She sat me down at the kitchen table one night and said we needed to talk. I knew what was coming before she even opened her mouth. She told me she wasn’t happy anymore, that she felt like her life had come to a standstill, and that she’d outgrown our marriage. She said I was going nowhere while she was trying to move up in the world.
I asked her if this was about money again. She claimed it wasn’t just about money, but she didn’t deny it. I asked if she wanted a divorce. She couldn’t meet my eyes, but she nodded.
I asked if there was someone else. She stayed silent. When I pressed her again, she sighed and admitted it. She’d met him through Rich Connections.
According to her, he was everything I wasn’t. Driven, wealthy, ambitious. He owned property, drove a nice car, and had countless investments. She emphasized that part.
I didn’t yell. I didn’t beg. I was tired of fighting for us. I told her if she wanted to leave, I wouldn’t stop her.
She looked relieved, like she’d expected me to make things difficult. She said she was glad we could get through this as friends. I told her we couldn’t be friends after this. She crossed her arms and said I wasn’t being fair.
I reminded her that she’d cheated on me. She said she had the right to pursue her own happiness, and that it didn’t count as cheating because she hadn’t done it to hurt me. I was baffled. That was the most sideways justification for cheating I’d ever heard.
I asked her if I was supposed to feel better because she cheated on me for money instead. She got offended and said it wasn’t about money. It was about getting the lifestyle she deserved. I didn’t say anything after that.
I went to the bedroom and started moving her things to the guest room. She didn’t fight me on it. She just joined in. Living with her after that was surprisingly normal.
No tension, but uncomfortable. She kept talking to me, telling me about her affair partner. His name was Gary. She planned to move in with him soon.
Apparently, he had a really nice place she’d been to a few times. She thought we were still close because I’d agreed to the divorce without fireworks. The truth was, I was just too tired to make a fuss. I wanted to ask her to stop telling me about him, but I decided against it.
It wouldn’t hurt to know as much as possible about him. You never know what information might turn out to be useful someday. So she kept talking, trying to stay friends. I just let her talk, but I never said anything back.
I didn’t ask questions. I barely even looked at her. It bothered her, but I didn’t care. I wasn’t giving her the satisfaction of thinking things were still okay between us after what she did.
The divorce went smoothly enough. We agreed on most things, split what we had fairly, signed the papers, and went our separate ways. We weren’t married for long, so she was barely entitled to any alimony. She didn’t care about fighting for it anyway.
She wanted the marriage over as soon as possible so she could live big with her wealthy lover. After the divorce, it came out that Gary was a lifestyle scammer. He talked a big game about how much money he made, but it was all a lie. The fancy house he brought her to was an Airbnb.
The expensive cars were rentals. The only thing that was true about him was that he was an investor, and he wasn’t good at it. He went for risky moves, trying to make a lot of money quickly, and he failed more often than not. I know all of this because Anna told me herself.
She came over to visit me one evening saying it was really important. Since the divorce had been amicable, I didn’t really have a problem talking to her. I still didn’t like her, but enough time had passed to make my feelings less volatile. As soon as I opened the door, she let herself in and started sobbing.
She told me everything. Gary’s whole life was a lie. He didn’t own any of what she thought he did. And then the big one, he’d scammed her too.
He convinced her he had a big crypto opportunity and that she could get in on the ground floor. He promised she could grow her investment a hundred times in just a couple of months and end up wealthier than me. She invested most of the money she’d gotten from the divorce. She didn’t know how crypto worked, so Gary graciously volunteered to handle all of that for her.
Of course, that was the scam. She basically handed him all her money, and he disappeared a few days later. She couldn’t reach him by phone or text. She only realized the house they’d been staying in was an Airbnb when the owner showed up to kick her out.
Now she was left with nothing. She stood there shaking and crying. It was a far cry from the smug woman who refused to admit she’d done anything wrong. I didn’t say anything through her whole story.
I just sat and let her ramble until she was done. When she ran out of things to say, she stood there crying, looking at me expectantly. I could tell she was expecting sympathy or reassurance. Unfortunately, her tears had no effect on me anymore.
I told her it sucked that she’d been scammed, and I meant it. Getting conned out of your savings is a horrible thing. But I also told her I thought she deserved it, and I wasn’t going to do anything to help her. She asked what I meant.
I explained that we were divorced. Our finances were separate, which was what she wanted. I was building my money up slowly and safely. She was free to build hers however she desired.
She’d chosen to go all in on a scammer’s scheme because he sweet-talked her into his bed by dangling riches in front of her. She’d learned her lesson the hard way, and I wasn’t going to bail her out. That wasn’t my responsibility anymore. She started crying again and asked if she could just stay with me for a while.
She promised she’d stay out of my way. She just needed a roof over her head. I said no. Letting her stay would just blur the boundaries.
Our marriage was over. We would never live under the same roof again. Then she asked if I could lend her some money. First, enough for a month’s rent.
When I refused, she asked if I could just give her enough for a motel room. She swore she’d pay me back when she was stable. I refused that too. She got frustrated and accused me of looking for revenge.
She said I was being petty. I shrugged and said I couldn’t deny it. There was a small part of me that was pleased to see her fall on her face after what she did to me. But I also meant everything else.
I didn’t want to be part of her life anymore. Her whole body sagged, and she asked, “What am I going to do? ”
I volunteered that she could stay with her sister. That was the last thing she wanted, and I got a bit more pleasure from suggesting it.
I knew the two of them didn’t get along. Her sister was judgmental and overly critical. Nothing Anna ever did was good enough for her. Living together would drive her crazy.
I watched her weigh her options between living with her sister and being homeless. She really didn’t like the idea, but she could see the alternative was worse. She looked at me one more time and asked if I was sure she couldn’t stay over. I crossed my arms and shook my head.
I told her I had to look out for myself. I walked her to the door and watched her leave. She looked back as she left, and I closed the door. I blocked her number after that.
Something about finding out how things had turned out for her felt like closure. I didn’t want to hear from her anymore, and I definitely didn’t want her coming around to beg again. That wasn’t the last I heard of her, though. One of our mutual friends told me she really did move in with her sister in the end.
From what she heard, it was as tense as I expected. Anna was constantly complaining that her sister took every chance to remind her she’d fumbled a good marriage. Anna had to find work quickly because getting her sister to help her out financially was like pulling teeth. Since she’d quit her job when she moved in with Gary, she had to start all over.
Supposedly, she was working an entry-level job at the type of company she would have dismissed just a few years ago. The pay was peanuts, but she just wanted to save up and move out of her sister’s place. And that’s all I know about her. I don’t wish her bad.
I just want to move on. I’ve got a life to live too, and she’s not a part of it anymore. As for me, my life hasn’t really changed much. I’m still in the same house, work the same job.
I’m still investing carefully. It’s not dramatic, but my value has been increasing steadily, while hers disappeared completely. Sometimes taking the easy way out will leave you with nothing.
