{"id":142035,"date":"2023-09-23T11:46:59","date_gmt":"2023-09-23T11:46:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/theprojectsworld.com\/?p=142035"},"modified":"2023-09-23T11:46:59","modified_gmt":"2023-09-23T11:46:59","slug":"i-discovered-i-was-the-other-woman-after-6-months-of-dating","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/theprojectsworld.com\/lifestyle\/i-discovered-i-was-the-other-woman-after-6-months-of-dating\/","title":{"rendered":"I discovered I was the other woman after 6 months of dating"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/p>\n

One sunny afternoon\u00a0<\/strong>last\u00a0<\/strong>April, I had the crazy notion to roller-skate to a client meeting.<\/p>\n

My starting line was Primrose Hill, and as I kneeled to tighten my laces, a guy staring at the park map struck up conversation.<\/p>\n

\u2018Wow, you\u2019re skating?\u2019 he said. I nodded, avoiding eye contact. He was so handsome, I was embarrassed.<\/p>\n

He asked me how to get to Regent\u2019s Park, and I pointed with an outstretched arm (it was plainly illustrated on the map he was gazing at).\u00a0<\/p>\n

I bid the handsome stranger goodbye, rolled downhill, and picked up speed at an alarming rate.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The park was teeming with rich yummy mummies and celebrity dog walkers. To avoid disaster, I hurled myself onto the grass resembling a violent stop, drop and roll. A noughties popstar lowered his sunglasses as his dachshund judged me.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The handsome stranger came running over. My pink dress was covered in grass stains. \u2018Are you alright?\u2019 He helped me up. \u2018I\u2019m Simon, by the way,\u2019 he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

I thanked him, and wished I\u2019d left the conversation there. Wish I\u2019d never laid eyes on him again.<\/p>\n

Except, stupidly, I explained I was off to a meeting. \u2018A work meeting?\u2019 Simon looked confused. I asked if he was skiving. \u2018I pulled a sickie to make the most of the sun,\u2019 he coyly continued. \u2018Since you know the way to Regent\u2019s Park\u2026 can I accompany you?\u2019<\/p>\n

I gladly accepted and skated alongside him with my left arm locked into his right arm. I needed anchoring.<\/p>\n

We became acquainted. Simon had grown up in London, was obsessed with football, and came from a big, religious family.\u00a0<\/p>\n

I decided to get the tube at Baker Street, since my chaperone situation was ending there. I didn\u2019t fancy skating through central London, grabbing tourists for support and ending up in a meme.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Simon took off his sunglasses for the first time and asked for my number. His blue eyes hypnotised me. He texted later that day: \u2018So good to meet you, Mia! Let\u2019s meet this Sunday?\u2019<\/p>\n

We agreed to meet at a pub at 4pm. I sent Simon a text at 10 past four. I waited until half past, and accepted my fate \u2013 I\u2019d been stood up.\u00a0<\/p>\n

I woke up on Monday to a triple text from Simon \u2013 I found it odd that he didn\u2019t use WhatsApp.\u00a0<\/p>\n

He was sorry. He forgot he had a football match and didn\u2019t check his phone. I didn\u2019t buy it at first.\u00a0<\/p>\n

But in his third message, he wanted to make it up to me \u2013 was I free tomorrow night? Sure, I had a spare ticket to a gig.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Simon didn\u2019t mind being in the mosh pit with me. He made it clear that he wanted to come back to mine, but I said it was too soon. We shared an electric kiss.\u00a0<\/p>\n

We spent spring and summer having fun on weekly dates in pubs, parks, gigs, and dinner at my place. He met some of my friends \u2013 but I never met his. I presumed he was taking things slowly, which suited me after several whirlwind romances, but\u00a0I had been single for one year by that point.<\/p>\n

I wasn\u2019t suspicious\u00a0of him\u00a0because he didn\u2019t seem very experienced in dating. We slept together and he sometimes stayed overnight, but often made excuses after sex to go home. It didn\u2019t make me feel great, but I wanted to believe he was a decent guy.<\/p>\n

Fast forward to September, my friend, Ivy, was keen to get the lowdown on my love life. I sighed, pensively.<\/p>\n

\u2018Simon acts like the perfect gentleman on dates, but whenever we hang out, his mind is elsewhere. He whips out his phone whenever I leave the room.\u2019\u00a0<\/p>\n

Without a word, Ivy grabbed her phone and opened Facebook. \u2018What\u2019s his surname?\u2019 she demanded.\u00a0<\/strong>Fortunately, for us, his surname was rare.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u2018Is that him?\u2019 Ivy proffered her phone. I nodded affirmatively.\u00a0I never looked for his socials before this because I asked if he used social media and he said no. I believed him.<\/p>\n

Ivy quickly navigated from his profile picture to his photo albums. There were photos of him with another girl, but they emitted sibling vibes to me.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u2018Who\u2019s she?\u2019 Ivy zoomed in on the girl\u2019s face. She was standing\u00a0<\/strong>next to Simon, beaming. They were at a wedding. It was from a couple of weeks ago \u2013 I remember he was unavailable that weekend.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u2018I reckon it\u2019s one of his sisters,\u2019 I said, desperate. Ivy frowned: \u2018Mia, I don\u2019t think this is a sister.\u2019 Ivy scrolled through the photo comments. \u2018Such a cute couple!\u2019, one said \u2013\u00a0\u2018When\u2019s your wedding?\u2019 said another. Photos and comments went back five years.\u00a0<\/p>\n

We both erupted into screams. My neighbour responded by thudding his ceiling.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Had I been the other woman all summer?\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

\u2018Who\u2019s she?\u2019 Ivy zoomed in on the girl\u2019s face. She was standing\u00a0<\/strong>next to Simon, beaming<\/p>\n

Ivy sensed my despair. \u2018You\u2019ve done nothing wrong! He\u2019s the cheater,\u2019 she said. I sank into the sofa feeling used and guilty.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u2018Do you think I should tell her?\u2019 I said. Ivy weighed it up \u2013 it was morally the right thing to do. \u2018I doubt you\u2019re the first girl he\u2019s cheated with,\u2019 she added \u2013 then\u00a0<\/strong>paused. \u2018But, do you really want to get involved?\u2019 I was torn.<\/p>\n

I did not meet him again after this discovery and\u00a0made out I was busy for a couple of weeks when he asked me out. I imagined myself in his girlfriend\u2019s shoes. I worked up the courage to tell her.<\/p>\n

I decided to contact his girlfriend on Facebook. I sent her screenshots of our imessage history going back six months. She immediately replied with her phone number.<\/p>\n

\u2018I don\u2019t believe you,\u2019 she gasped through tears. I could hear Simon in the background (they lived together, apparently) he was incensed and fiercely denied everything.\u00a0<\/p>\n

After what felt like a lifetime, he finally admitted to the affair \u2013 with a crazy excuse that he was sleeping with me to get a job in the music business\u00a0\u2013 an industry I\u2019ve been working in for years.<\/p>\n

When I ended the call, he bombarded me with threatening texts. I couldn\u2019t sleep that night \u2013 my flatmate was out of the country and Simon knew where I lived.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Luckily, his threats didn\u2019t amount to anything, and his girlfriend swiftly became his ex \u2013 she got in touch months later to thank me.\u00a0<\/p>\n

I bumped into Simon on a train a few weeks ago, it gave me the chills \u2013 but this time\u00a0<\/strong>he pretended not to see me.<\/p>\n

Mia Pratley is a pseudonym<\/em><\/p>\n

<\/i>So, How Did It Go?<\/h2>\n

So, How Did It Go? is a weekly\u00a0Metro.co.uk\u00a0series that will make you cringe with second-hand embarrassment or ooze with jealousy as people share their worst and best date stories.<\/p>\n

Want to spill the beans about your own awkward encounter or love story? Contact jess.austin@metro.co.uk<\/p>\n

Source: Read Full Article<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

One sunny afternoon\u00a0last\u00a0April, I had the crazy notion to roller-skate to a client meeting. 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