Our breakup was a long time coming. We were the thickest of friends, discussing everything under the sun. Our love for coffee never wavered, neither did our collective hatred for vegetables. We debated on the state of our country and the plotlines of our favourite TV shows, forever recommending each other books to read and plays to watch and geeking out on discovering something great collectively.
We were like missing pieces of a puzzle. His nonchalant sarcasm complementing my naivety, his hugs were the coziest blanket enveloping my pile of insecurities, making me feel at peace again. Our breakup was a long time coming. We were in a long distance relationship, completely besotted with each other whenever we managed to meet, at best it was only a couple of days twice a year.
The interim period was spent longing for each other’s presence and just whining on the video chat – we can do better, can’t we? What with me slogging at an ill-paying first job and you in your final years of law school. Is this what adulting looks like?
Our breakup was a long time coming.
And one day on phone, I snapped. This isn’t working out.
Just one more year, he pleaded.
After two years of longing and missing and having the constant dread that maybe I didn’t know him at all, I gave into my fears and went off the grid.
This was a couple of years ago. In that period, I heard that the breakup had just completely caught him off guard and he had to see a therapist and go on antidepressants. I was so overcome with guilt that I tried writing him mails, messaging him – for good reason he had blocked me on every possible platform. I had accepted that we would never be on friendly terms again.
Until this one night, out of the blue, I got a message from him on Facebook.
‘Hey, how are you?’
‘Umm, hi. You’re messaging me?’
He had deleted me from his friends list on Facebook, so obviously this was not by mistake and was a premeditated thing.
‘Yeah, I have learned to not hold on to grudges.’
‘Oh,’ was all I could manage.
‘So, how are you again?’
And just like that, from lovers to being strangers and then again being friends again – we were back in touch. He lives abroad now and I don’t know when I’ll see him next, but I am just grateful to have one of my closest friends back in my life.
Images: Shutterstock
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