mayim writes.
i think one of the hardest lessons lately is realizing that betrayal does not always come from strangers.
sometimes it comes from the people you protected, the people you defended when no one else did, the people whose name you kept clean even when you had every reason not to. sometimes it comes from the closest cousin you had, the one you covered for through the years, only for her to turn around and betray you like it was nothing.
and what makes it worse is not just the betrayal itself. it is the fact that she had the audacity to talk badly about my partner too, spreading false things about him when she does not even know him personally. she does not know his heart, his story, his intentions, or the way he has been there for me. she only knows the version she created in her head, and somehow she still felt entitled to speak on him.
that kind of disrespect is something i will never tolerate.
because you can betray me, and i will take that lesson quietly. but the moment you drag someone i love into your lies, especially someone who did nothing to you, that is where the door closes permanently.
i do not regret cutting her off. not even a little.
some people do not deserve access to your life just because they are family. blood does not excuse betrayal. history does not erase disrespect. and protecting someone for years does not mean you owe them another chance to hurt you again.
so yes, i am choosing distance. peace. silence.
and for once, i am choosing myself and the people who truly deserve a place in my life.
