Anne’s husband, Matthew, divorced her when she couldn’t give him a son, but he still lived in their house. One day, Anne ran into an old school friend, Harry, and eventually realized how much better her life could be without Matthew. Years later, she accidentally saw her ex-husband again, but barely recognized him.
One day, while taking a break from her five daughters, Anne met Harry, an old friend from school. “Anne! It’s so nice to see you!” Harry greeted her on the street. They hadn’t seen each other in years, so they decided to catch up over coffee.
As they talked, Harry asked about her family. “It’s complicated,” Anne replied. “Matthew changed after we had our twins. He wanted a boy, but we had girls, and that made him so angry. After our fifth daughter was born, he filed for divorce. I don’t know what to do.”
“That sounds really tough,” Harry sympathized. “But maybe it’s for the best. It doesn’t seem like he’s been a good father to your girls. You’ve already been doing it all on your own.”
Things got worse at Anne’s house. Even though they were divorcing, Matthew still lived there, acting like he was single, partying, and making life hard for the girls. Harry offered to help, and when Matthew brought a girl into their home, Anne finally had enough. She packed up and left with her daughters.
Their divorce dragged on, but the judge ruled in Anne’s favor, giving her full custody and their family home. Anne moved in with Harry, who eventually became her husband. They fell in love, and Anne stopped thinking about Matthew.
Years later, Anne had a son, Alan, with Harry, and she couldn’t have been happier. One day, she took Alan to the mall and ran into Matthew at the pretzel shop. He was working there, handing out free samples.
“Matthew? What are you doing here?” Anne asked, surprised. Matthew had once been a successful executive, but now he was working a minimum-wage job. He hadn’t paid child support, but Anne didn’t care—Harry provided more than enough for their family.
Matthew looked embarrassed. “I lost everything because of my bad choices,” he admitted. “Can we sell the house?”
Anne, feeling sorry for him, agreed to sell the house and gave him half, even though she didn’t have to. Later, Matthew asked to see the girls, but they didn’t want anything to do with him. He eventually stopped calling, and they never saw him again.
Anne knew she had made the right choice by moving on and building a happy life for her daughters with Harry, who loved them like his own.
