A Modern Fairy-tale

My worst suspicions were confirmed when my husband confessed that he was cheating on me. Despite my best and often humiliating efforts to win him back, he remained unmoved in his decision to divorce me.

What people describe as heartbreak felt more like a million glass shards piercing and twisting in my chest. I lost an alarming amount of weight in record time, because I couldn’t bring myself to eat. I couldn’t sleep much either, often awakening from anxious nightmares, my body shaking as if I had been standing naked in freezing cold. I was like a broken record, constantly bursting into tears and wailing about my failed marriage. I couldn’t even focus at my job, spending all my working hours lost in prayer instead. Of course, what little faith I had was all but destroyed when I got fired.

The good thing about hitting rock bottom is that it can’t get any worse. Thankfully, it wasn’t long before the tides started to turn.

Niles came into my life at the best possible moment. What initially started as a meaningless flirtatious distraction, soon bloomed into something more. Like a knight in shining armor, he rescued me from a bottomless pit of despair. Slowly but steadily, he brought new meaning into my life. No matter how miserable I felt, he could always make me laugh. We talked for hours on end, shared recipes and music, and watched movies together. Most of all, we made plans and dreamed of the day when we would finally hold each other.

Ours is a modern fairy-tale. We met online, on a cheesy dating website. Of course, at first, I was very wary. He seemed too good to be true, so I worried that he might be a catfish – one of those heartless creeps who get off on seducing women with fake pictures and a perfectly manufactured persona. Luckily, that was not the case at all! Our first video call, meant only as a safeguard, ended up lasting the whole day. Being a continent apart didn’t stop us from falling in love. We were yet to meet in person, but the countless hours we spent together, glued to our screens, were more than enough proof for me that we were soulmates.

They were enough proof for him as well; he couldn’t wait to make things official! Still, he agreed when I suggested that we should meet before telling friends and family. In my experience, people can be pretty judgmental. Besides, you don’t ever get a second chance at first impressions. So, before I knew it, he was on a plane, heading to this side of the pond.

Niles was everything I thought he would be. Things were bit awkward a first, but we’re now so happy together. The mere thought of losing him is enough to send me into a frenzy, but it’s been a while since he last mentioned going back!

He’s been shackled for months now; Stockholm Syndrome must be kicking in! ♥