「故事·听力」My Friendship With Ex Was A Bad Idea
My Friendship With Ex Was A Bad Idea
This is Katie. Have you heard that commonplace truth that your first love is something special and unforgettable? As with everything, there’s a downside to it that no one is usually willing to talk about. Logically, in most cases and sooner or later, your first love becomes your first ex. An ex can also be unforgettable, but for different reasons. And this is where Katie’s story starts.
When she was 14, she fell in love for the first time in her life, and as often happens she was sure that it was forever. Her first boyfriend was 15, his name was Ed and he was the son of her new neighbors. It was love at first sight. She’s not actually a very romantic person herself, so it was a bit of a revelation for her that she can have such strong feelings for someone. Luckily, he liked her as well, and they became a couple very quickly. Their story continued for a couple of years. After such a long period, normally people come to know literally everything about each other and they become closer than family. But one day Ed said he needed to talk with her about their relationship.
Her heart sank. You know, that awkward moment. Ed said that what they had was very nice and all, but for him there was no crazy infatuation anymore, so maybe it was better to move on. She had to agree, after all – it’s not that she would beg him to change his mind. He said that they had had a long, warm romance together, and it was sad to lose each other, so they decided to be best friends. EVERYONE knows that there is NO WAY for two exes to remain friends, but of course, EVERYONE thinks that in their particular case it will be different. Riiight. Well, the decision was taken, life went on, no bad feelings. She actually managed to find a new boyfriend, Tim, very soon after and was very proud of herself.
They both really thought that it was working. Every time she had some misunderstanding or difficulties with her new boyfriend, she called Ed and told him everything down to the smallest detail. He was always ready to listen. For a couple of months of her new relationship, everything was perfect, but then she noticed something strange. First, she felt much more comfortable with Ed than with Tim, who sometimes didn’t understand her, and sometimes just pissed her off. She was in love with him, not with Ed, but it was always Ed she addressed all of her complaints to. Another thing was that Ed was apparently becoming jealous. It was hard not to notice it.
He was always kinda sarcastic when he was speaking about Tim, and at first it was funny but then it started to irritate her. She told Ed that it was not ok, but he said something like “Oh come on, I’m just joking, you know, humor?” Well, she was not comfortable with those kinds of jokes, and said so to Ed straight out. He apologized and she thought it was over. But from that moment on, Ed started behaving in a strange way. It seemed as though he was trying to get her back. He started calling her late at night with long emotional conversations. He was always trying to be around her wherever she went. At some point she started suspecting he was stalking her, and she confronted him directly, informing him that their friendship needed a break. Tim was also getting jealous and it was not good. After all it was Ed who had left her, not the other way around, it was his decision, so just be consistent! Ed seemed offended and disappointed, but didn’t try to justify himself – he just said “ok”.
At first she felt relieved. But as the days passed she started feeling guilty. It wasn’t nice to treat a caring person like that!
Yes, it’s stupid and selfish, there’s no need to point it out. But she didn’t know how to be reasonable at that moment. She felt that she needed to do something. She completely forgot she had her own life and her own boyfriend; she just wanted to reclaim what was HERS! In the evening, she called Ed and told him she had seen him with that girl. He was surprised but said that he did have a new girlfriend, and he was moving on with his life. She was furious! “Don’t you think you should have told me about her? I thought we were friends!” “I thought we made a break. Wait, are you...jealous?!” “Jealous, ME? HAHAHAHA!”
That unnatural laughter gave her away. Of course she was jealous, and he knew it. It turned out that both of them considered each other their property, and they never really ended their romance. Their breakup and their friendship didn’t work, so something drastic had to be done. This time he told her that they needed a definite break for some time, because things were just not working out. She had to agree.
Time proved that he was right. They never became close friends again, and Katie agrees with all those who say that exes can’t be friends. Let bygones be bygones, life goes on!