Kevin Leaves: His Second Year
What Kevin Wanted
In this second year after leaving his family, Kevin talked about some of the good times he shared with his new partner, but he spent more time trying to understand why there were so many tensions, conficts, and uncertainties. Through all of it, Kevin didn’t want to give up. This choice had cost so much and he did not want to face another failure.
You do not hear my parts of the conversation but I was not preachy or judgemental. I genuinely cared for Kevin and wanted him to continue to learn and grow through this experience.
Episode 3 of Kevin Leaves returns to Kevin’s story after a six-month pause in our conversations. By this point, he’s been away from his family for fifteen months, building a life with the woman who had been his affair partner. When Kevin calls me in November, he’s ready to talk about what these months have really felt like—what’s been encouraging, what’s been painful, and where the cracks are beginning to show.
Kevin reflects on the summer visit with his children, three weeks he had looked forward to with excitement. He tells me what went well and what surprised him, including the emotional distance that lingered beneath the surface. He also talks openly about the tension with his ex-wife, the strain that shows up around holidays, and the difficulty of staying connected as a long-distance father.
The challenges in his new relationship are becoming harder to ignore. Kevin describes a conflict with his partner over the attention he gives his children, and how competing needs and expectations are creating friction that neither anticipated. The emotional weight of his ex-wife beginning a new relationship adds another layer he wasn’t prepared for.
Later in the episode, we move forward to a second call in late February. Much has shifted by then—externally and internally. Some of the hopes Kevin carried into this new life now feel less certain. Some of the realities he thought he could avoid have followed him anyway.
This episode captures the slow, complicated unraveling that often happens after a major life change. The distance, the longing, the conflict, and the unexpected pain—this is what the second year after leaving really felt like for Kevin.
LINKS and EXTRAS
Help for Unfaithful Partners: AffairHealing.com/RENOVATE
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