𝟒:𝟒𝟒 ↠ Roman Reigns

Chapter Nine

A burst of anger took over Joe. His emotions were on a roller coaster. Today's emotion was set on being angry.

A simple conversation between him and Fahyara turned into him screaming and Fahayra crying.

"My love," Fahayra started in a hushed tone.

"Don't!" Joe yelled as he slammed his hands on the island counter. "What you did to our family, Fahyara is so fucking selfish! You're not the woman I married, the woman I love! We are supposed to be a team!" He yelled.

Fahayra dropped her head in shame as she had never seen Joe so angry. They rarely fought.

"Twenty years! Fahayra, we've been together for twenty years and this is how you ruin our union, what made you do it, huh? What made you cheat on me? Was I, not a good husband to you? What did I do to make you cheat on me?" Joe asked Fahayra.

Fahayra's heart was racing.

Joe was furious and felt betrayed.

Fahayra took in another deep breath as Joe continued yelling at her when she suddenly felt faint and stumbled backward.

Joe immediately stopped yelling and reached forward and caught Fahayra as her knees buckled. Her vision is blurred with tears and begins to darken.

"I'm so sorry, I was being selfish, it's not you, it's me. I did it for me...Please Joe forgive me," Fahayra insisted, holding him closely.

He held on to her tightly as she continued begging for forgiveness.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry," Fahayra cried.

Joe and Fahayra stare into each other's eyes for a moment.

Fahayra had such surety in her face and words, that Joe could not help but melt into submission.

He closes his eyes and rests his forehead against hers. Fahyara didn't move until Joe tapped her.

"Do you want to just keep sitting here in silence or can we have a conversation?" Joe asked.

"I did not feel fulfilled in our marriage anymore, Joe. At least that's what I told myself. It started just hooking up and staying friends with benefits so nothing would get complicated but then he wanted to do things that you didn't do with me anymore and I got caught up in a situation where I stopped caring about everything," Fahayra answered.

Now his eyes were teary.

"So instead of coming to me and talking about our problems, you go and have an affair, Fahyara," Joe said.

"We got married so young, we grew apart," Fahayra said.

Joe shook his head.

"No, you grew apart from me," Joe said.

Fahayra cried.

Joe sighed.

Fahayra cleared her throat. "I wish I could tell you something that could fix everything and make us go back to normal but I don't know what to do. I'm so sorry, Joe. I regret what I did to you, this will probably always be my biggest regret," Fahayra said, teary-eyed.

Joe let out a long, drawn-out sigh as he mulled over Fahayra's words. "Your biggest regret," he repeated slowly, feeling the weight of her words settle upon him.

Choosing to forgive Fahayra for her infidelity had not been easy for Joe. In the months since discovering her affair, he felt as though he was on an endless emotional rollercoaster, lurching between heartache, anger, and confusion.

One moment, he would recall the early days of their relationship, when he saw only the bright, vibrant woman he had fallen in love with. The next, he would relive the agony of the day he caught her in the arms of another man, his world shattered in an instant.

Waves of anger would then overwhelm him - anger at himself for not noticing the signs that she was slipping away from him, anger at her for betraying their vows in such a devastating fashion.

But Joe knew that he could not allow himself to remain trapped in this cycle of pain and bitterness.

If they had any hope of salvaging their relationship and building a new future together, he had to make an active choice to move past this.

Forgiveness did not come easily, but he understood that it was a necessary first step for them both to be able to heal. So he had gritted his teeth and extended this olive branch, making clear to Fahyara that this was her one chance - any further infidelity would mean the end for them.

As she murmured her understanding, Joe felt the tiniest flicker of optimism amidst the lingering hurt. Perhaps with time, open communication, and active effort, the searing wounds of her betrayal could mend.

It would not be quick or easy, but Joe now believed that just maybe, their love could overcome this ultimate test.