I told her I needed more time, which was true. She was understanding. We hugged and went our separate ways. No weirdness, no guilt trip. Just honest communication.
What a concept, right?
Meanwhile, the Lena situation has gotten messier.
She had to move out of our old apartment. Couldn't afford it on her own. From what I heard through the grapevine, she's living with Seth now.
Funny how he was MIA when she needed emotional support, but suddenly reappeared the moment she needed a place to stay and could help him with rent.
Tom told me this with a tone that suggested it's not going well. Apparently, Seth's studio apartment is basically a glorified garage with windows, and Lena's discovering that her knight in shining armor is actually broke, unmotivated, and kind of a slob.
Who could have possibly seen that coming?
About 2 weeks ago, I got a Facebook message from Lena's best friend, Rachel. Rachel and I had always gotten along fine, though we were never particularly close.
The message was long, but the gist was that Lena was really struggling and finally realizing what she lost, and could I give Lena my address in Denver, because she really needs closure.
I wrote back, "Rachel, I appreciate you reaching out, but no. Lena knows my phone number if she actually needs to talk to me. She doesn't need my address."
Rachel responded with, "She's afraid you'll just hang up on her."
I didn't respond to that, because yeah, that's exactly what I'd do.
Then the voicemails started up again. Not daily, but maybe once or twice a week. They've evolved from angry to sad to desperate.
The most recent one was her crying and saying she understood now that she took me for granted. That Seth was never really her friend, he just wanted attention. That she'd do anything to fix this.
I finally blocked her number.
Last thing. I finally signed the paperwork to officially break the lease on the old apartment. Cost me about 2 grand in penalties, but it's done. I'm officially off the lease now.
Drew told me she had a complete meltdown about that. Sent him like 20 texts in one night about how unfair it is that I get to just start over while her life is falling apart.
Drew, being a real one, sent me screenshots and said, "Just so you can see how crazy this has gotten."
Well, that isn't my problem anymore, is it?