— I’d like to try an open relationship— Nathan says in a single breath.
— Open— that’s…?
— When, with a partner’s consent, you can have relationships on the side. Honestly. Openly. Without cheating. My heart clenches and bleeds. I look my husband in the eyes and ask a single question: — Why?
Ten years married. Thirteen years together. We’ve been together since ninth grade! My self-esteem is plummeting fast and crashing to pieces. My husband doesn’t want me. Or rather, he wants me— but not only me.
After long talks, fights, and resentments—between divorce and the possibility of giving our relationship a new form—we still choose the latter. At my own risk and peril.