It’s not what you think. It started off fine.

Mostly.

There was no physical abuse. Not like what she had witnessed as a child.

No. This was subtle. Smarter.

He told her she was imagining things.

It was all in her head.

He did this for years. Decades, in fact.

He wouldn’t talk to her, unless others were around. Then, he was nice. Charming even.

A real prince.

Everyone loved him. So, it must be her.

Everyone agreed, he would have been better off without her. But, they never saw the monster behind closed doors.

How he ignored her. Pretended like she didn’t exist. Lied to her. Stole from her. Shredded her self confidence and left her drowning, drowning, drowning….

….and there was no one to tell.

Because no one would believe her.

In the end, she didn’t leave him.

One day she just slipped below the surface one last time and was unable to come up for air. And, she was gone.

Forever.

Some might call it a blessing in disguise.

Maybe it’s the penalty for wanting to be loved….

The irony is the picture he had hung on his apartment the wall when they were dating.

You know the one…

Love is patient.

Love is kind.

Love does no harm.

In reality though…

Love is…blind.