anything to make this up to you. I hate cheaters, and he just turned out to be one. And you’re pregnant, no less!” Melissa added angrily.
A month later, Emma and Mark were having dinner at home as if nothing had happened. Meanwhile, Emma already knew that Melissa managed to trick him. But it was time to reveal it. “Did anything important happen at work today, honey?” Emma asked coyly and smiled.
“No, nothing. Same old, same old,” Mark said dismissively.
“Is that right?” Melissa said, opening the backdoor to the kitchen and stepping in. Mark’s face paled.
“What? Melissa, what are you doing at my house? This is completely inappropriate! I’m going to report you to HR. Emma, this is my colleague,” Mark scrambled for words at Melissa’s sudden appearance.
“Actually, Mark, I invited Melissa over. She has some documents to give me. Documents that you signed today, in fact,” Emma explained. Melissa reached into her purse and gave her the papers.
“What? What are you doing? What’s going on?” Mark questioned, confused and agitated.
“What am I doing? Getting a divorce. You just signed them today. Isn’t it awesome? Ah, and before you get any ideas. Don’t try to fight it. Because we have an iron-clad prenup, and you can’t afford a lawyer on your salary,” Emma revealed.
“Now, get your things out. This is not your home anymore,” Melissa added. Both women smiled at each other.
Mark couldn’t fight it and was forced to leave. Emma and Melissa formed a great friendship afterward. She was by Emma’s side when her baby was born. “This is Adeline Melissa. Addie, say hi to your Auntie,” Emma said, looking at her friend while Melissa beamed.
What can we learn from this story?
Fate is a mysterious thing. Emma might have never discovered her husband’s affair if that secret room didn’t exist.
Sometimes, “the other woman” is also a victim. Melissa didn’t know that Mark was married, but she did everything to make things right when she found out.
