Planning a wedding should be a magical time, right? At least, that’s what I thought until my colleague sent me a photo that changed everything: my fiancé getting cozy with his ex at a spa. My revenge? Let’s just say it was as brutal as his betrayal, and trust me, I had the last laugh!
Let me tell you how it all went down. I was supposed to be a happy, excited bride-to-be, busy planning the wedding of my dreams. I had already picked out the perfect dress, the venue, and was even thinking about the DJ playlist. But all of that was thrown out the window after one single photo I didn’t even ask for.
It was a regular Saturday afternoon. I was relaxing on my couch, half-paying attention to a reality TV show while scrolling through Instagram. The show in the background was some drama about a couple fighting over their wedding plans—oh, the irony.
“I can’t believe you want a chocolate fountain at our wedding!” the bride on the screen yelled.
I laughed a little to myself, thinking, “At least Mark and I don’t fight about silly things like that.”
Then, out of nowhere, my phone buzzed. I glanced down and saw a message from Claire, a colleague of mine. We’re not close, but she’s always super nice and polite.
The message said:
“Hey Cathy, I hope I’m not overstepping, but isn’t this your fiancé? I think I remember him from our company Christmas party.”
Attached to the message was a photo. For five whole minutes, I just stared at it, completely frozen. There he was—my “loving” fiancé, Mark—sitting poolside at some fancy spa, looking all relaxed and happy.
But wait, it wasn’t just him in the photo. No, that would’ve been too easy.
Next to him, sipping a tropical drink, was his ex, Amanda. She was chilling in a bikini, sunglasses on, looking like she didn’t have a care in the world. Meanwhile, I had been at home, thinking Mark was visiting his mom out of town. Seriously??
Now, my first reaction wasn’t to cry or throw my phone. No, it was pure, burning anger. But the thing about me? I don’t scream or make a scene. I get smart. REALLY smart.
I didn’t text him. I didn’t call him. I waited. I knew he’d be home by Monday, and when he finally walked through the door, acting all innocent and tired, I was ready.
He dropped his bag, smiled at me with his usual cheesy grin, and said, “Hey, babe! Missed you. How was your weekend?”
“Oh, you know,” I said casually, “Not as relaxing as yours, I bet.”
His face twitched for a second, but he didn’t catch on. He came over, kissed my cheek, and asked, “What do you mean?”
I smiled, knowing this was the moment I’d been waiting for. “Claire sent me a photo. She wasn’t sure, but it looks like you at a spa. Wanna see?”
I pulled out my phone and showed him the photo. His eyes went wide, and it looked like he’d seen a ghost.
“Wait, what? I-I can explain, Cathy! It’s not what it looks like. Amanda… she just… it was a coincidence—”
“Oh, really?” I said, tilting my head. “So, while I thought you were visiting your mom, you were actually lounging at a spa with your ex?”
He started panicking, stumbling over his words. “No, no, it’s not like that! I can explain. It was a mistake, okay? A huge mistake! I’m sorry. It’ll never happen again. I swear, I can change!”
Ah yes, the classic line cheaters always use when they’re caught.
I gave him my best “understanding” look and said, “Okay. Let’s say I give you another chance. But you’re going to have to prove it.”
His eyes lit up, like he actually thought he was getting away with this. “Anything, Cathy. I’ll do anything!”
“Great! You can start by coming on a hike with me tomorrow. You know how much I love hiking.”
Now, here’s a little background info: Mark is not a hiking guy. He’s more of a couch-and-burgers type. The man starts sweating just walking to the fridge. But he didn’t hesitate.
“Absolutely. I’m in,” he said.
“Really? You hate hiking.”
He shook his head quickly. “No, no, I love it! I’ve just… been busy. But I’m totally up for it. What time do we leave?”
“Early. Be ready at 5 a.m.”
His face fell slightly, but he recovered fast. “5 a.m.? Sure, I’ll set my alarm.”
The next morning, I took him to the steepest, hardest trail I could find.
We started early, and it didn’t take long for Mark to start struggling. Ten minutes in, and he was already panting, sweating, and asking, “How much longer?”
“Oh, just a bit more,” I said sweetly.
By the two-hour mark, he was begging for breaks. His face was red, and he was hunched over, clutching his knees like an old man. But I just smiled. We had a LONG way to go.
“Cathy,” he gasped, “Can we… can we take a break? Just for a minute?”
I frowned, pretending to think about it. “Another break? We’ve barely started! Didn’t you say you LOVED hiking? Come on, the view at the top is going to be SO worth it!”
He nodded weakly, clearly regretting all his life choices. “Right… right. Let’s keep going.”
As we climbed higher, the trail got steeper, and Mark was practically crawling at this point.
“Cathy,” he wheezed, “I think I’m dying.”
I patted his back—maybe a little harder than necessary—and said, “Don’t be dramatic, sweetie. It’s just a little exercise. Didn’t you say you’ve been working out?”
He gave me a confused look through all the sweat. “What? I never said that.”
“Oh! Must have been someone else then. My mistake.”
Finally, after EIGHT long hours, we made it to the top. Mark collapsed onto a rock, drained his water bottle, and looked at me with hope in his eyes.
“I did it! See? I told you I could change.”
I knelt down beside him, kissed his sweaty cheek, and smiled.
“WE’RE OVER, BABY!” I said.
His face went from pure exhaustion to total shock. “Wait—WHAAAT?”
“You heard me,” I said, standing up. “I’m done. I’m not marrying you. I just wanted to see how far you’d go to save your sorry butt. Now I know. I hope Amanda’s worth it.”
He jumped to his feet, still panting. “Wait, Cathy, come on. I just hiked this whole mountain for you! You can’t leave me here!”
“Oh, I can,” I said, slinging my backpack over my shoulder. “And I will.”
Then, I turned and started jogging down the trail. He shouted after me, but I didn’t look back.
“Wait, Cathy! You have to wait for me at the car!”
Without turning around, I called over my shoulder, “Don’t worry, I’ll leave the keys for you!”
But here’s the thing: I didn’t leave the keys. I drove home, leaving Mark stranded at the top of that mountain, with no phone signal and nothing but his own legs to get him down.
By the time he finally showed up at the apartment parking lot later that night, I had already packed up all his stuff and left it on the porch with a note:
“Thanks for the hike! Enjoy your new single life. I hope Amanda likes your sweaty company.
P.S. I changed the locks. If you even think about knocking, my new pet Rottweiler might have a word with you.”
Apparently, he had to call Amanda to come pick him up. I guess she’s useful for something.
As for me? I’m still processing everything. It’s crazy how quickly life can change with just one photo. But honestly? I think I dodged a bullet.
The next day, my phone blew up with messages and missed calls from Mark. I ignored most of them, but one voicemail caught my attention:
“Cathy, please. Can we talk about this? I know I messed up, but I love you. It was a mistake, I swear. Call me back, please?”
I deleted the message without a second thought. Then, I poured myself a glass of wine and started looking at travel websites. Maybe a solo trip to Europe was just what I needed.
Would I have done anything differently? Maybe I could’ve faked a “bear attack” and filmed his terrified reaction for a viral video. Or I could’ve told him there was a snake on the trail and watched him try to run for the first time in years. Now that would’ve been YouTube gold!
Maybe someday, I’ll look back on this and laugh. But for now, I’m focusing on me. New apartment, new hobbies, new life. And definitely no more cheating fiancés.
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