My Boyfriends Female Friend Said Our Star Signs Are NOT Compatible - Now He's Questioning Us

[00:00:02] [SPEAKER_00] Hey Waffle Gang, I do hope you're well. My name is Mark B and today we're checking out some more Reddit Stories. And if you do love a Reddit Story, why not consider that like, subscribe, maybe that notification bell too. And let's crack on with today's first story. Much love guys. Now today's first story comes from the Relationship Advice subreddit from a throwaway account who says,

[00:00:25] [SPEAKER_00] My boyfriend, 21, believes that we shouldn't be together because his female friend told him our zodiac signs are not compatible. It starts, this is slowly getting ridiculous. My boyfriend of two years has a female friend. They were close since middle school. So she's been in his life more than most of his other friends. I guess this is why he listens to her and her opinions on a lot of matters, including our own relationship, which I found out recently.

[00:00:55] [SPEAKER_00] What is happening is that every time we've had a fight, he's going to hurt a vent about our problems. I was okay with this for a long time. Never really thought something would be wrong. They were friends for a long time. I trusted him and wasn't jealous of their friendship. But for a few months I've noticed a sudden change in my boyfriend's behavior after our fights. Instead of trying to resolve things like we always do, we get passive aggressive, ignore me for days and throw around. Maybe we should break up quite often.

[00:01:24] [SPEAKER_00] I was really surprised because our fights aren't that serious. For example, ever since we moved in together, we have this agreement that I'm cooking our meals and he cleans everything after. For a week or so, he wouldn't, no matter how many times I've asked because he said, as he said, Leos don't like to be pushed around. Yeah, every time we fight, he would just say stupid shit like this. So I confronted him yesterday and asked him what has gotten into him.

[00:01:50] [SPEAKER_00] Apparently his female friend has gotten into astrology and decided that we are not compatible. Because I'm a Cancer and he's a Leo. He then blamed our little fight on our signs of incompatibility and told me that she's pretty spot on with her descriptions of our relationship and he started to believe that we're not a good match. This is so stupid I thought he was joking. But nope. Now I'm thinking if this is even something worth fighting for. I don't believe astrology.

[00:02:20] [SPEAKER_00] I don't think it's an answer to all of the problems that we face. But he's certain that it is because his female friend told him so. I was thinking about meeting up with her but I don't know if I should. Or maybe with both of them to see what the problem really is. Part of me doesn't want to throw away this relationship. Those were good two years before he started acting like an idiot. But another part of me is bewildered by the amount of stupidity of my boyfriend and his friend. Commodore says.

[00:02:47] [SPEAKER_00] Do you really want to be with someone so gullible and weak minded? If he says to be fair it wasn't like that for a whole two years we've been together. Just recently. I'm thinking if there's something going on between them and this astrology bullshit. It's just a way to end things on their terms maybe. Commodore says. It could be his way of finding an out. If he's throwing around suggestions of breaking up during every fight. And now he's using zodiac signs as a reason to break up. He sounds like he's just looking for reasons to end it.

[00:03:17] [SPEAKER_00] He could very well have feelings for this girl. But even if he doesn't. He doesn't sound like a good boyfriend. I would leave. Another commenter says. Or maybe the friend wants to get with him and is manipulating him. He's pretty stupid to fall for it. Especially like this. But still. And one more commenter says. I was thinking the same. I wouldn't be surprised if the friend sign is miraculously hyper compatible with OP's boyfriend. I was kind of wondering along those lines of the comments. First you know.

[00:03:47] [SPEAKER_00] Maybe just trying to break up. But then it started slipping in. That maybe she's just using astrology as manipulation. That maybe she is interested in him. And will eventually use it to get with him at the same time. Potentially. But either way. Astrology or not. You know. He keeps throwing around. Maybe we should break up anyway. Do you want to continue like that? Because I'm just thinking. And hell no. But two months later. OP does come in with an update. And says. I've decided to post a follow up.

[00:04:15] [SPEAKER_00] Because my original post gained a lot of attention. I've received plenty of advice. And many things have happened ever since then. Be prepared for a long ass ride. This whole situation is a great lesson to me. And I'm working on myself to stop being so naive and gullible. We are not together anymore. Which is a good thing. But we didn't break up right away. I ended up confronting my boyfriend about his friend. Her input on our relationship. And him seeking validation from her. As many of you have guessed.

[00:04:45] [SPEAKER_00] There was much more to their friendship. That I knew about. I'm not sure how far they went to this day. But to the people that were saying. That they're using this whole. Zodiac incompatibility as an excuse. You were right. We took a break at first. Because when I've decided. I want to end things on my own terms. My now ex-boyfriend. Switched the narrative. If surprisingly enough. He decided. He's not ready to let me go. And that he will cut out his friend. If it meant we would stay together. And I was stupid enough to believe him. Lol.

[00:05:16] [SPEAKER_00] One week later. I've decided. That I will give my boyfriend another chance. We decided on new boundaries. And everything was going smooth. For the first two weeks. That's until I noticed. That my boyfriend. Is being suspicious with his phone. Taking it with him. Even when he's taking a bath. One time. He forgot to mute his phone. Coming from the bathroom. While he was. Supposedly. Taking a bath. I've never checked his phone before. And I wasn't planning to. So I just asked him. To show me his messages.

[00:05:45] [SPEAKER_00] I guess. He was surprised. Because I never was the type. To check what he's up to. So we got quite defensive. But I wasn't planning on giving up. We had a whole argument. About me not trusting him. To which I agreed. That I don't. And he should show me his phone. So we can be done with it. And he did. Guess what I found out? That he's still in contact. With his astrology obsessed friend. And their conversations. Aren't exactly. A friendly banter. Me finding out. Led to even more of an argument. In which my boyfriend admitted.

[00:06:15] [SPEAKER_00] To cheating on me. With his friend. Blamed on me being a cancer. And him being a Leo. Again. Then proceeded to tell me. The only reason. He was fighting to stay with me. Is because. As a cancer. I'm very homely. And living with me. Is great. But I don't give him the thrill. That his Sagittarius friend. Is giving him. So yeah. I kicked him out. I'm on the lease anyways. And when he tried to argue. To let him stay for a few days. Until he finds his own apartment. I told him that. As a cancer. I'm not sure I can control my emotions.

[00:06:45] [SPEAKER_00] And don't murder him in his sleep. That's how my ex became my ex. What I've learned from. This is. One. To avoid anyone who believes in astrology. As a romantic partner. Two. To be more wary. Of my future partner's friendships. As many things may not be. What they seem. Bloody hell. Now I'm going to turn this one. Straight to you guys. What do you guys make. Of this. Situation. Let us know your thoughts. Down in the comments below. And let's move on. To another.

[00:07:15] [SPEAKER_00] Story. Our next story comes. From the. Am I the arsehole here. Subreddit. And says. Am I the arsehole here. For eating my entire. Baked potato. Random title. I 26 male. Am writing this. After what I thought. Would be a nice dinner. Spiraled into a huge. Argument. For context. A few days ago. My fiance's. 27 female. Parents invited us over. For dinner. The planned meal. Was a steak. With a baked potato. And green beans. Have been with my fiance. For six years.

[00:07:44] [SPEAKER_00] Engaged for the last two. And the first time. She ever saw me. Eat a baked potato. Skin and all. She was a little confused. And laughed it off. And said. Just don't ever do that. Around my mom. Haha. I never thought much of that. Until today that is. Dinner started off well. General chit chat. About work. And some discussions. About football. I'm an Eagles fan. And her mom. Likes the Broncos. So there's always. Some playful banter there. The food comes out. They say a little prayer. And we start eating.

[00:08:14] [SPEAKER_00] Everything is fine. Until I start digging. Into the potato. Her father tilted his head a little. And looked at her. But didn't say anything. The issue arose. Once her mother noticed. And looked at me. Like I was the most disgusting. And foul thing. She'd ever seen. I didn't notice at first. Until she audibly made. A gagging sound. Her mother then got up. And ran straight to the bathroom. Both my fiance and her father. Went to check on her. And I was left sitting there. Confused as hell. A few moments later. Her dad came back.

[00:08:44] [SPEAKER_00] And politely asked me to leave. I asked if something was wrong. And he calmly explained that. As I've been told before. That his wife has some dietary issues. And part of that includes potato skins. And that seeing me eat my entire potato. Made her nauseous. I apologized and left. About 10 minutes later. As I arrived to the apartment. I get a call from my fiance. I answer. And she immediately starts yelling at me. Calling me an ass. I'm taken by surprise. As I didn't expect her to be so upset about this.

[00:09:14] [SPEAKER_00] I tried apologizing. And she cuts me off saying. I'm inconsiderate. And rude. I start getting upset. But before I can say anything. She says. Whatever. We're talking in the morning. I tried calling her back. And she sent me straight the voicemail. I've sent her multiple texts. But she has not read them. I really am confused. As to if I'm the arsehole here. What a bizarre situation. My first thought was. Like. You know. She was the host. She was serving whatever food. Came out. Why would you serve something.

[00:09:43] [SPEAKER_00] That's going to make you have that kind of reaction. And no functions are similar. They said. Not the arsehole. If her mother is that sensitive. To other people eating something. She doesn't like. She shouldn't serve it. Or at the very least. Say something before vomiting. Beyond dramatic in my opinion. But seriously. If the skin makes her react like that. I honestly cannot understand. Why she wouldn't just serve. Mashed potatoes instead. Legit drama queen right there. That set herself up. Super reading says not the arsehole. But OP.

[00:10:12] [SPEAKER_00] You should be seeing some serious red flags. I would not marry her. Or at least not. Until a year of couples therapy. And you're 100% your relationship. Is healthy. Red flag. She should have told you. That her mom would react badly. If you ate potato skins. Before you ate dinner with her parents. Red flag. Her mother could have served a meal. Without potato skins. Mashed potatoes. Or even fries in the air fryer. Red flag. When her mother acts crazy. Your fiance gets angry at you. And blames you. If you marry her. You better brace yourself.

[00:10:41] [SPEAKER_00] For that pattern of behavior. Affectionate says. What did I just read? The mom vomited. Because you ate the skin. Of a baked potato. Which is edible. And quite nutritious. Not just that. But she served the baked potato. Skin and all. For dinner. Like. I hate raisins. But I don't puke every time. Someone around me eats them. What in the holy hell. Is happening in that household. Why didn't anyone say anything. When you first started in on the skin. I'm so baffled by this story. But no. You're obviously not the arsehole. For eating the food.

[00:11:11] [SPEAKER_00] On your plate. The OP comes in. With an update. And says. Okay. I know that maybe. You all weren't expecting an update. But here we are. To start off. To the handful of people saying this is fake. I don't know man. I wish it was fake. But I can't really do much to change your minds. Second. Saw a few people. Ask about the steak. It was amazing. Anyways. I read a lot of comments last night before bed. And I did start contemplating calling off the engagement. Because everyone made good points about their behavior. And handling of the situation.

[00:11:40] [SPEAKER_00] I decided to sleep on my thoughts. And this morning. I woke up to a couple of texts from my fiance. Her father. And her mother. Her mother actually apologized. And asked me to call. So I did. When she answered. She sounded like death. And proceeded to apologize again. And explained that all day yesterday. She felt a little off. But kept a brave face. Worry. Turns out. She has the flu. She kept apologizing profusely. And said. She was indeed a little grossed out. By seeing me eat the potato skin.

[00:12:09] [SPEAKER_00] Because she had never seen anyone else do that. But she wasn't gonna. Yuck your yum. Had it not been for the sickness. Apparently after running off. She did indeed vom. But she also felt extremely weak. And got the chills. It was so bad. She went straight to bed. She also told me. That she talked to my fiance this morning. And that there was a reason. She lashed out to me so badly. Sadly. Turns out. I'm gonna be a father. Her mother explained that my fiance brought her a light breakfast. And they sat talking about what happened at dinner.

[00:12:38] [SPEAKER_00] During the conversation. My fiance apparently knocked over a teacup. And became overly distressed. And started to tear up. This prompted her mother to question. If she could be pregnant. After a quick stop at the pharmacy. And four pregnancy tests later. She was right. Which honestly does explain. And her moods being different this past week. I don't want to be a stereotypical man. But I kind of assumed it was her period. My fiance's text was an apology. And a picture of the four positive pregnancy tests. I did call her as well.

[00:13:07] [SPEAKER_00] And we discussed how she lashed out at me. She apologized multiple times. And even started crying about. How she doesn't want to ruin six years. Her father apologized for asking me to leave. And said he only did so. Because my fiance seemed so upset. And he thought it would be best to give us room. Before anything harmful could be said. I'm still processing all of this roller coaster. But yeah. Her mother doesn't see me as a disgusting creature. Everyone apologized. And things seem fine now. Although now I'm worried I might get sick.

[00:13:36] [SPEAKER_00] Since her mother let me try a sip from her wine glass last night. Sorry if this isn't the end you were hoping for. But I'm glad things weren't as bad as I thought. So there was a mix of comments on this. People questioning. Is this a happy ending? Some people saying this was a happy ending. Other people saying they're all nuts. And good luck to OP. But what do you guys make of this situation? How would you have dealt with it if it was you? Do you think it's a good ending? Or not? Let us know your thoughts down in the comments below.

[00:14:06] [SPEAKER_00] And let's move on to another story. Our next story comes from a throwaway account. From the Relationship Advice subreddit. It says. My 30 female friend. 32 male. Always wants to cook for everyone. But his cooking is really bad. About six months ago. I moved across the country to a new state. Where I have a lot of friends and family. I posted about my move on Facebook. And Michael. A Facebook friend. An acquaintance I had met once or twice. Through other friends. Reached out to tell me.

[00:14:35] [SPEAKER_00] He happened to be moving to the same city. And asked if I would want to get together sometime.

[00:15:06] [SPEAKER_00] I agreed. He is usually the one to initiate hangouts. So Michael loves to cook. The very first time we got together. He came to my place and cooked dinner. The meal was okay. Although it was dairy based. I really don't eat dairy at all. So I felt pretty sick afterwards. I was also pretty specific about a certain ingredient that I don't really like. But he was insistent that he needed to use it for the dish. Whatever. No biggie. However as time went on.

[00:15:36] [SPEAKER_00] Every time Michael would invite me to hang out. He wanted to cook. Either he wanted to come to my place and cook. Or he wanted me to come over. And he would cook for me and the roommates. And their significant others. Each time I ate Michael's cooking. I began to think more and more. That I really just could not stand it. The first time he cooked for me and his roommates. I noticed that everyone at the table was silent when eating. And no one else commented on the food. Until he would eagerly ask. How is it? And get some sort of lackluster praise.

[00:16:05] [SPEAKER_00] He did this at least three times during the meal. Probably the worst was the time. When no one could finish their plate. And everyone made excuses for. Why they were just so full. They couldn't finish the meal. After that incident. Whenever Michael would invite me to hang out. I would try suggesting other activities. We live in a place that is full of fun. Socially distanced outdoor activities. So I would frequently suggest those things. He would always decline. And try to convince me to come over to his place. And that he could cook for us. He has told me that the thing that brings him the greatest joy.

[00:16:35] [SPEAKER_00] Is cooking for other people. Due to this. I kind of started to distance myself. And just politely decline his invitations. Last night. I got a message from Michael. That he had a huge falling out with his roommate. And he was very upset. I texted with him for a while. Trying to calm him down. And give him some advice about. How to handle the situation. He was so upset. That eventually I asked. If he wanted to come over for a beer. So that he could get out of the house. And clear his head. He asked if I had already eaten. And I said that I had.

[00:17:05] [SPEAKER_00] It was almost 8 by that point. And he asked if he could come over tomorrow. Today instead. I said sure. He replied with great. I'll stop at the store. And cook this dish for us. I told him actually I'm on a diet. And I couldn't eat that. But he was welcome to come over for drinks. And some video games. He just kept pushing. Asking about my diet. And what I could eat. And finally suggested something. That I would have no reason to say no to. This morning when I woke up. I was so dreading the meal. That I texted him. I forgot I had made plans this evening.

[00:17:35] [SPEAKER_00] I told him I'd be home around 8. Too late for dinner. And he was still welcome to come over then. Or we could try for another night. I don't really know what to do about this guy. I feel bad. Because he hardly knows anyone here. And now it looks like he's on bad terms with his roommates. And I know he probably needs a friend right now. But he's so insistent on feeding me every single time we are together. I think if I tell him that I can't stand his cooking. It will honestly be more hurtful than just fading out of his life.

[00:18:04] [SPEAKER_00] So Opie comes in with her first update. And it says. So my first post didn't get a ton of attention. But I still felt like it deserved an update. After posting and thinking about things. I realized it wasn't just about the cooking. I didn't want to hurt his feelings. But I really didn't care to be friends with Michael anymore. He never wanted to do anything I suggested. And that really bothered me. I felt like our entire friendship was just about me. Just about me making time to do what he enjoyed. Cooking for us. Even though I got nothing out of it at all.

[00:18:33] [SPEAKER_00] After that. Started to distance myself from Michael. I'd put hours between answering his texts. And politely decline any invites. I was also in an accident a few weeks ago. And now I'm on medication. That makes me very tired. So I have limited free time. Then one night around midnight. I got a text from Michael saying that he was worried about me. When I asked why. He replied with. You used to be my best friend. But now you just ignore me. There was a bunch of typos. So I could tell he had been drinking. I told him.

[00:19:03] [SPEAKER_00] I'd been busy. And also pointed out. That I actually invited him. To do a lot of things with me. But he always turned down my invites. Acknowledged that was true. Apologized and said that. In the future. If I asked him to do things I enjoy. He'd be sure to accept. Three days later. He messaged me again. Asked him when I was free to hang out. I replied with. What do you have in mind? I wanted to hear what he wanted to do. Before committing to hang out. He kept pushing. Just saying. He'd like to see me. And he'd be available anytime I was free.

[00:19:32] [SPEAKER_00] I finally gave him a time frame. To which he replied. He'd love to come over. And cook for us. That was just the final straw. So I sent him the following message. Hey. So to be honest. You're a nice person. But I'm not interested in hanging out tonight. Or at all. The time that we have spent together. Has made me realize. That we don't actually have much in common. And when you weren't into any of the stuff. I enjoy doing. I lost interest in the friendship. Combined with the fact. That I still have so much pain. From my accident. It just seems like too much effort.

[00:20:02] [SPEAKER_00] Though hard feelings. I really wish you the best. I blocked him after that. Maybe I'm a jerk. For the way I handle the situation. But life feels too short. To waste so much time. Doing what other people want. I never advocate for myself. And I always end up in these types of. Draining one-sided friendships. So I feel proud of what I said. And relieved to be moving past the situation. TLDR. Realized I didn't really want this friendship. Anyway. And removed the person from my life. Edit. There are a lot of people defending Michael.

[00:20:32] [SPEAKER_00] And calling me a horrible person. In my last post I mentioned that. He had a falling out with his roommates. They actually asked him to move out. Because he was being so disrespectful. And aloof. I didn't include it in my post. Because I didn't want to be unfairly harsh. Now I see the way that I describe Michael. Maybe people sympathize with him. And that's honestly given me more food for thought than anything. I couldn't even describe how awful he was to a bunch of internet strangers without feeling bad. A lot of people are also just making blind assumptions about him.

[00:21:00] [SPEAKER_00] And every single one is so far from reality. I guess we should all take Reddit posts with a grain of salt. Yura says. I totally understand why this happened. Unfortunately Michael probably thinks he's trying hard to be social. And puts efforts in his friendships. So he just can't understand why he doesn't get the same effort back. He's probably lonely. And you can find a lot of lonely people complain about this. But he's awkward. And has a hard time reading or understanding your cues. Or I dare say.

[00:21:30] [SPEAKER_00] Caring about your cues and messages. About what you do and do not want to do. It's hard to be friends with someone like that. And to be honest. Michael probably doesn't have a lot of friends. I hope he says. Very insightful. I mentioned at the end of my post. That I end up in a lot of friendships like this. I have sympathy for people like this. And I usually enjoy the friendship. Because I feel for them. But honestly. I think I'm at a point in my life. Where I'm just over being that nice person. Friendship needs to go both ways. And I'm tired of giving so much time to people. Who I get no enjoyment from being with.

[00:22:00] [SPEAKER_00] Recycled air. Quoting. I want to hear what he wanted to do before committing to hang out. He kept pushing that he'd just like to see me. And it'd be available anytime I was free. And then says he was trying to act on your previous feedback. And wanted you to suggest something you wanted to do. Before he suggested anything. He forced his hand by pushing him to suggest something. And blew up at him. When he offered the one thing he thought he was good at. That would help you out. Which you never once told him you didn't enjoy. But continue to do. Hope he says.

[00:22:30] [SPEAKER_00] I didn't want to put seemingly unnecessary detail in my post. I've invited Michael to go hiking at least four times. I've also invited him to go ice skating. Snow tubing. Skiing. Driving in the mountains. And even on a weekend trip to a nearby state. He has declined every single invite. Instead of asking me to come over. And tries cooking or watch TV. Edit to add. I even offer to pay for him on the more expensive activities. Even though he doesn't need me to. As an incentive to get him to join. Accomplished reply saying.

[00:22:59] [SPEAKER_00] Those are all super physical activities. And he sounds more of a homebody. If he likes cooking and watching TV. I agree. You probably weren't compatible as friends. But ghosting him. Reengaging with him. And then about facing and sending a dear John. All sounds a bit much. And you were never honest with him in any of it. I just really feel for the guy. Damn. Another commenter says. I mean. I like to cook. But I'm good at it. Lol. And watch TV. And I would never want to do any of those activities. Not even if someone else paid.

[00:23:27] [SPEAKER_00] Not even if someone paid me to do it. Lol. But I know this. And I avoid having good friend status with anyone. Because I don't want to socialize the way other people do. I've pretty much done the same thing before with a friend. Sent through a message telling her. That while I liked her. I didn't really enjoy when we hung out. And didn't want to anymore. Sounds like a breakup. And in a way I guess it is. Lol. Opie says yeah. I'm getting a lot of hate for it. But I just don't see why I should continue to be friends with someone. I don't like hanging out with.

[00:23:56] [SPEAKER_00] We don't enjoy the same things. I tried to drift away slowly. And he wouldn't have it. So I had to treat it like a breakup. Linny says you don't have to continue hanging out with anyone you don't want to. And you can break off a friendship whenever you like. Nobody is telling you to continue being friends with him. Just don't be a dick and actually tell the guy. Instead of him thinking you were great friends. Or him blocking you from out of the blue. Total dick move. Tell the guy. Sorry. I don't like your cooking at all. And want to do other activities.

[00:24:27] [SPEAKER_00] Had a few friends. Just ghost me like this. And to this day I have no idea why. I thought they were really good friends. So OP comes in with what they titled their final update. And says I got a lot of hate on my last post here. And at first I couldn't really understand why. One person who continued to comment angrily was his recycled heir. So I actually ended up messaging privately to ask why he thought I was such a villain. It turned out to be a really productive conversation. I gave him some more details about the situation.

[00:24:54] [SPEAKER_00] And really ended up realizing that the issue was deeper than I made it out to be. I had left some details out of my original post. Thinking that they were not necessarily relevant. Only to realize they were the root of the problem. Thanks to Recycled Air for letting me get stuff off my chest. And encouraging me to make another post. So I'll provide those details. And surprisingly even to me. New events have occurred. And I will share those as well. When Michael and I first moved to the state we live in. We were both romantically interested in one another.

[00:25:22] [SPEAKER_00] We had been online friends for a while. Having only met once briefly in real life. And I think we expected more to develop between us. When we moved to the same city. I did not mention this at all in my post. Because after spending some time together. I realized that I didn't feel that way towards him anymore. I told him that up front. And we agreed to continue to be friends. Initially one of the biggest reasons that we connected. Was over our shared love of outdoor activities. So for everyone guessing that Michael wasn't able to. Or disinterest in the hikes and trips I planned.

[00:25:52] [SPEAKER_00] That just wasn't true. He's very physically fit. And early on expressed a huge interest in these activities. However when we wanted to hang out. He always wanted to hang out at one of our houses. And almost always. This led to us being in situations. Where he would want to lay on the couch. And gradually lead into trying to cuddle with me. So while I disliked his cooking. I guess that really. I just felt like he was never respectful of the boundary that I set. When I told him I only wanted to be friends. I was channeling my anger into his mediocre food.

[00:26:22] [SPEAKER_00] I tried hard to maintain a friendship by inviting him to do things. He'd already told me that he loved. But he never wanted to. And this led me to feeling like he was disingenuous. Which ultimately ended up with me telling him off. And blocking him. Many people read what I did. And saw it as cruel. But I felt like this person did not respect me. And I didn't feel like what I did was wrong. However there's more. The day after I made the post. I came home from work. And found a stuffed animal on my doorstep with an apology note. It just said.

[00:26:51] [SPEAKER_00] Sorry for being a bad friend. I thought about it for a couple of days. And decided that maybe I'd been overly harsh. I unblocked Michael. And I thanked him for the stuffed animal. Then I apologized for blocking him. And told him basically what I said here. Then I felt like he didn't respect my boundaries. And he didn't really value my friendship. Because he never wanted to do anything that I suggested. I expected him to be defensive. But he actually apologized profusely. He told me that the situation with his roommates. Has been deteriorating for the last two months.

[00:27:21] [SPEAKER_00] And he was physically and mentally exhausted. Which is why he never wanted to do anything. Every time he declined my invites. He could feel that we were drifting apart as friends. But he was focusing on trying to manage the issues at home. One thing he apologized for. Was being unable to communicate to me. What was going on at home. He also recognized that he had pushed my boundaries. And tried to move things in a direction that was not platonic. And he apologized for that as well. In fact he sent me a very long. Seemingly heartfelt message. That I really found touching.

[00:27:50] [SPEAKER_00] He told me that the day I sent him that message. And blocked him. He realized that between pushing away his one friend here. And having such major problems with his roommates. He just did not want to stay in this city. The day he left the plush on my doorstep. He also packed a u-haul. And moved back home to his parents house. So in the last two days. We've both apologized a lot. And sort of resumed our superficial. Meme sharing internet long distant friend relationship. That we had for a year prior. To both moving to the same state. He said he hopes that one day.

[00:28:20] [SPEAKER_00] When he's in a better place. We can meet up again. And I can know him. As the person he really is. Not that exciting. But I guess a happier ending than I expected. Thanks to everyone who chimed in. Even the criticisms really helped me unpack the issue that I was having. Also a lot of people really wanted me to tell him his cooking was bad. But I decided not to. It just felt like kicking him while he was down. And ultimately. The cooking was irritating me. Mostly because of the events surrounding it. Maybe if we hang out again in person someday.

[00:28:49] [SPEAKER_00] We can laugh about it. But for now. I communicated what was really upsetting me. And he had the opportunity to explain his behavior. And apologize. So I think it was as constructive as it could be. I'm not sure how I felt at the end of this. To be quite honest. I mean. I get where OP is coming from. And a lot of the comments were saying. You know. We're against OP a lot of the way through it. But I kind of just felt for me. The unblocking feels like slipping back into. Old patterns if you like.

[00:29:19] [SPEAKER_00] Almost being too nice. To someone who didn't respect their boundaries. Which she literally said was her problem in the first place. I mean. Don't get me wrong. The apology sounded lovely. Sure. And OP said. It sounded really genuine. But apologies are easy to make. But now he's moved away. You're not going to see if the apology actually amounts to anything as well. You know. He's on the internet. And he can just send the memes. Where you had this like. Nice little relationship going there.

[00:29:48] [SPEAKER_00] And you can't actually see if he's learned anything anyway. And then it said like. Maybe we can meet up again someday. And it just feels like. The door stayed slightly open. Where there's this. This opportunity. And maybe a small opportunity. I don't know. Maybe you'd be completely changed person. Right. But there's a small opportunity. This whole cycle gets to repeat itself again. But maybe that's a very reddity take from myself. Right. I've read a lot of these stories. Maybe I'm being a bit too negative here. Regardless.

[00:30:18] [SPEAKER_00] I wish Michael all the best going forward. And I hope he does understand himself a bit better. Maybe get some therapy on the side. And all that kind of good thing. And I also hope OP finds relationships that. You know. Respects her time. Does want to do the hobbies that she enjoys. At the same time. And all that kind of good stuff. But now. I could be in trouble in this one. What do you guys make of this situation? Let us know your thoughts down in the comments below. And just a huge thank you for being here today. Getting involved in the stories. Your love. Your support. Your time.

[00:30:47] [SPEAKER_00] It always means the absolute world to me. So thank you so so much. And hopefully. I'm going to see you in the next one. Take care. And much love.