by Corazon Stegelin
…”oh my god, you are the single most greatest thing that has ever happened to me!”
…”you are different from all the people who were ‘different’ before you.”
…”you are The One.”
…”all the other ‘Ones’ before you were simply practice for you, the end all be all One.”
…”I am going to always prioritize your needs over my own.”
…”I am going to give you everything I have because you are worth it.”
…”man, I feel pretty empty. I wonder why?”
…”guess I better spend copious amounts of time with this person because that’s the only way I feel energized enough to be a person at all.”
…”codependency? What’s that?”
…”what red flags? These rose-colored glasses make everything look the same.”
…”I am going to memorize very specific things as red flags because that is the only way I can identify them.”
…”oh, there’s a slight change in tone? That’s a red flag. That means an argument is coming.”
…”an argument is coming? Everyone, assume the defensive position. This is an imminent threat, and we are in immediate danger.”
…”arguments always mean abandonment.”
…”abandonment means being alone.”
…”being alone brings the emptiness.”
…”the emptiness feels like death.”
…”abandonment always .means death.”
…”abandon them before they can abandon you.”
…”self-sabotage is way easier than being hurt by someone else.”
…”if you don’t abandon them, at least push them away. How else will you maintain the mentality that ‘everyone’ ‘always’ leaves?
…”smother them with love. How else will they prove they can handle you? How else will they prove they are actually different?”
…”oh. You left. Just like all the rest.”
…”this heartbreak is entirely your fault.”
…”you knew about the hurt and replicated it anyways.”
…”you are a terrible person.”
…”there is a single common denominator in all these shitty relationships.”
…”maybe I am the terrible person.”
…”I am a terrible person.”
…”I deserved every ounce of hurt that has ever been hurled my way.”
…”for my sake and everyone else’s, I need a break from dating.”
…”I am unworthy and incapable of love.”
…”that person’s kinda cute though, huh?”
…”oh my god, they’re cute and they’re giving us attention.”
…”maybe this one will be different. Maybe this one will actually be worth it.”
…”oh my god, you are the single most greatest thing that has ever happened to me.”
…”you are different from all the people who were ‘different’ before you.”
…”you are The One.”
…”all the other ‘Ones’ before you were simply practice for you, the end all be all One.”
…”I am going to always prioritize your needs over my own.”
…”I am going to give you everything I have because you are worth it.”
…”oh. You left. Just like all the rest.”
…”this endless cycle of the greatest love and the greatest heartbreak a person could ever know.”
…”a warning label to all future lovers.”
…”oh! You’re interested in a date? That’s great! Before we proceed, there’s something you should know: in addition to several other very admirable qualities, this person also has borderline personality disorder.”
…”they have a difficult time trusting.”
…”they have the emotional breadth of a toddler.”
…”they will throw temper tantrums.”
…”they will value you over everything in one moment and hate you more than everything in the next.”
…”I would run, if I were you.”
…”I know I just told you to run, but please stay.”
…”all I have ever wanted was for someone to stay.”
…”I know I make it difficult. I know I do not always play fair.”
…”please understand I am a product of other people not always playing fair.”
…”please understand I also understand that to be unfair.”
…”I understand it is unfair to hold you to standards these ghosts of relationships past set.”
…”I understand it is unfair not to trust you when really I don’t trust them when you’ve given me no reason not to trust you.”
…”I am working on it.”
…”please believe me.”
…”please give me a chance to show you.”
…”please stay.”
…”all I have ever wanted was for someone to stay.”