I walked into our bedroom and saw my dad and my wife holding hands. Later, they admitted they had feelings for each other and wanted me to stay married while we lived separate lives to keep things quiet. I didn’t argue. Instead, i waited for the family dinner. that’s when i told everyone.

The illusion of a perfect life is remarkably sturdy until the precise moment it isn’t. It’s like a pane of tempered glass; it can take a hammering for years, but tap it in the wrong spot with the wrong amount of pressure, and the whole thing disintegrates into dust.

That tap came on a Tuesday.

I remember feeling an unusual, buoyant lightness as I left the office at 2:00 PM. The server farm at work had suffered a catastrophic failure, granting us all amnesty for the afternoon. The sky over Portland was a bruised purple, threatening rain, but I didn’t care. I had takeout from Siam Lotus—her favorite Pad Thai—steaming in the passenger seat. I was two years into a marriage with Sarah, and while we had our friction, I believed we were solid. I believed I was building a life on bedrock.