I’ve had a girlfriend for nearing 5 years now, I love her and her family, we gave each other most of our firsts, I imagined myself marrying her sooner or later.

I met my best friend about a year ago, I’ve never had single romantic thought about her, but when she hinted that she had something happening between her and some other guy, I felt like my heart was torn apart.

I know there can’t, won’t be anything between us, but it’s crushing me all the same because if I tell either of the two people I want to talk to most about this, I’ll lose at least one of them. So I tell it to the reddit void, knowing they’ll probably both see it but not know.

Here are what netizens think:

• My wife is my best friend tbh.. if your girlfriend ain’t it just be honest with her.

• You might lose one but time heals all wounds. I told a friend about my crush on them and they didn’t talk to me for a year. Straight left on read. I apologized that I made things weird and we’ve been talking, but I’m happy to hear about them being stoked on their new partner! I’m genuinely happy for them. All my best to you. It’s our only life, better live it up.

• Forcing yourself to love someone will never feel lime genuine love. Pretending never works.

• Usually, falling in love during a relationship can mean that something (or more) is lacking in your current relationship. Try to evaluate what that is and talk to your partner about it eventually. Couples therapy for situations like these (one partner having a crush/feelings) really help to understand how to proceed.

• It’s pretty obvious that after 5 years with your gf, things are starting to get boring and you are seeking an alternative route of freshness.

9 years ago I clogged the toilet with a massive poop and humiliated an innocent girl by letting her take the blame

I was 18 years old, my friend lived in a student flat and there were about 10 people around drinking and having a good time. I ended up briefly leaving to go to the shops to get some cigarettes and other bits and pieces but stopped on the way out to take a poop. The poop was huge, 9 years later it was still the biggest poop I’ve ever seen and when I tried to flush it away it clogged the waste pipe and formed a water-tight seal so the bowl just filled up. Since there was no water flowing out the toilet it wasn’t loud enough for anyone in the other room to hear me flush over the sounds of the music and conversation.

I quickly washed my hands and left to go to the shop. When I returned I just let myself back in the room and kept quiet about the poop. About 10 or so minutes later a girl called Emily left the room to go to the bathroom, my heart was pounding. She was in there an unusually long time and when she returned she announced that the toilet was clogged, a bunch of people stood up to have a look and they were howling with laughter at how disgustingly big this poop was.

Obviously, it didnt take long before people were questioning who was responsible for this disgusting display and someone jokingly (yet seriously) said to the girl “you’re the only one who’s been in there in like an hour”. Someone else followed by saying “yeah, I went in before you and I only had a piss, john knows, he was standing outside”. It was perfect, I was actually getting away with this. Nobody knew that I used the toilet before leaving the flat. Another person said “you were in there for like 10 minutes”, she responded by saying she was on her phone and even though it was most likely the truth, it just sounded like a poor excuse. She was obviously getting upset and in her humiliated state tried to bargain by saying “it probably came back up through the pipes”, people burst out laughing. Oh Jesus she really dug her grave with that comment.

It was incredible, even though she was totally innocent, people already built evidence that she was responsible for the monster poop. SHE was the last to use the bathroom, SHE was in there for 10 minutes, the person before her claimed they had a piss into an un-clogged toilet and even had a witness to back up their story. It was a closed case, if this was a court of law she would be found guilty. People were convinced she did it and there I was, the actual perpetrator standing there quietly feeling a strange mix of guilt and relief.

Everyone was a bit drunk so it’s no surprise people were being a bit nasty about it, mocking her, laughing at her. There were a few people laughing so hard they were in tears. It didnt take long before she burst into tears and left. She was always known as “the girl who clogged the toilet with a massive poop”. We didnt see her at all after that, she avoided us completely.

Back when I was around 8 or 9 I had gotten curious about a lot of things, with reproduction being one of them. However, me being a child and not knowing much about search history, and the fact we only had one big family computer, I didn’t know how to properly act on this curiosity.

One sunny day my parents and sisters weren’t home and my brothers were asleep and I decided that this was the day.

I would see my first explicit image.

As I typed all kinds of synonyms into the search bar I quickly learned there was a filter on the results for children, but I also quickly learned to take the filter off, and I got to see a woman with her chest out. When I was done viewing them I quickly closed all tabs, played some Barbie dress up, and went on my way to my room.

Later that day I hear an argument in the living room. My mom is scolding my brothers. I was only able to make out that she was telling them “do not EVER do that on the computer” “what were you thinking??” “What if the girls(me and my sisters) saw??”. All the while my brothers were constantly denying it.

I quickly realised what was going on. I peeked my head inside the room and asked what was going on and my mom quickly told me “nothing”, and that I should just go to my room. This confirmed it even more. Knowing I had just dodged a bullet, I obliged.

My mom saw the search history and assumed my adult brothers were more likely to look up that kind of stuff than her angelic young daughters, and though I definitely agree that my brothers probably consumed that kind of media as well, I am pretty sure they were knowledgeable enough to actually delete their search history after.

I will never ask them if they suspected one of us, I will never know if they knew, but something in me knows they knew. I also know they would understand.

Do I feel bad they got scolded? Yes. Would 8 year old me do it again? Probably.

Anyways if you read this I’m sorry bros

This happened about a year ago. My husband and I were married for 6 years. We had some issues while married including frequent business trips, not doing any chores while home, expecting that I would cook something for every meal while also working full time. Just generally lacking empathy or affection

He died while away on a trip in a car accident. They gave us all of his belongings and it took me a few months just to want to have a look through them. To settle his property we needed to find out where he kept his money. All the accounts I knew didn’t have as much money as I thought we should. I looked through his work phone to see if there was any bank accounts I didn’t know about, just to realise they were full of pics with his ex. I didn’t want to look, but had to. His business trips were all to see her. There were messages from when we first met each other till today. Even during the wedding he messaged her saying he hoped it would be her next to him. My entire marriage was a sham.

I talked to the husband of the girl and showed him all of this, almost as an act of revenge.

A year later, I still go to therapy, attempted suicide once and can’t trust anyone, possibly ever.

Here are what netizens think:

• First, sorry to hear, I can’t imagine your pain. Second, remember, how other people view or treat you does not define who you are or your self worth. Don’t penalize yourself for other people’s fault. Hope you continue your therapy and believe in that one day, someone will recognize your worth and treat you with respect.

• I hope you learn better ways to process your emotions about all of this, and come to understand that you are not at fault. “Other people’s behaviors are a reflection of themselves.” What your husband did was a reflection of him, not you.

• I’ve gotten a lot of comfort and support from strangers in the past during some of the worst moments of my life. A good person doesn’t have to be somebody you know. I’ve had unbiased strangers help me put things into perspective or simply been kind enough to listen until I felt better. I’ve paid it forward and helped strangers get back on their emotional feet in the past, as well. And then we part ways.

My mom told me the guy I’m seeing is “too hot” for me and she’s “positive” he’s seeing many woman because I’m “too fat” to score him

She told me this about a week ago and it’s been eating away at me every day. Like not in the sense that I believe what she’s saying but because she said it.

Who in the world speaks to their child like that?!

For reference though, I’m 26yo and I have put on some weight since quarantine and haven’t really tried to lose any of it.

The guy I’m seeing is 34 and very fit. He’s actually my ex from many years ago and we rekindled almost a year ago. I never talk to my mom about my dating life for this exact reason.

Ever since I was a kid she body shamed me and would tell me how she wouldn’t want to be seen with me because I embarrassed her.

She’s always told me I’m not a real girl, and I’m not a pretty one and she only will claim her pretty daughters.

Last week she was throwing low blows at me saying I don’t date, I’m going to die alone if I don’t find someone to date, and that I need to hit the treadmill so I can find a husband.

I told her there was no need because I’m already seeing someone. She didn’t believe me so I showed her his pics and she REALLY didn’t believe me after that. She told me I’m either lying or that he’s just using me and has 7 other pretty girlfriends who aren’t fat like me.

I wanted so bad to just break down when she said that but instead I just walked away from her. I guess I really just came here to vent but holy crap I’ve been feeling so down about this lately.

My [25M] roommate [25F] accidentally caught me “playing with myself” and is starting to cross boundaries.

So last week I was home alone, my roommate was supposed to be going out for class and so I thought I had the apartment to myself.

Well I decided to do what guys do, and spank the monkey. I didn’t think much of it, since I had the apartment to myself, but I left my bedroom door open like a moron.

About an hour into it, my roommate ended up coming in since her class was canceled, and I didn’t hear the front door open.

I was pretty into it and as I was “arriving” I noticed her in my doorway just watching me. I got up while I was halfway into “shooting” and covered myself but the whole thing was so awkward.

She gave a small laugh, apologized and started talking about her class being canceled. I literally had to cut her off mid-sentence and ask her to leave my room so I could clean up.

Ever since then things have been… weird. I noticed she’s more touchy with me and even goes as far as to wear more revealing clothes around the apartment. We’ve lived together for two and a half years and I’ve never seen her in less than sweatpants/yoga pants but now she’s in her underwear and a crop top all the time. It’s obvious she’s dressing different.

Normally this wouldn’t be as much of an issue, it’s every guys dream right? But I have a girlfriend (and I’m not attracted to my roommate, she’s my best friend of 6 years and I see her as almost a sister) and I feel guilty every time I’m around her now. I feel like she knows what she’s doing as well, since she won’t wear the revealing clothes while my girlfriend is over, and I’m not sure if I should even tell my girlfriend about this or not.

The breaking point for me was yesterday after work. I came home and she was topless in her panties in the living room doing her hair. I asked her why she wasn’t in her room and she said she wasn’t expecting me home so soon, but it’s the SAME TIME I’m always home.

I told her I felt like this is crossing a boundary and she apologized saying it was an accident and that she really didn’t mean to, but I can’t help but feel like it wasn’t. I feel like I’m crazy.

Todays she’s been texting me and apologized again for yesterday and is now asking to drink and do shots together tonight to celebrate her finishing school (I don’t have work tomorrow so tuesdays and wednesdays are my weekends) but I don’t know if it’s appropriate or where it’ll go when she’s drunk and inhibitions are gone.

I’m too poor to live on my own so I wanna do everything I can to fix and maintain my relationship with my roommate. How should I go about it?