Here's a little throwback in my life to help keep you entertained during quarantine!
It was my freshman year at the University of Kentucky. Now I came from a small, private Catholic high school where we had approximately 20 boys in my grade and only around three who were tolerable, in my opinion. Needless to say, there weren't a ton of options, so I went into college with pretty much zero relationship experience, other than a few dates here and there.
I met HIM through practices for a cheerleading competition. Even though I had no prior cheerleading experience and consider myself to have average balance skills at best, I volunteered to be a flyer. So there I was, just a little over a month into college letting my soon-to-be-boyfriend and another stranger who I had only known for about a week lift me up in the air over their heads, toss me, and catch me as I fell helplessly into their arms. That was probably my first mistake.
After the competition, I thought I would never see this kid again until he messaged me and asked to hang out. We met up, and he seemed to be a nice and normal guy. I decided to give it a chance because what's the worst that could happen right? And boom I found myself with my first official boyfriend.
We started hanging out more and he told me he had been having pain in his abdomen and was going to see a doctor about it. They had found a mass and were trying to determine if it was cancer or something else. He eventually found out that it was NOT cancer and was trying to figure out how to manage the pain and the next steps for what to do. I tried to be super attentive and to comfort him when he seemed to be in pain, but at the same time, I was losing the initial connection I felt with him and felt like something was off.
I was planning on breaking up with him before we went away for Thanksgiving break, only three weeks after we started dating and only 4 weeks after meeting him. The night before I set the date, I got a bunch of texts from his phone that was from a "friend" who said he was going to the hospital after collapsing during a basketball game. I contemplated waiting to break up with him due to his health, but my family and friends convinced me it would be better to just do it. I told him I would still be a friend and support him with whatever he needed.
The next semester he messaged me wanting to catch up because he "didn't know how much time he had left." I was confused because it wasn't cancer before, but maybe it changed? I met him for lunch and he told me that he actually had cancer. He even sent me his GoFundMe page to pay for his cancer treatment. But something seemed off about his story and the scenario.
About a week later, he messaged me and said it was all a lie. He LIED about having CANCER. I'm glad that I sensed something off and didn't stay involved with this kid. I wish him all the best for both his physical and mental health, but I sure did dodge a bullet!
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