An Apology with an Expiry Date
A husband admits an old affair, then expects his wife to finish grieving by the end of the weekend he selected for the conversation.
194 short stories
Deception
Page 5 of 7
Unspoken messages, double lives, and the moment the truth comes to light.
Stories on this page
The Birthday He Canceled Himself
A man tells his partner his friends do not want to attend his celebration, although he never invited them.
The Key His Mother Still Had
A partner promises he has recovered the spare key to their apartment while secretly allowing his mother to enter and rearrange things.
The Polite Man Behind Another Name
A woman recognizes her partner's favorite phrase among anonymous insults directed at her friend.
The Joy I Performed for Them
A woman greets her partner's promotion with a smile, then tells friends he forced her into a move she proposed herself.
The Word Rest on Someone Else's Calendar
A woman thinks her partner has left her Saturday free while he promises friends she will handle their responsibilities.
Dues for a Club That Does Not Exist
A woman pays for shared outings for years, believing her partner's membership dues cover their share of expenses.
The Wrong Reason for the Canceled Course
A husband boasts of supporting his wife's studies while secretly portraying her classes to her family as selfishness.
The Gift That Had to Be Repaid
A woman discovers that her friend's generous favors carry a price nobody mentioned in advance.
The Handyman Who Was Always to Blame
A woman learns that her partner blames a handyman for problems in their apartment to conceal his own failed attempts.
The Sunday Lunch I Claimed to Forget
A husband claims to have forgotten a family lunch, although he deliberately left his wife to explain his empty place.
A Desirable Quality in Someone Else's Application
A friend offers a job reference, then secretly persuades the employer not to call the applicant.
The Box Marked Winter
A husband secretly discarding his wife's keepsakes claims he is only helping her clear out unnecessary things.
Six More People at Our Table
A woman discovers that her marital arguments have an audience voting on who is right.
Married Until the Holiday Ended
Adult children on a family holiday learn that their parents have already separated, although they still behave as a married couple.
The Smell Left in the Coat
A woman discovers that her partner's promise to quit smoking hides months of excuses that have become a bigger problem than cigarettes.
The Promise That Couldn't Begin with a Lie
Before a family celebration, a woman must admit that the news which accelerated the wedding isn't true.
A Commission for Marital Advice
A woman discovers her husband's recommendation for new business premises wasn't based only on concern for her work.
A Bought Card for an Invented Success
A woman celebrates her partner's new job until a chance encounter reveals the interview was merely part of his story.
The Week Without a Dress Rehearsal
A husband brings a forgotten costume to the theater and learns that the play his wife supposedly rehearses ended long ago.
One Sunday Too Many
A husband preparing family lunch learns that his wife has spent months attending very different Sunday meetings.
The Tenant in Their Future Room
A woman arrives to measure a room in their future shared apartment and finds a man who has just unpacked his belongings.
The Weekend That Wasn't Alone
A wife supports her husband's solitary weekends until a chance conversation reveals that she was the only one excluded.
The Photograph They Staged
A man receives a photograph of apparent infidelity, but talking with his partner reveals that someone deliberately framed out the rest of the story.
The Rehearsed Script for Sunday Lunch
At a family lunch, a fiancée learns that her future husband invented her career to impress his parents.
The Cat That Hadn't Gone Missing
While searching for her missing cat, a woman learns that her partner knew exactly where the animal was.
The Medal in Someone Else's Window
A former athlete spots her own medal in a secondhand shop window, although her husband told her it was safely packed away.
The Reply She Never Wrote
A chance meeting with an old love reveals that the message ending their relationship was sent by neither person in it.
Nine Floors Without an Answer
In a stalled elevator, a husband admits a secret his wife had mistaken for temporary distance.
A Mother's Call During the Wrong Dinner
A woman who has excused her partner's absences for years learns that his family considers their relationship over.