Micaela writes a fun message on her husband as she sends him on his way to his Christmas party, but when he gets home, intoxicated, she finds a reply. Who wrote it, and what does it mean? Remote working means that I don’t get to do the office Christmas parties involving all the drunk employees finally revealing what they think of each other. Thank goodness. But my husband, Travis, wasn’t so lucky — so I sent him on his way with a note written on his chest. Don’t judge me — Travis is a lightweight when it comes to his alcohol. We’ve been married for five years, so trusting Travis is second nature. But it started as a joke because I had the marker in my hand while he was getting dressed anyway. his is my husband — touch him, and you’ll pay- M, I wrote. Micaela,” he said as he was leaving. “I’m just going for a few drinks. I’ll be back home early.” ravis left, and I began to put up the Christmas tree and decorate our living room because neither of us had the time to do it otherwise.

But as I put the stockings onto the mantel, Travis dragged himself into the house. I took one look at him and knew that he was intoxicated. I walked him to our bedroom, ready to get him undressed and put him to bed. But while helping him undress, I found a reply to my smudged message. Keep the change, it said. I laughed at it, not thinking anything about the situation. But as the night went on and I stayed up watching old Christmas movies, the message constantly flashed in my mind. When Travis woke up the following day, I asked him about the party. He said that they started at his office, then went to a bar for karaoke, and finally ended up at a club for a few hours. I asked him about the message, and he looked confused. “One of the guys probably wrote it,” he said. “There was a lot to drink, and you know how the guys get.” Still, it bugged me. So, I went to my Mom for advice. I confided in her, asking her how to deal with unease and distrust in my marriage — something that had never come up in the last five years. Mom’s solution was to bug Travis’ car with a GPS tracker. Now, I’m not one to snoop around, and I didn’t really want to do it. But I needed this nagging feeling to be silenced. Instead of cowering or denying any of it, she boldly asserted that I deserved better. “Husbands like this deserve to be treated like spare change,” she said, glancing at Travis. He, red-faced from anger and embarrassment, exclaimed, “How dare you?” But it didn’t matter. The woman had already closed the door. I left Travis standing there and returned to my car, ignoring him. And when I got back to the car, there was a text from my Mom and the number for a divorce lawyer. It was the heartbreaking Christmas present I gave myself, instead of the Christmas celebration I thought we would have. Instead, I face a new beginning — a New Year of rebuilding, rediscovery, and pursuing happiness on my terms. Life is clearly unpredictable, that’s for sure — especially five years into a marriage. If it were you, what would you have done?