We were both in the same school and even though we had our eyes on each other since 10th grade, we only started dating in 12th standard. Of course, we were crazy about each other and I thought it was meant to be forever. But you know how these school relationships can be. While some last a lifetime, others end even before you can both fully get to know each other. I guess that’s what happened with us.
Everything was going great until the day I found out that he was dating someone else as well. I was furious and I wanted to confront him. I asked him to meet me at a friend’s place but before he reached, a common friend told him that I had found out about his other girlfriend. The coward never showed up!
He called me the same night to apologise and told me that he had ended things with the other girl. But I could not trust him again. Luckily, school soon ended and we both went our ways. But one fine day, he came to my place, asking me to forgive him. Though I sent him back without even talking to him, the efforts he was putting in made me want to give our friendship another chance.
I didn’t think it would work out but since we had been good friends before we started dating, we always had a soft corner for each other. To our surprise, we both stayed in touch and our friendship thickened over time. Before we knew it, we were going to the movies and dinner dates. But only as FRIENDS. It was during this time that I introduced him to my other friends as well. That’s how my first cousin and my ex-boyfriend first met.
She knew about our past and always encouraged both of us to start dating again. It was me who shied away from everything. Why? Maybe because I had started thinking that I own him and took him for granted. Anyway, the three of us soon became inseparable and often hung out together.
My cousin is a year younger than me so my ex-boyfriend and I passed our graduation while she was still in college. We deliberately decided to go to the same post-graduation college and managed to do so as well. It was a one-year diploma course and we both were excited to be in the same institution yet again after school. The college curriculum came with a mandatory educational trip down south. During the 10-day trip, there were several moments which we both felt were truly special to us and one fine day, we stopped waiting for moments and kissed.
I didn’t have feelings for him but that sense of belonging to each other grew again. We still weren’t dating though. Throughout our diploma course, my cousin used to come to our college many times and we would hang out together until he dropped us home. As our course was ending, we came to know about my cousin’s father being ill. He had cancer and I was there for her, sure, but this was the time that my ex-boyfriend and my sister also came close.
Time went by and both of them started drifting away from me. Although I was sensing it, I was too egoistic to ask anything. Eventually, I stopped visiting my cousin as much I used to and started getting irritated with anything that my ex-boyfriend/friend said to me. While I still don’t know the exact reason, I now think that I probably had an idea of their closeness and wasn’t ready to give up two people who belonged to me.
I finally learnt to push these feeling away but that’s when a common friend told me about their relationship. Betrayal hit me hard that day. Even though I was happy for both of them in my subconscious mind, I felt frustrated with the fact that they hid their relationship from me.
Fast forward and they were married. And I actually supported these two. Our families knew about mine and his history and were furious about my cousin tying the knot with him. It was I who convinced the families to give it their consent.
Today, he is my brother-in-law and I am the best sister-in-law he could ever get. Right? Luckily, we are back to being great friends. I told my husband about everything and he was okay with it as it was all in the past. Now, we often take trips together and are a family.
So, all’s well that ends well, right?
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