Lied

 You lied to people, so

they would hate me.

I lied to people

so they would like you.

I spent countless moments trying to protect your image, going out of my way to smooth over situations, defend you when it wasn't even my responsibility, and make excuses for behavior that was clearly wrong. I told stories that painted you in the best possible light, even when I was hurting, even when my heart was breaking, because I wanted others to see the person I thought you could be.

Meanwhile, you twisted reality, spread falsehoods, and painted me as the villain. Every mistake I made, every moment of frustration or pain expressed, became proof in your narrative that i was unstable, untrustworthy, or the problem. You manipulated the truth so that people would hate me and sympathize with you, while I was forced to watch as my reputation was slowly dismantled by someone I cared for

I lied not to hurt anyone, but to protect you, to protect what I believed we had, and to keep people from seeing the truth of your actions. You lied to hurt, to control, to ensure that no one would ever question your story. And in the end, the weight of carrying someone else's sins on my back while watching my own integrity questioned is something I'll never forget.

By Tam Letham