Seven years into this man’s marriage with his Wife, she cheated on him for six months. He caught her while she was cheating on him and was stunned and crushed by her infidelity.

Afterward, his wife allowed him six “hall passes” for every month that she’d cheated, which meant that she’d let him sleep with someone else six times.

They also attended marriage counseling for years to resolve the issues that stemmed from his wife’s affair. Over time, their marriage became more stable.

“I used the hall passes my wife gave me at the beginning of the reconciliation. I slept with two different women three times each without my wife knowing,” he said.

When his wife suggested allowing him six hall passes, she stipulated that he had to follow a few rules.

She told him he couldn’t tell her he’d used the hall passes unless she requested information, and if she wanted to have a conversation about the hall passes, he needed to be upfront, tell the truth, and share all the information she requested.

Another rule his wife gave him was that he couldn’t develop romantic feelings for the other women he’d be hooking up with.

“I obeyed all these rules, and I am going to be very honest here. It helped me subside the resentment I had toward her. That is just how ‘getting even’ feels, I guess,” he explained.

Even though he’s not proud of the fact that hooking up with other women lessened the bitterness he felt toward his wife, he couldn’t help but acknowledge the reality.

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In the five years since his wife’s affair, their marriage has significantly improved, and he feels like their relationship is wonderful.

Last week, after not discussing the hall passes for a long time, his wife randomly brought up the topic and questioned whether he’d used them. He told her the truth and gave her all the information she requested.

“Maybe I shouldn’t have been honest, thinking back now. She does not even look me in the eyes now and is in a depressive state,” he shared.

In his view, he and his wife should go back to marriage counseling and possibly add on one-on-one therapy.

Since he hadn’t thought about the hall passes to the women he’d slept with in years, he felt guilty that he’d told his wife the truth and that he’d used the hall passes in the first place.

What would you have done if you were in his shoes?

You can read the original post on Reddit here.