“Everything okay?” I asked as we sat down.
Fiona glanced up, startled. “Oh, yeah. Just checking something quick.”
I nodded, trying to hide my disappointment. This was supposed to be our special night, but she seemed a million miles away.
The waiter appeared with menus. “Can I interest you in our anniversary special? A bottle of champagne to start?”
“That sounds perfect,” I said, smiling at Fiona. “What do you think, honey?”
She was staring at her phone again. “Hm? Oh, sure. Whatever you want.”
I sighed and ordered the champagne. As the waiter walked away, I reached across the table and gently touched Fiona’s hand.
“Hey, can we maybe put the phones away? It’s our anniversary.”
Fiona looked guilty. “You’re right, I’m sorry. It’s just this new video series I found —”
I tried to keep the irritation out of my voice. “Another prank channel?”
“They’re hilarious, Aidan! You should see some of these —”
I tuned out as she launched into a description of the latest viral prank. My mind wandered back to the past few weeks, and I felt my stomach tighten.
It had started innocently enough, Fiona showing me funny videos on her phone, and both of us laughing. But then she’d started trying to recreate them at home.
There was the time she jumped out from behind the shower curtain, nearly giving me a heart attack. The fake spider in Nora’s lunchbox that made our daughter cry. The “broken” glass prank that left Callum afraid to touch anything in the kitchen for days.
Each time, Fiona would laugh it off. “It’s just a joke!” she’d say. “Don’t be so serious!”
But I’d seen the fear in our kids’ eyes, felt the constant tension in my own shoulders. It wasn’t funny anymore. It was exhausting.
I snapped back to the present as the waiter returned with our champagne. Fiona was still talking, gesturing animatedly about some YouTuber’s latest stunt.
Fiona stood up abruptly. “I need to use the restroom. Be right back.”
I watched her walk away, a sense of unease growing in my stomach. Something felt off.
Suddenly, a commotion erupted behind me. I turned to see Fiona stumbling between tables, clutching her throat.
“I can’t breathe!” she gasped, falling to her knees. “Help me!”
The restaurant erupted in chaos. People rushed to her side, calling for help. I sat frozen, unable to process what was happening.
Then Fiona started laughing. “Just kidding!” she announced, getting to her feet. “It was a prank!”
The silence that followed was deafening. I felt the eyes of every patron boring into me. Fiona grinned, oblivious to the horror on everyone’s faces.
“Ma’am, that was extremely inappropriate,” the manager said, approaching our table. “I’m going to have to ask you to leave.”
I stood up, grabbing my coat. “I’m leaving,” I said, my voice tight with anger. “Without my wife. You can get an Uber home on your own,” I informed her.
Fiona’s smile faltered. “Aw, come on. It was just a joke!”
I didn’t even respond. I couldn’t even look at her. I rushed out to the car and made off before she had time to respond — besides, she needed to settle the bill anyway.
As soon as I got home, I headed for the kids’ rooms. “Pack a bag,” I told Nora and Callum. “We’re going to Uncle Declan’s for a bit.”
An hour later, I was knocking on my brother’s door, two sleepy kids in tow. Declan took one look at my face and ushered us inside without a word.
“Guest room’s all yours,” he said, helping me with the bags. “Want to talk about it?”
I shook my head. “Not tonight. Thanks, bro.”
My phone buzzed incessantly with messages from Fiona. I ignored them all and tried to sleep.
The next morning, I woke to find 37 missed calls and twice as many texts. I scrolled through them, my anger reigniting.
“You’re overreacting.”
“It was just a joke!”
“How could you embarrass me like that?”
“You owe me an apology.”
I tossed the phone aside, disgusted. How could she not see how wrong she was?
As if on cue, my phone rang again. This time, it was Greta, Fiona’s mom. I hesitated before answering.
“Aidan! What’s this I hear about you abandoning my daughter at a restaurant?” Greta’s voice was shrill with indignation.
I took a deep breath. “Hi, Greta. It’s not what you think.”
“Oh? Then explain it to me, young man. Because from where I’m standing, you left your wife alone on your anniversary. That’s pretty low.”
I pinched the bridge of my nose, feeling a headache coming on. “Fiona pulled a prank, Greta. A bad one. She pretended to choke in the middle of a crowded restaurant.”
There was a pause on the other end of the line. “She did what?”
I recounted the events of the previous night, including Fiona’s recent obsession with pranks and how it was affecting our family.
When I finished, Greta was quiet for a long moment. Then she sighed heavily. “Oh, Aidan. I had no idea it had gotten this bad.”
“Yeah, well. Now you know.”
“I… I don’t know what to say. If things are really this bad, I… I wouldn’t blame you if you wanted a divorce.”
Her words hit me like a punch to the gut. Divorce? Is that where we were headed?
“I don’t know, Greta,” I said honestly. “I just need some time to think.”
After we hung up, I sat on the edge of the bed, my head in my hands. Was this really the end of our marriage?
I spent the day in a daze, mechanically going through the motions of caring for the kids. By evening, I’d made a decision.
I called Fiona. “Meet me at the restaurant tomorrow at 7 p.m. We need to talk.
She agreed immediately, sounding relieved. I hung up before she could say more.
The next night, I arrived at the restaurant early. My palms were sweaty as I clutched the envelope containing the divorce papers I’d had drawn up that afternoon.
Fiona walked in, looking smaller and more vulnerable than I’d ever seen her. Her eyes were red-rimmed, her hair disheveled.
“Hi,” she said softly, as she took a seat alongside me.
“Hi,” I replied, my throat tight.
We sat in awkward silence for a moment. Then Fiona burst out, “Aidan, I’m so sorry. I never meant to hurt you or the kids. I just got carried away with the pranks and —”
I held up a hand to stop her. Without a word, I slid the envelope across the table.
Fiona’s hands shook as she opened it. Her eyes widened as she realized what she was looking at.
“No,” she whispered, tears spilling down her cheeks. “Please, Aidan, no. We can work this out. I’ll stop the pranks, I promise. Please don’t leave me.”
I let her cry for a moment, my own eyes stinging. Then I took a deep breath.
“It’s a prank,” I said quietly.
Fiona’s head snapped up. “What?”
“The divorce papers. They’re not real. It’s a prank.”
Her mouth opened and closed, no sound coming out. I leaned forward, my voice intense.
“This is what it feels like, Fiona. This is how your pranks make us feel. Scared, hurt, betrayed. Is this what you want for our family?”
Fiona’s face crumpled. “No,” she sobbed. “God, no. I’m so sorry, Aidan. I never realized…”
I reached across the table and took her hand. “I love you, Fiona. But this has to stop. No more pranks. Ever. Can you promise me that?”
She nodded vigorously, squeezing my hand. “I promise. No more pranks. I’ll delete all those stupid videos. I’ll do whatever it takes.”
I exhaled slowly, feeling a weight lift from my shoulders. “Okay,” I said. “Then let’s go home.”
As we stood to leave, Fiona hesitated. “Aidan? Thank you for not giving up on us.”
I pulled her into a hug, breathing in the familiar scent of her hair. “We’re in this together,” I murmured. “For better or worse, remember?”
She laughed softly, a sound I realized I’d missed. “I remember. Let’s aim for ‘better’ from now on, okay?”
I nodded, feeling cautiously optimistic for the first time in weeks. As we walked out of the restaurant hand in hand, I knew we had a long way to go. But at least now, we were on the same page.
And there wasn’t a prank in sight.
What would you have done?
Little girl was abandoned by dad who said she was ‘dead’ to him – now she’s a famous actress
At the pinnacle of their careers, renowned musician and legendary actress Goldie Hawn met in 1975.
On a first-class flight from New York to Los Angeles, the two happened to cross paths, and they clicked right away.
The musician was already well-known in the music industry, having shared stages with The Beach Boys, The Osmonds, and The Monkees. He was a member of The Hudson Brothers. Apart from his musical career, he had appearances in TV series and movies, including the cult favorite Hysterical.
The musician recalled their first meeting and said there was instant electricity. The allure was immediate. That evening, I asked her to supper, and that was it,” he revealed. Their physical bond was a major factor in their relationship’s rapid growth.
The level of intimacy was astounding. The [intimacy] was always fantastic, even when everything else in the relationship went south,” he continued, as reported by the Daily Mail. Even while their relationship was not without its ups and downs, there were times when it felt like they were moving forward.
In 1976, while Goldie was expecting their first child, a son, the couple were married. But there were some difficulties during the delivery of their baby. He was diagnosed with meconium aspiration, a potentially fatal illness where a baby inhales meconium-contaminated amniotic fluid, at Cedars-Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles.
UNITED STATES – NOVEMBER 20: BOTTOMLINE Photo of Bill HUDSON, w/ Goldie Hawn (Photo by Richard E. Aaron/Redferns)
The couple was greatly concerned when the newborn was placed in isolation for three days following delivery. “Goldie and I were ecstatic,” the performer recalled. “She was really sick, and I’d go from her bedside to the neonatal intensive care unit,” he added in his explanation. It was the physicians’ opinion that [son’s name] would not survive. However, he survived, and from that point on, he became our priceless miracle.
The couple welcomed a girl as their second child in 1979, three years after the first. The foursome shared a number of wonderful years together before the musician’s discovery that Goldie had been unfaithful in 1981 brought an untimely end to their marriage. The musician’s longing for a conventional marriage ran counter to Goldie’s beliefs of commitment.
He told the Daily Mail, “Goldie was having affairs, and pretty much on our wedding night, she told me that she wanted an open marriage, that she couldn’t imagine being faithful to one man for the rest of her life.” “I desired a conventional union, but Goldie was unsatisfactory. I eventually relocated.
In 1983, following their breakup, Goldie started dating actor Kurt Russell. They had first connected on set of Swing Shift, but their love life didn’t take off until they reunited after meeting again while filming The One and Only, Genuine, Original Family Band in 1968. Three years into their relationship, in 1986, Wyatt Russell, their son, was born.
Bringing their families together turned out to be a big adjustment. “For me, it felt like such a big moment because it was like, ‘My mom is madly in love with this guy,’” Goldie’s daughter recounted. “And I was meeting his son [Boston], so I thought, ‘Does this mean that this is my brother?’” she continued. For someone so young, it was a lot to handle.
Following their parents’ divorce, Goldie’s children from her first marriage experienced sentiments of abandonment. Her son told her about the way their biological father gradually cut himself off from them. In response to a contentious Father’s Day post honoring Kurt, he stated, “It really doesn’t matter which one of these men is my father.” I became the man I am now when my father intervened when I was six years old.
Kurt assuming the position of father figure is a memory that both siblings cherish. Even though they still don’t get along with their real father Bill, they frequently thank Kurt for his commitment.
Bill, meanwhile, has publicly expressed his sense of betrayal and charged Goldie with “poisoning” their kids against him. According to Hello!, despite their tension, Kate and Oliver are committed to moving past their past and keeping a good attitude on the future.
Oliver made the public knowledge of their tense relationship in 2015 when he shared a contentious Father’s Day message on social media. He posted a photo of Kate, Bill, and himself from the past with the message, “Happy abandonment day… @katehudson.”
“Oliver could have picked up the phone and called me, but he hasn’t,” said Bill, who was incensed by the post, in an interview. He obviously planned this out; he released the image on Father’s Day, knowing full well that it would hurt the most people.
Bill continued by asserting that Oliver had been successful in his attempt to remove him from their life. Tension increased when Kate wrote her own homage to Kurt, following Oliver’s example and only serving to exacerbate the fallout.
During her appearance on Howard Stern’s show, Kate talked about how Kurt was the father that was there for her through the trying and trying times. “I would ask them to stop using the Hudson name [because] they are no longer a part of my life,” Bill responded, as reported by the Daily Mail.
He went on to say, “I now consider Oliver and Kate to be dead; their Instagram post was a wicked, brutal, and deliberate attack. Even though they are still alive, I am grieving for their loss. After that, Bill made the decision, per the Daily Mail article, to get rid of all of Kate and Oliver’s childhood items from his house.
Kurt has accepted his duty as a grandfather to Kate and Oliver’s children despite the distance between him and his older children.
Kate and Oliver have moved on and chosen to concentrate on the relationships they have developed with their stepfather, Kurt, but Bill still harbors animosity.
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