Cheaters Are Sharing Why They Betrayed Their Partners, And You’re Going To Be SO Mad Reading This

14.

“This happened last year. My boyfriend was great, but we had only been together for about a month before I left for college. I’m not really a relationship person. I find them tedious, too much work for not enough in return. Being in a long-distance relationship made it even worse. I’d get annoyed whenever I saw a message from him, not because I disliked him, but because I just couldn’t be bothered. He wasn’t a big part of my day-to-day life. When I got to college, I basically acted like I was single. I told people I was in a relationship, but I didn’t behave like it. That first weekend, I realized I needed to break up with him, but I just… didn’t. I told myself that what he didn’t know wouldn’t hurt him, and I kept justifying it. I didn’t feel any romantic attachment to the people I was with, just physical attraction.”

“In my mind, that wasn’t cheating. I thought emotional involvement was what counted, and everything else was just lust. But I never communicated that to him. So, in reality, I was acting like I was in an open relationship while he was fully committed and had no idea. The way I rationalized it was that cheating wouldn’t hurt him if he never found out, but breaking up would. 

So I kept going, not really thinking about where it would lead—maybe until I fell for someone else, or until I got involved with someone I actually liked. The guilt was always there, but I convinced myself I was doing the right thing. That’s not true, I was just doing what was easier. I thought I was protecting him, but really, I was avoiding a difficult conversation. Eventually, I did break up with him, but I never told him what had been going on.”

– Anonymous