The Other Woman

There's a common theme to the stories on this account: The Other Woman. I'm ashamed to say I feel as though I've earnt that derogation.

It started when he moved into the spare room in our flat share. His cousin was my best mate and also my other flat mate, so when she moved out of London to avoid Covid it was just the two of us. The connection was immediate.

I knew he had been seeing someone else much younger than him (she was 21, he is now 30) but he had always downplayed it. We grew so close and so in love that I chose to ignore it. In the back of my mind there was always the fear that when lockdown was lifted, he could see her again.

The months go on, our whole lives and friendship groups fuse together and we’re now a couple. Then one drunken night he tells me that she had technically been his girlfriend. They had made it official the week before lockdown, which was also the week before he met me. He then gradually began to ghost her, ignoring her messages while she was probably putting together the pieces about us from our social media.

It’s an awful thing to do to anyone. It’s particularly cruel to do it someone so young and who had never been in a relationship before. I often find myself wanting to reach out to her and explain ourselves... I'm not sure why. I don't know if it's my guilt or just pure intrigue to know what she's like. Either way I know it would be inappropriate. I’ve been in her position before and it’s horrible. I can see myself through her eyes and it’s ugly.

But I can't apologise for how happy we are together.