Military Veteran Suspects His Middle Child Is Not His & Takes DNA Test — Story of the Day

Upon returning from the military, James is haunted by suspicions about his middle child's paternity. Feeling unsettled, James finally takes a DNA test with his son but has to pay a heavy price for it — his family.

The garage echoed with the tool's clinks and clanks, and the scent of motor oil filled the air while 42-year-old James busied himself with his car engine. He could swear the days he had witnessed on the battlefield were easier than fixing this vintage car.

James wiped his greasy hands on a dirty rag and changed the tool at one point. Hunched over the car's hood, he returned to meticulously working on the engine. But his concentration was cut short by the muffled sound of approaching footsteps.

James peered from the corner of his eyes and spotted someone he really didn't want to meet. So he pretended he didn't notice the unexpected guest and continued working…

"Hey, James! Working on the car?" The annoying voice broke the silence, and James knew he couldn't avoid the man. He closed his eyes momentarily and composed himself before he faced his over-friendly neighbor, Dominic.

"I mean, you've got two eyes to see, Dominic. Those glasses not helping you at all?" He taunted the man. "What brings you here?"

"Oh, I definitely missed this banter, James," Dominic chuckled, not sensing the sarcasm behind James' words. "I just wanted to say it's good to have you back. Haven't seen you around much since you returned. So just checking in, you know."

James grunted and returned to the car. "Not everyone sits in front of a computer, typing out silly lines like a bot, Dominic," he sneered. "Some real men, like me, gotta do the real work out there like fixing a goddamn car! If you're done, you can leave!"

"Uh, actually," Dominic paused. "I also wanted to say that I can imagine it must have not been easy, you know, being deployed in a foreign land and the whole military thing. Lily told me how hard it was for you and her while you were away. I tried my best to make sure she didn't feel alone…whenever you were gone."

James looked up from his car, his eyes red with fury. "I'm sure she was pouring her heart out to you, wasn't she?" he scoffed.

"I was just trying to be there for her, James. We're neighbors, after all," Dominic shrugged.

James approached Dominic and looked him in the eye.

"Stay away from my wife, nerd!" James snarled. "She doesn't need your pity! Just because you're her childhood friend doesn't mean you can interfere in our lives as and when you want!"

"Woah, woah, relax, man!" Dominic raised his palms in defense and stepped back. "I was only checking on your family in your absence because I was concerned."

"But I'm here now! And I know how to look after my family!" James spat. "So you better mind your own business. Or else, I—"

Before James could continue, the house gate flung open with a clang. He and Dominic turned to look at James's main entrance through which James's youngest son, Jason, entered, his arms and face covered with fresh bruises.

Tears still ran down his cheeks, and behind him was James's middle son, Harry, who wouldn't raise his head to meet his father's gaze.

James's face twisted with shock and anxiety. "What the hell happened?" he demanded angrily as he stared at his boys.

"Some…Some kids were mean to me, Daddy…very mean," Jason replied between deep breaths. "They always pick on me and trouble me…"

As Jason explained about the school brawl, James's blood began boiling.

"And where were you, huh?" James asked Harry, fuming in rage and approaching the children. "You were letting your little brother get beaten? Couldn't you have helped him?"

"Dad, I—I…" Harry's words trailed off.

"Stop it, dude. You're being too harsh on him," Dominic tried to step in, but James shoved him away.

"Get the hell away from my kids! You have no right to interfere in my family matters!"

"Can you two please stop fighting?" Harry pleaded, finally raising his head. "Dad, please stop yelling at Dominic! I-I tried to help Jason!"

"Your kid is better than you, man," Dominic snapped at James. "At least one of your sons won't turn out like you!"

"Take care, buddy," Dominic consoled Harry. "I know you would've done your best."

Dominic looked at the kids in pity and shook his head before walking away. He wanted to be there for the children because Lily had told him how James could be very stern with their kids. But Dominic also knew he couldn't poke his nose into someone else's business.

"What am I raising in this house, huh? Chickens?" Dominic's comment deepened James's anger. "You can't even protect your own brother? Jesus Christ! What's wrong with you, Harry? Speak up! You can speak up for that idiot Dominic, but not when I'm asking you something?"

"I told you I tried, Dad!" Harry screamed, tears welling up in his eyes. "But they were more in number! It was three against one!"

"So?" James yelled. "You're a freakin' coward!"

Harry hung his head again. He could no longer contain his emotions. Sobs rocked his thin body as he burst into tears, which only infuriated James.

And James would've continued to yell at Harry if the sound of Lily's car's tires crunching the gravel in the driveway hadn't distracted them.

38-year-old Lily, James's lovely wife who worked as an accountant and was a brilliant mother to their three children — Tommy, 17, Harry, 12, and Jason, 7 — was hiding something from him. James knew that.

He always had this nagging feeling that Harry was not his child.

In James' mind, Harry was a 'nerd.' And sometimes, he just acted 'very feminine.' He was so different from his other two sons. James couldn't help but notice that again and again.

Just like that nerd coder Dominic, Harry loved working on his computer for long hours. He read books too advanced for his age — books on computer languages and science experiments. The things he read and did had James scratching his head.

James had never been the studious kind, and while Lily was an accountant, she didn't have a lot of natural curiosity towards science and technology domains — nothing that could explain Harry's unusual interest in such studies. Not to mention, his physical features, especially his facial features, were nothing like his or Lily's.

These very things had led James to suspect Harry could be…

James's thoughts were cut short as Lily climbed out of her car, her hands held to her mouth in shock. She hurriedly approached her children.

"Oh god, honey," she gasped, crouching before her little boy and examining his bruises. "What happened, Jason? Harry, why are you two crying?"

"Yep, you're asking the right person!" James sneered. "Ask him why he couldn't protect his little brother! Jason got beaten up at school, and your sensitive older son did nothing to stop it!"

"Mom, they were too many…I didn't want to make it worse for us," Harry spoke up, sniffling.

"A real man protects his family, and then there's your precious middle child, Lily!" James scowled. "What a coward!"

"Stop it, James!" Lily replied stiffly, turning to look at him.

"Harry is just a kid! We can't expect him to fight off a group of bullies! As his father, you're supposed to stand up for him, not discourage and mock him like this! I did hear the things you were telling him before!"

Lily asked the boys to go to their rooms and freshen up, adding that she'd soon be there to bandage their wounds. While Harry wasn't severely hurt, he had a few bruises on his left arm.

"He definitely doesn't take after me, so he can't be my son!" James grumbled as he returned to the car.

Lily turned toward him sharply and followed him into the garage.

"What do you mean?" she asked, furrowing her brows. "Harry is your son, James!"

"Is he?" James sarcastically shot back, looking up from the car toward her.

"I wasn't here when you got pregnant with him, Lily! I was deployed in Afghanistan. So I don't know what happened 12 years ago! Who knows whose son he really is? The only guy there for you during your pregnancy was that IT nerd, wasn't he?"

Lily's eyes widened in shock.

"Watch what you're saying, James!" she cried. "Are you really accusing me of sleeping with Dominic? He's just a friend who was there for me while you were busy fighting in Afghanistan! How many times am I supposed to tell you that? I can't believe you!"

James gritted his teeth angrily, furious that his wife defended their neighbor. He tossed away his tool in rage, making Lily shudder. Then he grabbed his jacket and stormed off.

"I'm off to the bar! I need a break from this drama!"

A few street lights flickered along the roads as James walked to the bar. The sun had started setting, casting shadows everywhere.

James fished his phone from his pocket at one point and dialed his friend, Simon.

A few rings went through before Simon's voice appeared through the device. "How's it going, man?" he asked cheerfully.

"Can you meet me now?"

"Sure, you alright?" Simon asked.

"Yes, I'll see you at the bar. On Third Street? In 10 minutes?"

"Alright, I was just thinking I could use a drink. I'll be there."

James hung up and stuffed his phone in his pocket. Walking along the streets, he spotted a few happy families at the fading restaurants and playgrounds. James felt a pang of jealousy and regret. How did he fail to build a happy home?

A part of James had wished to live a peaceful life after returning home from the deployment, but things were just always going wrong. He always had his doubts about Lily and Dominic having an affair behind his back. But he hadn't said that out loud until today. Yes, they had argued about how Dominic took too much interest in their lives and sometimes about Harry. But not this. However, James didn't blame himself.

The shock and horror on Lily's face gave away that she had been hiding something all along. James could feel it in his gut. Maybe it was a look that she had never expected he would find out about her and that IT guy's affair. James was convinced she had cheated on him. But unfortunately, he didn't have any proof of her infidelity.

The bar's neon sign flickering in the distance distracted James from his thoughts. The wooden door at the bar's entrance creaked open as he entered.

Surrounded by the strong scent of alcohol and cigarette smoke and the clinking of glasses, James approached the wooden stool where Simon sat.

"James, my man!" Simon raised his glass as James sat on the adjacent stool.

Noticing the despondent look on James's face, Simon guessed something was off.

"A beer, please," Simon told the bartender at the counter before turning to his wartime buddy.

"So, what's eating at you?" Simon asked.

"Lily. I think she cheated on me," James said bitterly.

"Damn it," Simon let out a sigh. "I had a bad feeling it was about your wife."

As James's beer arrived, he went on to tell Simon about how he thought Harry was Dominic's son. Simon listened patiently like a good friend, consoling James.

They had a couple of drinks while James poured his heart out about how hurt and betrayed he felt.

"You're not the only one who's been through this, pal," Simon said. "Let me tell you about a buddy of mine. So this guy and his wife had trouble conceiving, alright? They tried all sorts of fertility crap and all that nonsense. Now, when they are considering adoption, his wife suddenly tells him she's pregnant. The worst is yet to come!" Simon scoffed.

"Man was too happy, didn't suspect her, and believed it was a miracle. For 10 years, he raised this child, thinking the kid was his. But by now, he starts suspecting the kid is not his…you know, the features didn't match, and even their likes and dislikes.

"One day, his wife doesn't pick the boy up from school, so he goes. And guess what? He runs into a man who looks like he could be the child's father. And bam! Eventually, he finds out about his wife's affair and takes a DNA test with the son. It was proved the child wasn't his."

James chugged his beer and ordered another one. His mind was now plagued with the images of Lily and Dominic in bed. The mere thought of her sleeping with another man twisted his stomach in knots.

"Get the DNA test done, man," Simon encouraged him. "Clear the air. For your and the kid's sake."

"I can't get the image of her and Dominic in bed out of my mind, Simon," James paused as the beer arrived. "It's killing me. But I'll get the test done."

"That's like my buddy!" Simon raised his glass. "Sometimes, we let our minds play tricks on us, brother. But you won't find peace until you know the truth! Cheers to the truth!"

Their glasses clinked. Though worried about the outcome of his action, James decided that the DNA test was the best way out of the situation.

As the night wore on, James and Simon engaged themselves in a conversation about their Army days. The bar manager had to eventually ask them to leave because they were drinking all night and kept demanding more alcohol even after the bar's closing time.

As the two friends stumbled out of the bar, their steps unsteady on the pavement, Simon flagged down a passing taxi. "S-z-ee you, faind!" he slurred before he got into the car, and the vehicle disappeared down the street.

James decided to walk home. He stumbled along the lonely road, occasionally swaying to one side and correcting himself with an awkward flailing motion. His shoulders slouched, and his movements lacked the usual precision that marked his military background.

James didn't know how long it took him before he was standing on his front porch and fumbling with the house keys. Everything around seemed to spin. After a couple of tries, he finally located the keyhole, unlocked the door, and entered the house.

James kicked off his shoes and staggered into the dimly lit living room. He slumped onto the familiar cushions, his body heavy with intoxication. "Need to know the truth," he mumbled, turning to hug a pillow, and dozed off.

The sunlight streaming in through the front windows and the faint murmur of voices awoke him the following morning. He sat up, clutching his throbbing head. A sharp pain shot through his temple at the loud voices.

As James turned to look behind, he saw the kids and Lily in the kitchen. They were wrapping up breakfast. "How long was I lying on the couch out cold?" he wondered.

"Bye, Dad! See ya!" Tommy waved a bye as he left. Then Lily appeared in the living room with Harry and Jason. James could sense she was still upset about their argument.

"Hey, Lily…I was, uh, thinking I'll collect the kids from school today," James said.

Lily, puzzled by the unusual request, looked at him sharply. "And why is that? You've been home for weeks now, but you never bothered to pick up the kids from school!"

"I'm taking Harry for a DNA test after school," James said grimly.

Lily stared at him in disbelief. "What? Why on your earth would you do that?"

"I need to know the truth, Lily," he said sternly. "I need to know if—" James didn't continue, noticing his children were staring at them in a perplexed manner.

Lily, her frustration escalating, took a deep breath before responding. "The truth? After all these years? Fine, James! Do whatever the hell you want!"

Lily left to drop the kids off at their bus stop. When she returned, she was fuming in rage.

James was sitting on the couch, his face buried in his palms. He looked up as she slammed the living room door shut behind her.

"You really think that test is necessary, James? After everything we've been through?" she asked angrily. "Why can't you just trust me? Dominic and I had nothing! I have only loved you, but now I think that marrying you and having children with a man like you was the biggest mistake I've made in my life!"

"See, now you're showing your true colors!" James retorted. "I need to be sure, Lily! And I will take that goddamn test with Harry!"

"Then hear me out, James!" Lily stepped forward and glared at him. "You've got two choices: Either you get rid of your crappy, jealous thoughts and trust me, or you might not have a home to return to. I'm done with your constant accusations!"

The house they lived in belonged to Lily. She had inherited it from her parents. Lily warned James that she would kick him out if he went ahead with the test, but James was adamant. He didn't utter a word and just got up and left. Later that afternoon, he picked up Harry from school. He let Jason take the bus.

James and Harry underwent the paternity DNA test at the hospital, and James was told he would get the results in two to three business days.

After the test, James arrived home with Harry, who had been quiet the entire time, mostly because he knew why his dad had taken him for a DNA test.

From the frequent arguments between his parents, since James returned home, Harry knew what his dad thought of him. James was so cold to him all the time, after all. So Harry, though he was only 12, knew James didn't love him like Tommy and Jason because James didn't consider him as his son.

***

James opened the house door and had just stepped into the hallway when his gaze met Lily's. She was home before him and enraged.

"Get the hell out!" She approached the front door and flung it open. "You are no longer welcome in this house, James! I hope you get the answers you need. Jason told me everything about how you took Harry from school. Harry, go to your room!"

"I needed to know, Lily!" James said defensively as Harry left.

"And what now? What do you expect to change?"

"The truth changes everything!" James replied sternly. "I had to do it! Why are you against it if you're not lying and have been trustworthy?"

Tears welled up in Lily's eyes. "OUT, James!" she demanded angrily. "Just get out, and don't you dare return here!"

James stormed out of the house and heard Lily slam the door shut after him.

He called Simon and told him he was coming to his house.

That night, the two friends drank again. Since Simon's wife and children were visiting his in-laws, Simon had the whole house to himself.

"Y-you have been through a lot, man!" Simon slurred. "You go-gotta slow down on drinking!"

"How does it matter anymore, huh? Everything's falling apart," James said disheartedly, pouring more alcohol into his glass. His throat burned with discomfort as he chugged the entire glass. Another bottle was over.

"T-Talk to Lily, m-man!" Simon said, waving his hands. He was already extremely drunk. "Com-munication! Is the key!" he slurred.

"I've tried, mate. She won't listen. Thinks I'm some paranoid fool!"

As the night wore on, Simon and James drank to their heart's content. Soon, Simon was out cold on the living room couch, and James drank alone throughout the night.

His head spun, and he couldn't even stand on his two feet. He collapsed onto the floor when he tried to stand, his head heavy and thoughts racing to Lily.

James couldn't help but think about her even when he was heavily drunk. The only difference was that this time, he felt guilty about what he had done. It was probably the alcohol that made him think emotionally.

James regretted yelling at her as her smiling face flashed before his eyes. He recalled how pretty she had looked on their wedding day, how he had held her in his arms, and how they had kissed passionately. How did everything go wrong?

James wiped the tear that had almost escaped his eye. He loved Lily so much. She was his whole world until…Dominic came into the picture.

James had been loyal to her and had never looked at any other woman his entire life. But when he was in Afghanistan and got the news about her pregnancy via a letter, he was not happy.

He was not happy because Lily had mentioned Dominic in the letter. Those letters were something personal to them. But she had mostly written about how Dominic had been the best person to her when she fell pregnant. James didn't like it at all.

He feared something had gone wrong, and he was skeptical that Harry was not his blood. But his duty in the Army back then barely gave him the time to spend a lot of days with his family. So whenever he was home, he tried to make the most of it. And when Jason was born, he had sort of moved on.

But when he returned from the military as a veteran and noticed how Harry's and Dominic's interests aligned and how Dominic wanted to know everything about their family, James couldn't help but doubt Lily. He felt terrible about it. It hurt him so much. But he had to be sure, so he took the paternity test with Harry.

Feeling a pang of guilt and remorse, James decided it wasn't too late for him to make up with his wife.

"Sh-she can hate me!" he slurred, taking the support of a nearby table to stand. "But…I-I will make it up to h-her!"

James staggered out of Simon's house. It was early morning.

Some joggers along the way cringed at him and held their noses in disgust. He reeked of alcohol. But a drunk James didn't care. He was only thinking about making peace with his wife. His body swayed, his footsteps unsteady on the path as he walked back home.

At one point, he almost lost his balance and fell on the road, but a man helped him. "Oh, man! Somebody reeks of garage meat!" The man shrunk his nose in disgust. "Can I drop you off somewhere? You're too drunk to walk alone."

"N-no! I-I will ma-manage!" James yanked away the man's hand and continued on his way home. When he reached the neighborhood park, he paused for a while to catch his breath. But he was so tired that he passed out.

When he awoke about 30 minutes later, his head was pounding. The world seemed to spin as he got to his feet. He trudged to a florist in their neighborhood.

"Two-I mean, uh, one bouquet of white roses, please," he told the florist. "For, uh, my wife!" He smiled sillily under the influence of alcohol.

As he left the store with the flowers, James sniffed his clothes because the florist was making strange faces while he stood too close to her.

James held his own nose in disgust, realizing he was stinking. But he quickly dismissed it. All that mattered now was asking Lily for forgiveness. So he continued on his way to a grocery store, where he bought Lily's favorite chocolates.

He was a little tipsy but other than that, he was fine.

However, as he arrived home, the sight in the front yard sent shivers down his neck.

James felt as if all his hopes and dreams were shattered.

James saw his boys and Dominic playing in the front yard while Lily sat on the porch, watching them and sipping her lemon tea. She was looking at them with so much love in her eyes.

It was as if Dominic was the kids' father and James was some outsider.

James couldn't take it. A strange fury gripped him. He couldn't stand his nerdy neighbor trying to take the spot that was his!

James lost his cool and burst into the house's compound. He angrily tossed the flowers and chocolates away, racing toward Dominic like an angry bull.

"James, stop! What are you doing?" Lily yelled as she spotted him. But James wasn't listening to anything, anyone. It was as if he was in a vacuum where the world around him was silent. He pinned Dominic to the ground and began trashing the guy.

"What are you doing at my home, huh? Did you really think you could ruin my family?" James landed a strong punch on Dominic's face, causing blood to ooze out the man's nose and mouth.

Dominic had a skinny frame, so he was no match for James, who was a retired military man. And James's kids didn't dare to intervene because they had never seen their father so angry. They were terrified, to say the least.

"You were waiting for me to leave so you could take my place, uh-huh?" James sneered as he continued to hit Dominic.

It was as if James had entered a dark world he wouldn't escape until he had thrashed Dominic to his heart's content.

Lily saw the situation getting out of hand and called the cops.

"Hello? Please, please hurry up!" she cried to the 911 operator. "My husband's going to kill my neighbor!"

"Ma'am, please relax; we are dispatching a unit immediately. Are you safe?" the dispatcher asked.

"Yes, I'm safe! It's about my neighbor! If we don't get help soon, my husband will beat my neighbor to death!"

Within minutes, the sounds of police sirens filled the air. A bunch of officers swarmed toward James and pulled him away from Dominic. Dominic, who was unconscious, was rushed to the hospital.

"Mr. Miller, we are arresting you on the charge of assaulting your neighbor," a cop informed James while he was cuffed. Soon, he was taken to the station, but neither his children nor his wife were worried about him. Instead, they seemed glad.

As James sat in the cold, dimly lit prison cell that day, the influence of alcohol slowly began to wear off, and the initial warmth and bravado from the alcohol started to give way to the harsh reality of his surroundings.

He started to feel the coldness of the floor beneath him. As the day progressed and night arrived, the realization of what he had done dawned on him. The withdrawal symptoms of alcohol kicked in at some point, and he threw up inside the prison.

What have I done? Oh God, This is a mess… he thought, his head buried in his hands while he sat in one corner of the cell.

James didn't know how long he would have to stay in prison. Nobody had come to bail him out, and the entire day had passed.

As James lay on the cold floor, he shrunk his body like a child sleeping in the cold. He kept his palms together and under his head, making a temporary pillow.

With his mind filled with thoughts of what had occurred that morning, James dozed off.

The next morning, the loud clunk of the cell gate opening startled him awake. He sat up, rubbing his eyes.

"Come with us; you have a visitor," an officer informed him.

James wondered who it could be. Was it Simon?

James was escorted to a small, partitioned area where he was handed an envelope. However, there was no one to meet him.

"Where's the lady who brought the envelope?" James heard whispers about a woman as he studied the envelope in his hands.

The DNA test results were out. He guessed it must've been Lily who had dropped the envelope off for him. He had given his home address at the hospital.

James' hands shook as he tore open the flap. His heart was racing in his chest as he read the reports. Soon, he closed his eyes, tears streaming down his cheeks.

The words "Paternity result: 99.9%" in the test reports had stared back at him. It was proved that Harry was his biological son. A wave of relief washed over him.

Sometimes, kids looked different from their parents and had different interests.

James now realized he shouldn't have doubted Lily. As his mind raced to how he had treated Lily all this while, he felt like he had been the most pathetic husband in the world. She was truthful and loyal all this while, but he kept questioning her character.

James beckoned to an officer near the door. "Officer, can I please make a call?"

After getting permission from the officer, James dialed Simon.

"What? You're in jail?" Simon gasped on the call.

"I'll tell you everything, but before that, please help me get out of here," James pleaded with his friend. "I need to be home, Simon. Please."

Within the next hour, Simon was posting bail for James.

When James was finally released, he immediately went home, ready to fall to his knees if that was what he needed to do to earn Lily's apology.

He raced up the front porch steps as he arrived at her house and knocked on the door.

"Lily, open the door! It's me! I'm sorry!" he cried.

It took a few moments before the door flung open, but before James could step inside, Lily shoved two huge boxes in his arms. Next, she pushed a suitcase out onto the porch.

"What-what is happening?" he asked, perplexed.

Lily slammed an envelope atop the boxes and said in tears, "Goodbye forever, James! I'm divorcing you. It's over between us!"

Her cold gaze was the last thing James saw before the door was slammed shut in his face. He did get the DNA test done but paid a heavy price for it — he lost his family forever.

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