April Fools Prank Goes Horribly Wrong

I'll never forget the April Fools prank that almost changed the course of my life and in the worst imaginable way.

I love a good prank, probably more than the next guy and so does my husband. Except for the time that he didn't. On March 31st, 2010 (I remember the date- that's how traumatic the events to follow were), my husband asked me if I was planning to pull an April Fools prank on him. I said that I wasn't. He asked if I was positive and not lying. I told him I wasn't going to do anything. I was lying.

After what happened next, I learned my lesson about lying- especially when it comes to my husband.

At the time, Jay and I were merely best friends and co-workers who shared cubicles next to each other in the office. That last day of March, I waited for Jay to leave work, and then I got to business- covering every inch of his cubicle in small Post-It notes that I'd drawn smiley faces on. By the time I was done, there were more than 200 Post-It notes covering every inch of Jay's space along with confetti thrown all over for good measure.

I left that night feeling accomplished, and happy because I was sure that Jay would walk into work the next day (April 1st) and laugh when he saw what I did. I couldn't have been more wrong.

When I got to work the next morning, Jay's cubicle was completely clean. Not a Post-It note or piece of confetti in sight. I checked the trash cans and drawers, and there was no shred of evidence that I'd pulled off a prank. Stumped, I searched the office for Jay and when I found him, I chuckled and asked how he liked my prank. Jay didn't chuckle back. With a completely serious look on his face, he said: "I need you to leave and not talk to me."  I thought Jay was pranking me- like he was mad when he wasn't really. Wrong again.

Not only was Jay furious, but he stopped talking to me and blocked me on Facebook. He wouldn't return any of my calls, emails, or text messages. This went on for a little over a week and I was destroyed. I was sure that I'd lost my best friend and I didn't understand why.

I finally cornered Jay and told him that I needed to know what was going on. He explained that he couldn't be best friends with a liar and that's what I was. He told me that it wasn't that I'd pulled a prank on him that made him mad because he likes pranks. It was the fact that I'd told him outright that I wasn't going to do anything and then did. He told me that he hates liars.

I literally felt like my chest was so heavy that at any moment it would fall to the floor, shatter, and that would be the end of my life.

It wasn't until years later that I learned that even though I was "seeing" someone else, Jay had already made up his mind that one day I would be his wife.  When I told him I wasn't going to do something for April Fools and then I did (in a pretty big way, too), it made him angry and second guess if he should continue pursuing me because the last thing he wanted was to eventually find himself in a relationship with a liar.

It's been seven years and I still won't play an April Fools prank on my husband, even though what happened is water under the bridge (clearly, because we're married with a child). Our son, John, is close to the age where we'll be able to start doing fun holiday things with him and when Jay suggested pulling an April Fools prank on John this year (by grilling slices of angel food cake and using colored icing to make a pretend grilled cheese sandwich), I felt my chest tighten and had to take a second to compose myself.

April Fools Day will never be the same for me. Sure, I'll do the typical parent thing and put sugar in the salt container and give my kid gummy fried eggs instead of real ones, but as much as I wish I could say that I've moved on from what happened, I'm afraid that the day will always serve as a reminder of what I almost lost.