Mom’s affair wasn’t something I ever expected to find out about. Especially not like this. I wasn’t snooping. I was just trying to get into our shared iPad to watch a movie while home from college. She must’ve forgotten to sign out of her messages.

It started innocently—just a couple of texts that looked… off. Then I saw a thread with a name I didn’t recognize. “Last night was amazing,” it said. “Wish I could wake up next to you every morning.”

I remember my stomach physically tightening. My heart pounding. My mom? I scrolled up. The messages went back months. Photos. Plans. Little heart emojis. There was no room for doubt.

I put the iPad down and stared at the wall for what felt like an hour. My parents have been married for over 25 years. My dad is the most loving man I’ve ever known. He makes her coffee every morning. Calls her “my girl” even when they argue. I thought they were solid. Real. I thought they were the kind of couple people envied.

That night, I couldn’t sleep. I didn’t say anything to anyone. I kept watching my mom like I was seeing a stranger in her skin. She was smiling, cooking dinner, texting—probably him.

The dilemma ate me alive:
Do I tell my dad and risk blowing our family apart?
Do I confront my mom and force her to confess?
Do I stay silent and live with the weight of her secret?

What complicates this even more is that my dad lost his job last year and has been struggling with depression. He’s better now, but I don’t think he could handle this.

I talked to a close friend, and she said: “It’s not your secret to keep. Your dad deserves the truth.”

But it still doesn’t feel black and white.

I haven’t told anyone else. Not my brother. Not my therapist (yet). And every day that goes by, it feels heavier. I haven’t confronted my mom either. I’m terrified of what it might do.

Part of me thinks: maybe it’s just a phase. Maybe it will end on its own and I can forget I ever knew.

But then… what if it doesn’t?

What would you do?