Silence That Meant Absence

I ignored one red flag, and it ruined everything. Everyone said they were perfect—calm,

kind, never reactive. They never raised their voice or argued, and I thought that

meant emotional maturity. The moment that should have warned me came on my birthday.

I had planned a small dinner, nothing big, just something to feel seen.

They showed up late, checked their phone through most of it, and when I finally

said I was hurt, they smiled and said, ‘You’re overthinking this.

It’s not that deep.’ There was no apology, no curiosity, no attempt to understand why it mattered

to me. Later, when I cried, they sat beside me in complete silence,