The Wise Wife

Okay, so listen, Ive got a bit of a rollercoaster to tell you about Nick and his love life, and its all set here in good old England, so youll get the vibe.

Nick was trying desperately not to think about what had happened, and his wife, Lottie, didnt even bring it up. You know I know what you know, shed say, halfsmiling, halfstern. She caught her husband looking all lost and that was enough for her a bloke with a guilty conscience is easy to steer.

Lottie was a proper wise one. She had these bottomless green eyes, the sort youd only ever see in a painting; anyone who stared in would feel like theyd fallen into a void.

Nick fell for Poppy the moment he saw her love at first sight, plain and simple. She was late to a lecture and slipped into the hall after itd already started, and then, as fate would have it, they ended up in the same study group. Nothing hed ever experienced before; the world seemed to blur, everything else pushed to the background. And Poppy? She barely gave him a glance.

He kept dreaming about a fleeting, interested look, a joke, anything. But nothing of the sort ever came; Poppy just wasnt interested in Nick at all. And he was a decent looking lad, right in line with todays standards of male attractiveness.

That was Nicks first big letdown. Back in school hed been the top lad in the village girls were never a problem. Still, everything felt a bit halfhearted. Then this new, fierce feeling hit him, and he convinced himself it had to be real love.

A tiny bit of comfort came from the fact that the girls in their group werent chasing any of the guys. If this ever happens, Nick would mutter, I wont know what to do with him. (He meant himself, of course.)

Poppy started to thaw by the third year. Nicks feelings didnt change he kept loving her. Suddenly, like spring melting the ice, she began to laugh at the jokes of a classmate, and Nick felt his heart lift.

One night they rode the tube home together, and Nick imagined a whole happy life with her. He asked her out on a proper date she said yes, surprisingly. Poppy realised she liked this cheeky Nick with his spiky haircut, a bit like a cartoon character. He took her out for a strong cup of coffee that song was on every radio and even the kitchen kettle seemed to hum it. They had a brilliant time, kissed, and Nicks dream finally felt real.

By the end of the third year they were a couple. At the start of the next academic year, Poppy turned out to be pregnant. Yep, that happens. She discovered she was expecting on her birthday. Nick dropped by on the 9th of June when her parents were away at the cottage, and they, well, didnt use any contraception, thinking what could go wrong?

Turns out, something did. Poppy realised shed got herself a proper royal gift. They spent the holidays with their own families not everyone had a mobile phone back then, so Nick, the young dad, only heard the news after his dad came back from the south in late August.

Poppy was a bundle of nerves. She was two and a half months pregnant, almost three, and they both were clueless about what to do. Nick was equally baffled; neither of them knew the next step.

Lying in bed felt romantic, but reality hit hard the trouble was staring right back at them, greeneyed like a myth. Getting married seemed too early they were still lads, and the parents wouldnt be thrilled. Abortion? That would need money and, of course, Poppys consent. She seemed ready for any option, just like in those movies where fate just takes over.

Nick promised hed sort something out. He did, but the real shock was that he didnt turn up for class on the first day of September. Hed simply ducked out, scared to face anything. If anyone had told him this could happen, hed have laughed it off.

Turns out hed taken some paperwork and vanished to another university. Poppy was left to face the pregnancy alone. Their classmates were left scratching their heads Nick was gone, didnt call, and his parents claimed hed moved into a flat with no phone line.

In short, Poppy was written out of Nicks life. The fear of losing his freedom outweighed that bright, pure love.

Years later, Nick Timothy was happily married, his son just turned twentytwo. He never bothered with his old flame; shed died, and he never learned what truly happened to her. Still, his conscience kept nagging him. Maybe hed been too harsh? After all, hed loved Poppy and whatever was inside her, he would have loved too.

He loved his wife, but that was a different kind of love fireworks and a snowy plunge after a sauna, you know? Now its calm and steady; they wed the year after his split with Poppy. Lena, his old classmate from the other university, was also there, and he never mentioned that embarrassing episode. A mans not supposed to admit he ran away from the battlefield, right?

Lottie, his wise wife, never said, I know everything, you shameful man! She understood that people need secrets, especially the nasty ones you dont want to recall. She hinted she was aware, but kept quiet spilling it would have ruined the picture of a proper, problemsolving husband shed built over the years.

One Saturday, Simon (their brother) said hed bring a girl along: Lily and I are getting married! Even though Lily was still young, the parents didnt object she already lived on her own in a flat her grandma had given her, financially independent.

When Nick opened the door for his son and his girlfriend that Saturday, who should be standing there? Poppy! Well, not exactly Poppy, but a deadonthenose copy a clone, as theyd say now. Shed turned up that August evening, like a boomerang.

Nick, being sharp, realised she wasnt his ex at all but her daughter and possibly his own daughter too. That meant she was his halfsister. Marrying a sister? Thats a nightmare. His throat dried, heart thumped over a hundred beats a minute, cold sweat the very punishment hed feared.

He tried to act normal, smile, keep the chat going. He avoided looking at her, fearing a silent accusation in her eyes, as if shed come to stir up trouble in his happy family. He imagined shed heard some story from her mums side about a dad whod abandoned her, and now she was out for revenge.

The wife noticed he was pale. Maybe you should lie down? Ill check your blood pressure, she suggested. He agreed a good excuse to step away from the table.

Their son asked, Dad, didnt you like Lily? Nick, trying to keep his composure, replied, Its just a bit of pressure, love. The pressure was indeed high, he even popped a tablet.

Dad snapped, Youre not marrying her! The son, Simon, shouted, Why not? Explain yourself! Nick could only mutter, Shes… shes my sister, isnt she? Hed left her pregnant twentysomething years ago; admitting that was beyond him.

Simon, defiant, said, Ill marry her anyway! Lottie, ever the pragmatic, asked, What on earth got into you, you goodnatured lad? Shes a fine girl, you see? She loves Simon! Whats this nonsense?

Nick thought, What the hell now? and felt utterly lost. Two days of miserable, almost hysterical suffering followed he even called in sick with a hypertensive crisis.

Lottie, over dinner, tried to calm him: Its not her, love. He asked, Not her? She replied, No, its not Poppys daughter, just a lookalike, the same type.

She reminded him of the cheeky photo theyd taken back when he was still headoverheels for Poppy the one the nice folks had shown around. Can a double really exist? she mused. Dont we have lookalike contests? Her mothers name is Lena, just like mine! Were visiting them Saturday. So, will you let your son marry?

Nick exhaled, relieved, thinking now he could give his blessing. He kept wondering how Lottie knew all this. One face, two lives.

Later, when he really looked, he saw the differences hair colour, eyes. It wasnt Poppy at all. The resemblance was just a spooky coincidence.

Back to the start: Nick tried not to think about it. Lottie kept quiet too, saying, You know I know what you know. She saw her bewildered husband and that was enough a man with a guilt complex is easy to manage.

She was the wise one, his Lottie. And Nick, well, hed lost a bit of his swagger, his bravado. Turns out he wasnt even the maestro after all just a regular bloke trying to keep his head above water. They never told anyone about the whole mess; life, oddly enough, went on just fine.