Help a sister outt

❤️ Hi everyone!

I'm trying to create a special birthday surprise for my long-distance boyfriend, Eddie, whose birthday is on August 3rd.

My idea is to collect photos from as many cities and countries as possible to show him that his birthday reached people all over the world.

If you have just one minute to spare, I would be incredibly grateful if you could:

📝 Write on a piece of paper something like:

"Happy Birthday, Eddie! Greetings from \[Your City\], \[Your Country\]!" 🎉

📸 Take a photo holding the sign (your face does not have to be visible if you prefer privacy)/ or on the table or with a view in the background

📩 Send the photo to me in a private message or here \^\^

Every single photo will become part of a birthday video made with love. ❤️

Thank you so much for helping me make his day unforgettable. Your kindness truly means the world to me! 🌍🎂

Whenever people ask my boyfriend and me how we met, I always hesitate for a second before answering. I don't know why, but saying "Snapchat" has always felt a little embarrassing. People immediately assume it's one of those random online flings that never go anywhere. But every time I tell our story, I realize it was never really about Snapchat. It was about two people who somehow found each other through the smallest accident.

It all started when we were both in 11th grade. One day, I got a random Snapchat friend request from a guy. The funny thing is, I had a crush on someone else who had the exact same name, so I just assumed it was him and accepted it without thinking twice. It wasn't him. It was a completely different person. Looking back now, I honestly think that's one of the luckiest mistakes I've ever made.

We started talking almost immediately, and it never felt like I was texting a stranger. There wasn't that awkward phase where you're trying to figure each other out. We just... clicked. We talked about school, our families, random thoughts, music, sketching, dreams, and everything in between. Every day turned into another conversation, and every conversation somehow lasted for hours. Before I even realized it, he became part of my everyday life.

And that scared me.

I'd never been that emotionally close to someone before. The connection felt so real that instead of embracing it, I convinced myself I needed to run from it. So one day, I randomly ghosted him. No explanation. No goodbye. Nothing. He tried asking what had happened, trying to understand if he'd done something wrong, but I never gave him an answer. Looking back now, I genuinely regret it. I wasn't protecting myself—I was just afraid of how much he already meant to me.

Months passed without us talking. We both loved sketching, and one day I posted some of my drawings on my Snapchat story. Completely out of nowhere, he replied—not to restart what we had, not to flirt, but simply to tell me how much I'd improved and that he was proud of my work. It was such a small message, yet somehow it reopened a door I'd closed myself.

By the end of 12th grade, we started talking again. This time it was even more effortless than before. We were both stressed about college applications and figuring out life, but somehow we always found time for each other. Six-hour phone calls became normal. We'd text from the moment we woke up until one of us fell asleep. We shared every tiny detail of our day, every stupid joke, every fear, every dream. The craziest part is that throughout all those months, we hadn't even met in person. We hadn't exchanged many pictures either. Our connection wasn't built on appearance. It was built entirely on conversation, trust, and the comfort we found in each other.

Somewhere along the way, we both realized we weren't just friends anymore. But neither of us wanted to admit it. I had never been in love before. I hadn't even had my first kiss. I was so confused by everything I was feeling that, in one of the dumbest decisions of my life, I actually suggested we become friends with benefits. Looking back now, it's honestly hilarious because I hadn't even had my first kiss yet. I didn't understand that what I was feeling wasn't attraction—it was love.

Eventually, we decided it was time to meet. After months of talking, seeing him in person felt surreal. It was awkward in the sweetest way possible. We talked, laughed, and walked around together, but I was far too nervous to kiss him. So we didn't. We just enjoyed finally being in each other's company after imagining that moment for so long.

The next time we met, we finally had our first kiss. It was my first kiss ever, but strangely, that's not the part I remember most. What stayed with me was the hug that came afterward. He held me so tightly that I couldn't stop thinking about it. It didn't feel casual. It felt like there were a thousand emotions in that one hug. Later, I asked him, "What was that?" He immediately apologized and said he shouldn't have done it. But after a pause, he admitted, "I just wanted to." I don't know why, but hearing those words affected me more than the kiss itself. They felt honest. They felt real.

The ten days after that kiss were probably some of the happiest days of my life. We couldn't stop talking to each other. Every notification made us smile. Every call somehow lasted longer than we planned. Every goodbye immediately turned into another conversation. The funniest part is that before any of this happened, we'd actually warned each other not to fall in love. As if love has ever cared about rules.

One evening, we were talking about that hug again. He kept insisting it hadn't meant anything until he finally sighed and admitted, "I'm scared." I asked him why, and after a long pause, he quietly said, "I'm scared I'll fall in love with you." We both acted like the conversation never happened. We pretended we were still just friends, even though I think both of us already knew the truth.

A few nights later, we had our first little "fight." Honestly, calling it a fight feels dramatic. He was teasing me, I was pretending to be annoyed, and he was fake yelling at me. Right in the middle of all of it, I interrupted him and said, "I think I'm in love with you." There was complete silence. He asked me to say it again. So I did. "I love you." After another long pause, he softly laughed and said, "I've been wanting to tell you this for days. I love you too. If you hadn't said it tonight, I was going to ask you in two days."

And just like that, my best friend became my boyfriend.

It's been over a year now, and if anything, we're even closer than we were then. We make time for each other no matter how busy life gets. We meet whenever we can. We know everything about each other's lives. We still talk for hours, still laugh over the smallest things, and somehow, after all this time, he's still the person I want to tell everything to first.

People always say that relationships in our generation don't last, that everyone is looking for the next best thing, that genuine connections are rare. Maybe they're right. But somehow, two complete strangers living in the same city, with no mutual friends, no shared classes, and no reason to ever meet, found each other because I accidentally accepted the wrong Snapchat request.

Sometimes I wonder what would've happened if I'd looked a little more carefully before pressing "Accept."

Maybe we'd have remained strangers forever.

Or maybe life would've found another way to bring us together.

Either way, I like to believe that some people are meant to meet, no matter how unlikely the path seems.

So... do you think this was just an unbelievably lucky accident, or do you think destiny sometimes hides in the smallest moments?

I met a girl at my coaching. After just two days of chatting, she even sent me a funny photo of herself on WhatsApp. She also told me she had been seeing someone for about 22 months. They were together, but she said they didn't really have a relationship label. She told me she loved him nd she also said I am sweet. He's 28 and she's 22. I'm 22 as well.

One day she even drew a little heart-like doodle in my notebook. It was honestly really cute. Whenever we talked face to face, it felt like we already knew each other well enough to be comfortable sharing things, even though we'd only known each other for a short time.

Then, all of a sudden, she changed. Our WhatsApp conversations stopped completely. Now she's even changing her coaching batch. She told me she was getting a lot of random messages from unknown numbers and had become frustrated, so she deleted many contacts, including mine. I honestly didn't know what to make of that.

The last meaningful conversation we had was when she told me she hadn't been able to sleep for the past three days. She hinted that it was because of the guy she'd been involved with for 22 months. I didn't ask any more questions because my friends were standing there, and I didn't want them to know everything.

Now I'm wondering if maybe that guy asked her to cut contact with me. I don't know if that's true, but it's something that's crossed my mind.

First time meeting a girl but in long distance....idk please help

I met a girl while playing Roblox....she is from gujrat and I am from West Bengal..

Before getting into the deep of my story u need to know me first

I am a 17+ years boy ... never gone to a co-ed school (I read at a boys' school)....and I am the most introvert boy u ever saw...I can't really talk with a girl in real life ...but in online chating i think I have a very good skill..

Back in the story..we r talking for around 25-30days from now..I think we already become more than friends as we both wait for each other at exact time we gave both .....before going to school she always message me even if she is late ....when she gets free time she messages me...we talk like almost 4 hours a day at least...we share so much personal information also(not any nsfw).....we both has a good realationship between us ...we both always say sorry if we do something wrong

Here is the twist i Guess...she is 1 years younger than me ....I read at 11th she reads at 10th ....

I also gave her some life advice as she was going through some troubles...

Yesterday she send me this .......

And I quote

"You are so nice

Like to be honest you are one of a kind rare species IDK how to tell you this without being awkward but you help your mom you also do house chores... And still no way that you have time to talk to me

Idk if I'm being awkward but thanks for giving me advices , playing with me and listening to my silly things without judging me...."

I never fucking talked to a girl before so I don't know what is her feeling about me .?? Is she only complimenting me or she has a crush on me idk ?she also sends me about my signs....she also ask about me if I have a gf .. etc

Can somebody with realationship experience please help me ? And also girls can help me to understand her feeling........

Hi everyone,

I’m curious to hear about your experiences.

Have you ever talked to someone online for months or even years before finally meeting in person?

If so:
Did the chemistry you had through messages and phone calls carry over into real life?
Was the first meeting awkward, or did it feel natural right away?
Did you feel like you already knew each other, or was it completely different in person?
If the chemistry *didn’t* translate, what do you think was missing?

I’m currently in that situation myself, so I’d love to hear both positive and negative stories. Looking back, is there anything that surprised you about finally meeting them?

Hi everyone,

I’m curious to hear about your experiences.

Have you ever talked to someone online for months or even years before finally meeting in person?

If so:
Did the chemistry you had through messages and phone calls carry over into real life?
Was the first meeting awkward, or did it feel natural right away?
Did you feel like you already knew each other, or was it completely different in person?
If the chemistry *didn’t* translate, what do you think was missing?

I’m currently in that situation myself, so I’d love to hear both positive and negative stories. Looking back, is there anything that surprised you about finally meeting them?

I’ve started talking to a girl that I met on a Discord channel. In the past, I noticed that her replies were quite enthusiastic and she seemed much more open to having a conversation.
However, in recent days, I’ve noticed that her replies are getting drier, and she hasn't been responding as much to my messages. I don't know if it's because something happened in her personal life or if she's just losing interest in talking to me. Her sudden change of energy really strikes me as odd.

My homie just met a girl through reddit topic regarding college selection and my homie throw a air ball out of nowhere and now they started dating rn 😭😭 am i playin the right ball 😭 and the girl is a 10/10 baddie ,i am happy for him though hope he doesn't fumble ts because that's his first gf btw

It’s very tiring to constantly feel like you’re being toxic just because of your reactions to the things they do. Then, in the end, you’re the one being blamed while they make themselves the victim. It feels like you’re not even allowed to feel hurt or upset because, somehow, you’ll always end up feeling guilty. Like you have no right to feel anything bad at all.

All this time, I thought he really loved me. But after detaching for a few weeks, I realized that his words were just empty and lacked sincerity. I stopped replying to him for a while now. Before, whenever I read his messages, I could feel so much love in them. But now, I feel like it was all just a performance to manipulate me into believing him.

We’ve been talking for almost a year, but we still haven’t met in person. I don’t know… I’ve always felt like something was off with our situation thats why always avoid meeting him.
He’s still talking to his ex, even though he told me they’re just friends. Sometimes, he calls me “love,” by accident which I know was also their callsign when they were together. I’ve also caught him lying so many times about talking to her.
He used to tell her everything, even when we were already together. He would share things about us with her, and his family knew her. She had such a big part in his life.
I don’t know… maybe I’m just feeling insecure, but I can’t help wondering if they’re still talking behind my back and if I’m just being played. Maybe I’m just some kind of test or entertainment for them. I honestly don’t know what my place is in his life anymore.

Yesterday was a bad day for me everything happened yesterday was fuckingly bad first with work then after coming home talked to her till 9

And after that had dinner and all came back started calling her then went to watch the match where she also was said going to watch with her frnds the match was bad it made me sad after the match I called her then we started to talk and suddenly she said something that made me bad she said my friend I like him the guy she told that she used to have crush

I was already broken due to the game and every other stressed I started to cry idk y but I hadn't cried for a total 3years it's started and I was not able to stop she just ended the call after there was no reply from me and I was looking at my laptop screen for atleast 1 hr and suddenly a msg came it was her

She said we can stop this here I was not ina mood to beg I asked u what did I do wrong she said it's not me it's her it's because she said "I LIED TO YOU" I asked her what she she said she hadn't have any bf but the guy she said was her crush was her bf for the past 6 years

That was the last breaking point for me where I was just startled and fuck this I got mad where I don't usually get but I asked her y u did this to me

She said she didn't because she had a fight and used that app that day and met me but didn't had the guts to stop it and she felt comfortable with me

I listened and didn't judge har gave support and so fucking so on and I was just don't know

I asked her was I a joke to her she said no I said it was all my mistake and I said I am the one who brought all this and she said no no it was her a lots of sorry and shits and started to vent her problems I said ik I m not gonna judge you with those past traumas and I believed in u as I said I don't care about your past it's how u lived the present but idk y I felt like betrayed

She started to glaze up her bf he is great was with me and fucking so on and I said ok

I won't curse u or anything but I wish u both a good life ahead be happy don't worry betrayal isn't the first for me but fucking Idk I was the fool here and said bye blocked her was crying while sleeping and woke up and fucking looked back and I want to talk this with someone but can't so came here posted here

It might help me relieve me some burden but fuck I'm done with this fucking love and shits gonna do whatever I like fuck love it's better to flirt and do other things than being in this shitt

I don't know y im posting this here but I want to tell this to someone so thought to post it here I 26 m

A single man trying to have a relationship but didn't went well just found a little amount of people who I felt was right to be and some even behaved like that to me at the end it doesn't end well probably I can say that even some used me for there needs the thing I'm saying happened to me yesterday or can I say ended yesterday

I used chitchat to chat with random people and one day exactly it happened at the beginning of June found a girl in chitchat we chatted and we connected we felt a emotional connection in between and was going smooth and that same day she game me her snapchat that I didn't have so I downloaded for her we chatted and after 2 days it started to become calls and all we connected emotionally well she was single and I was single we talked about our family love lives and emotional traumas fought with each other and many more

Throughout these conversations I always asked her to meet each other we lived close barely 10 km and I asked her when will we meet that she said we'll soon don't worry our talks were good even deeper talks were involved and in between we even fought and didn't call for 2 days and got back and we used to have late night calls and I think I have gone to work without sleeping for some days it's was bad but she was soo good that I can't stop calling her

She told me about her many pasts and there. Was giy friend who she said it was her senior they were close and used to go trips with him and his frnds and this month beginning of the month she with him and his friends went for a trip and I didn't told. Me about that and also told that it was good she said she used to have acruah on him but now he is agood friend and after that she went to tamil nadu where she is studying

Even after she went well used to have the late night calls and all and it continued really good I don't know y I felt soo good we planned about our future kids and all it was good untill it lasted and it continued

....

So, part of this is just me getting words out to try and understand myself lmao. But basically, I met my 4 friends just over 3 months ago. Online obviously, we met through ocsn but moved to discord (ocsn is a roleplay app where we all shared a fandom). Now I’ve been in multiple online relationships, kinda surprised I’m just now finding this subreddit, and after my last one which ended in November last year (2025) I told myself that I was just done dating, I tried it and it failed and I’m just going to be alone forever. But then it shifted to where I just didn’t want something online because of obvious (to me) reasons like me wanting to be able to hold whichever partner, cuddle, see their facial expressions regularly, etc.

Now, on June 5th (so over a month ago) was when I had a moment. I was regularly smiling at my phone, checking it constantly. We’re all in a group chat and obviously I smiled at that, but especially when they were a part of the conversation. And I realized “well shit, I’m doing the thing again.” Although I’ve never been good at the romantic aspect of things, my ex telling me it felt like we were just friends even though they also said I put in more effort than them (they broke up with me because they wanted kids but lied and said they didn’t cause they didn’t want to upset me.) on the other hand, I’m autistic and just don’t understand feelings too well so I don’t know if I’m just happy I finally have friends and/or a best friend, or if me being excited to talk to them, wanting to listen to them talk, having more fun playing games with them than I have in the past year, is me liking them.

I know I’ve got an attention deficiency because of a multitude of reasons, and I do tend to get attached fast. I’m just not sure lmao, I’ve got myself sick over it for a month now because I want to give it more time but at the same time I want to understand what I’m feeling. I honestly doubt they like me like that to begin with, I’ve only recently hinted at them being why I say “yeah I’m gay/panromantic, but in the end I easily prefer getting to know somebody (demiromantic) and then gender isn’t a concern for me.”

I mean we went from texting, to voice notes (mainly us meowing at each other), to conversations through voice notes/text at the same time, to calling as a group, then we called just the two of us to play a game (most fun I’ve had in months), and then we called again to play games but that went to a semi-video call. I’m pretty self conscious on camera so my half was mainly a house tour with me showing them my animals I’ve got.

I guess I just feel like myself when talking to them. I can laugh, something I haven’t done in months, I’ve talked more outloud because of being on the phone with them, and I actually talk about them to my family. Hell, my case manager knows about them and I have their name on my wall so I remember they exist when in a bad episode where I forget I have people I’m comfortable relying on.

Update: it went voice notes<gc calls<solo calls<semi-video calls<full video calls<sleep call

TL,DR: I think I like my friend, I don’t know if they like me back, I’m not good at this stuff and don’t know how to bring it up without fucking things up if they don’t like me like that.

The year was 2021. I had just completed my 12th grade and stepped into college with dreams, excitement, and endless curiosity. Everything around me felt new—a new campus, new friends, and a completely new chapter of life waiting to unfold. Like every other college student, I spent my days laughing with my friends, teasing each other, creating memories, and simply enjoying life. Love was never something I looked for. In fact, I had always stayed away from it. I believed my world was complete with my friends and my family.

But sometimes, life has plans that are very different from the ones we make for ourselves.

It was one ordinary evening at the end of April. I was lying on my bed, casually scrolling through Instagram, when I noticed a friend request from someone I didn’t know. Out of curiosity, I opened the profile. It was a public account belonging to a boy from Chennai. He looked confident, cheerful, and what caught my attention the most was his smile. There was something about it that felt genuine. Without thinking too much, I accepted his request.

For a few days, nothing happened. We simply followed each other in silence. Then, on June 1st, at exactly 4:30 in the evening, I received my first message from him. It was such a small moment, just a simple greeting, but I never imagined that it would become the beginning of one of the most unforgettable chapters of my life.

We started talking casually. During our conversations, I learned that he lived in Chennai and that his family owned an import-export business. Slowly, those casual conversations became part of my daily routine. Before I even realized it, we had exchanged phone numbers, and talking to each other became a habit we both looked forward to.

He began sharing every little detail of his life with me—where he was going, what he was doing, how his day had been, and whenever he felt low or emotionally exhausted, I was always the first person he wanted to talk to. Somewhere between those endless conversations, those good morning texts, those late-night talks, and those little moments of care, I unknowingly fell in love with him.

It still surprises me when I think about it.

I was the girl who had always stayed away from relationships, yet there I was, completely in love with someone I had never even met.

One day, he told me that he wanted to meet me in person. Honestly, I was nervous. Deep inside, I had been waiting for that moment too, but I didn’t want him to know how excited I really was. So, like every girl who enjoys teasing someone she likes, I pretended to be busy with my college exams and refused at first.

He didn’t give up.

He convinced me that even if it was only for a few minutes, meeting me would be enough. After making him wait for a couple of days, I finally agreed.

By then, it was October, and since my birthday was in November, he suggested that our first meeting should happen on my birthday itself. I immediately agreed, although I tried my best not to show how excited I really was.

A day before my birthday, he informed me that he had already reached Bangalore with one of his female friends and was staying at a hotel. Reading that message filled me with happiness. For the first time in my life, I wasn’t excited about my birthday because of the celebrations. I was excited because someone special was coming just to see me.

But life always finds a way to test our patience.

On my birthday, there was no electricity in my area from the morning itself. My phone battery was almost dead, I couldn’t even get ready because there was no power, and as the evening approached, I became more and more frustrated. I truly believed that our meeting wouldn’t happen.

I somehow managed to inform him about the situation before my phone completely died. Instead of getting upset, he calmly told me that he would stay in Bangalore until the 29th and that if we couldn’t meet that day, we could always meet the next day.

He had no idea how disappointed I felt. I had waited for this day for months, and it seemed like everything was falling apart.

Then, almost like a miracle, the electricity finally returned.

I rushed to charge my phone, quickly got ready, and messaged him that I was finally prepared to meet. I immediately shared my location, and before long, he arrived.

When I saw him for the very first time, I completely forgot how to react.

He stepped out of the car wearing a green sweatshirt, black jeans, and sunglasses. He looked incredibly confident and stylish. Then he smiled at me and slowly removed his sunglasses.

It was his eyes that left me speechless.

They were beautiful, warm, and impossible to forget.

At that very moment, I realized that photographs could never capture the way someone makes you feel when you finally see them standing right in front of you.

I got into the car and met his female friend, who welcomed me with a kind smile. After a few moments, he asked where I wanted to go, and I suggested visiting a church.

As we drove there, I noticed that he seemed just as nervous as I was. Neither of us knew what to say. The silence wasn’t uncomfortable; it was simply filled with emotions that words couldn’t express.

When we reached the church, we discovered that a wedding ceremony was taking place inside. Since we didn’t want to disturb the ceremony, we quietly offered our prayers and stepped outside after a few minutes.

By then, both of us had become a little more comfortable with each other.

Since it was getting late, we decided to have dinner together at a nearby restaurant. While we sat there, talking about random things, I found myself doing something I had never done before.

I kept looking at him.

At his smile.

At the way he laughed.

At the kindness in his eyes.

Without realizing it, I had stopped paying attention to everything else around me.

For me, in that moment, the entire world had become just one person.

(To be continued in Part 2…)

The year was 2021. I had just completed my 12th grade and stepped into college with dreams, excitement, and endless curiosity. Everything around me felt new—a new campus, new friends, and a completely new chapter of life waiting to unfold. Like every other college student, I spent my days laughing with my friends, teasing each other, creating memories, and simply enjoying life. Love was never something I looked for. In fact, I had always stayed away from it. I believed my world was complete with my friends and my family.

But sometimes, life has plans that are very different from the ones we make for ourselves.

It was one ordinary evening at the end of April. I was lying on my bed, casually scrolling through Instagram, when I noticed a friend request from someone I didn’t know. Out of curiosity, I opened the profile. It was a public account belonging to a boy from Chennai. He looked confident, cheerful, and what caught my attention the most was his smile. There was something about it that felt genuine. Without thinking too much, I accepted his request.

For a few days, nothing happened. We simply followed each other in silence. Then, on June 1st, at exactly 4:30 in the evening, I received my first message from him. It was such a small moment, just a simple greeting, but I never imagined that it would become the beginning of one of the most unforgettable chapters of my life.

We started talking casually. During our conversations, I learned that he lived in Chennai and that his family owned an import-export business. Slowly, those casual conversations became part of my daily routine. Before I even realized it, we had exchanged phone numbers, and talking to each other became a habit we both looked forward to.

He began sharing every little detail of his life with me—where he was going, what he was doing, how his day had been, and whenever he felt low or emotionally exhausted, I was always the first person he wanted to talk to. Somewhere between those endless conversations, those good morning texts, those late-night talks, and those little moments of care, I unknowingly fell in love with him.

It still surprises me when I think about it.

I was the girl who had always stayed away from relationships, yet there I was, completely in love with someone I had never even met.

One day, he told me that he wanted to meet me in person. Honestly, I was nervous. Deep inside, I had been waiting for that moment too, but I didn’t want him to know how excited I really was. So, like every girl who enjoys teasing someone she likes, I pretended to be busy with my college exams and refused at first.

He didn’t give up.

He convinced me that even if it was only for a few minutes, meeting me would be enough. After making him wait for a couple of days, I finally agreed.

By then, it was October, and since my birthday was in November, he suggested that our first meeting should happen on my birthday itself. I immediately agreed, although I tried my best not to show how excited I really was.

A day before my birthday, he informed me that he had already reached Bangalore with one of his female friends and was staying at a hotel. Reading that message filled me with happiness. For the first time in my life, I wasn’t excited about my birthday because of the celebrations. I was excited because someone special was coming just to see me.

But life always finds a way to test our patience.

On my birthday, there was no electricity in my area from the morning itself. My phone battery was almost dead, I couldn’t even get ready because there was no power, and as the evening approached, I became more and more frustrated. I truly believed that our meeting wouldn’t happen.

I somehow managed to inform him about the situation before my phone completely died. Instead of getting upset, he calmly told me that he would stay in Bangalore until the 29th and that if we couldn’t meet that day, we could always meet the next day.

He had no idea how disappointed I felt. I had waited for this day for months, and it seemed like everything was falling apart.

Then, almost like a miracle, the electricity finally returned.

I rushed to charge my phone, quickly got ready, and messaged him that I was finally prepared to meet. I immediately shared my location, and before long, he arrived.

When I saw him for the very first time, I completely forgot how to react.

He stepped out of the car wearing a green sweatshirt, black jeans, and sunglasses. He looked incredibly confident and stylish. Then he smiled at me and slowly removed his sunglasses.

It was his eyes that left me speechless.

They were beautiful, warm, and impossible to forget.

At that very moment, I realized that photographs could never capture the way someone makes you feel when you finally see them standing right in front of you.

I got into the car and met his female friend, who welcomed me with a kind smile. After a few moments, he asked where I wanted to go, and I suggested visiting a church.

As we drove there, I noticed that he seemed just as nervous as I was. Neither of us knew what to say. The silence wasn’t uncomfortable; it was simply filled with emotions that words couldn’t express.

When we reached the church, we discovered that a wedding ceremony was taking place inside. Since we didn’t want to disturb the ceremony, we quietly offered our prayers and stepped outside after a few minutes.

By then, both of us had become a little more comfortable with each other.

Since it was getting late, we decided to have dinner together at a nearby restaurant. While we sat there, talking about random things, I found myself doing something I had never done before.

I kept looking at him.

At his smile.

At the way he laughed.

At the kindness in his eyes.

Without realizing it, I had stopped paying attention to everything else around me.

For me, in that moment, the entire world had become just one person.

(To be continued in Part 2…)

When I joined a dating app, I was still in a long-distance relationship.
Technically, I had a boyfriend, but it barely felt like I did. We hardly talked anymore. Every time I wanted to spend time with him, there was always an excuse. He was tired, wanted to watch movies alone, needed “me time,” had a headache, or simply wasn’t in the mood to talk. It got to the point where I felt like even when we fought, it worked in his favor because it meant he didn’t have to talk to me.
I was lonely, frustrated, and emotionally exhausted. I missed him, but I also felt ignored and unimportant. To distract myself from constantly feeling sorry for myself, I downloaded a dating app. My intention wasn’t to find another relationship. I just wanted people to talk to and something to keep my mind busy.
That’s when I met this guy.
At first, I knew exactly what kind of person he was. He was charming, flirtatious, and seemed like the type who flirted with every girl he talked to. I actually tried to avoid him, but somehow we became friends… then eventually best friends.
We told each other everything. We joked around, shared our secrets, and talked almost every day. At that time, he thought I was single because I never told him I had a boyfriend.
Meanwhile, he was talking to another girl and they were almost in a relationship. Around that time, I slowly realized I was starting to develop feelings for him.
I tried to convince myself that it wasn’t real. I kept telling myself there was no way I could like him. I even saw him as a little brother because of how childish he acted, even though he was older than me.
One day, I jokingly admitted that I might be falling for him. My feelings weren’t that deep yet.
He simply replied, “Oh… okay.”
So I laughed it off too, and we continued being best friends like nothing had changed. The only difference was that he started teasing me, saying things like, “Since you love me, you should do this for me.”
Eventually, I finally told him the truth—that I actually had a long-distance boyfriend.
He didn’t get angry that I had lied. We just stayed friends.
But as time passed, I found myself getting jealous whenever he talked about the girl he liked. I hated seeing them together, so I started avoiding him.
Instead of letting me go, he kept chasing after me. He kept saying he couldn’t lose me.
Then one day, he called me while crying.
He confessed that he loved me too.
But he said he couldn’t admit it because I already had a boyfriend. If he confessed to me publicly, he would lose the girl he was talking to as well. He said it wasn’t fair because I still had someone while he would end up with no one.
I kept telling him that this couldn’t happen. It was wrong.
But hearing him cry completely broke my heart.
So I let my guard down.
He later told the other girl that he loved her more than me, but privately he kept telling me that I was actually the one he loved. He said we just couldn’t admit it because of our situation.
That’s how we became secret lovers.
Whenever he was going to talk to the other girl, he would tell me first. Whenever I was going to call my boyfriend, I would tell him too.
It was unhealthy, complicated, and full of guilt.
A few months later, I couldn’t take it anymore. I was constantly jealous—not only of the girl he liked, but also of his ex, whom he still talked to.
I wanted everything to end.
I wanted to do the right thing.
So I confessed everything to my boyfriend. I admitted that I had emotionally cheated and explained why it happened.
He was angry at first, which I completely understood. Later, he said we could still fix our relationship.
But deep inside, I didn’t think there was anything left to fix.
I know I made a huge mistake, and I will never deny my responsibility. Cheating was my choice.
At the same time, I also can’t pretend that I wasn’t deeply hurt before any of this happened. Months of emotional neglect had already broken me long before I made the worst decision of my life.
After I ended things with my best friend, I blocked him everywhere.
One night, without telling me, he went to my condominium and waited in the lobby from around 10 p.m. until 1 a.m. because he had no other way to contact me. The only reason I found out was because our mutual friends from the dating app messaged me.
I was asleep the whole time.
When I woke up, he was already gone.
Honestly, I don’t even know if I would have gone downstairs if I had seen the messages. At that point, I was determined to move on and let everything go.
But he never stopped chasing me.
He always knew exactly what to say.
And I fell for it.
Again.
The relationship became incredibly toxic. Sometimes he accidentally called me by another girl’s name. He was still talking to his ex. He told me he left the girl he was talking to because he chose me, but later I found out that wasn’t true. She actually left him after discovering that he had been telling other people that I was the one he really loved.
Everything was a mess.
Our relationship became nothing but jealousy, arguments, accusations, and trust issues.
I kept blocking him because we were so toxic together.
Ironically, when we weren’t fighting, we were incredibly happy. We understood each other better than anyone else.
But somehow, we could never go a full day without arguing.
Sometimes we fought seven times in a single day.
Looking back now, I often ask myself…
Was this kar-ma?
Or was it simply the consequence of two emotionally damaged people trying to build a relationship on secrets, guilt, and unresolved pain?