The Digital Shadows: Love, Lies, and Longing (Part 12)

Breaking Free, But Not Completely

Cutting him off was her first step toward freedom. She completely stopped contacting him for over a month. In that time, she found a job and started rebuilding her life. Everything was going smoothly—until he showed up again.

One day, an unknown number flashed on her screen. It was him. He begged for another chance, admitting that both he and his mother had been wrong. He apologized, pleaded, and swore he had changed. She wasn’t ready to let him back in, but his persistence broke her resolve. Against her better judgment, she agreed to meet him on the weekend.

After three months of silence, they met again. He picked her up from work, and they went to her apartment. She had no expectations, no hopes—just a need for closure. But as always, he proved her instincts right.

He tried to have sex with her, but she was on her second day of her period and didn’t want to. Yet, she knew what would come next if she refused. The accusations. The cruel words. The emotional torture. "You must have slept with someone else," he would say. So, she stayed silent. When he kissed her, she kissed him back, but there was no emotion—only emptiness.

And then, as she had predicted, the cycle repeated. He started questioning her. "What were you doing for these three months? Who were you with?" His voice, filled with suspicion and jealousy, cut through the air. She had enough.

From 4:30 PM to 9:30 PM, he insulted her—body shaming, slut shaming, mocking her family, degrading everything about her. She sat there, emotionless, knowing deep down: he will never change.

At 9:30 PM, he decided he wanted food and beer. The moment he stepped out, she grabbed her bag and left his apartment. Without looking back, she took a bus and went back to the PG where she had lived three months ago.

His calls flooded her phone. He begged. He blamed. "Why did you leave me?" he cried, though he was the one who had pushed her away every time. But this time, she was truly done.

From that point on, she had no feelings for him. He was nothing but a shadow of her past. She ignored him completely, and even though his toxicity sometimes haunted her thoughts, she was at peace. God was with her. She had a job, a life, and a sense of happiness that she thought she had lost forever.

He still called once in a while. He didn’t want her to move on. He didn’t let her heal. But she was stronger now.

She was finally free. And this time, for good.