My Wife’s Guy Best Friend
My wife has a male best friend.
Their relationship is so close that they don’t care about gender boundaries – they can eat together and even sleep in the same room.
I’ve asked them multiple times to be mindful and keep their distance.
But she gets angry instead: “Ryan and I have known each other for over 20 years. If anything was going to happen between us, it would have happened long ago. You think you have a say in this?”
Then she continues to do whatever she wants, staying overnight with Ryan.
Even my in–laws treat Ryan like their own son and tell me to be more open–minded.
Later, I made a female friend of my own.
My wife confronted me: “What’s going on between you and Emma? Don’t you two have any sense of boundaries?”
I threw her words right back at her: “Emma and I have been coworkers for three years. If anything was going to happen, it would have happened long ago. You think you have a say in this?”
1
At 4 AM, Lily still hadn’t come home. I knew she wouldn’t be back tonight.
In the past, I would have been furious in this situation, calling her non–stop.
But today, I was surprisingly calm, without a trace of anger.
She came back in the morning, carrying bread and milk. With a grin, she said, “I was partying with Ryan last night and things got a bit wild. I didn’t want to wake you up by coming home late, so I just crashed elsewhere.”
She winked playfully and emphasized, “We didn’t share a bed, it was a twin room.”
Ryan is her neighbor. They grew up together – childhood friends, as they say.
But according to her, she and Ryan are just bros. Even if she stood naked in front of him, he wouldn’t get turned on.
I’ve seen them horsing around many times. She’d laugh and hook her arm around Ryan’s neck or jump on his back. Ryan never refused and often pinched her cheeks.
Every time I saw this, I felt uncomfortable. I’d pull Lily aside and tell her to be more careful and keep her distance.
At first, she’d explain and reassure me.
Later, she got impatient and retorted, “We’ve known each other since we were kids. If we were going to be together, what would be the point of you?”
And whenever this happened, Ryan would stand nearby with his hands in his pockets, casually saying, “Bro, you’re too uptight. In my eyes, Lily’s not even a woman, she’s like my sister at most. How could I have thoughts about my own sister? Wouldn’t that make me a beast?”
Looking at his pretentious act, I thought to myself, aren’t you exactly that kind of beast?
For a while, Lily and Ryan did become a bit more distant.
She stopped going out so often and stayed home, asking me to massage her back and legs, and cook for her.
She demanded five dishes for each meal, with meat, vegetables, and soup. If I complained it was too much trouble, she’d say, “You won’t let me go out, so if I can’t even eat well at home, what’s the point?”
I had no choice but to grit my teeth and cook up a storm in the kitchen.
D
2:59 PM
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She posted photos of my cooking on Instagram.
“Praising my home chef.”
Ryan commented below: Your Jack is quite the househusband, huh.
Other mutual friends chimed in: No wonder you’re not going out lately, someone’s keeping you well–fed at home.
The tone was subtle, but I couldn’t help frowning.
Lily got upset again: “You’re such a big man, why are you so sensitive? I show off a little and you’re not happy. Fine, I won’t post about you on Instagram anymore, okay?”
After a few rounds of this, it seemed like I was always the unreasonable one. Gradually, Lily became less and less patient with me.
The distance between us grew wider and wider. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t seem to get close to her heart.
“What are you thinking about?”
Lily waved her hand in front of my eyes.
I snapped out of my thoughts and looked at her smudged makeup and wrinkled clothes, suddenly feeling exhausted.
She noticed my bad mood and softened her voice to coax me: “Honey, are you mad?”
I didn’t say anything, so she took my hand: “Don’t be upset, okay? I’ll keep you company this afternoon. Oh, didn’t you want to buy a new suit recently? Let’s go to the mall today, I’ll buy it for you, okay?”
She always did this – slap me then give me candy. She took advantage of my love for her, manipulating me recklessly, as if certain I wouldn’t get angry or leave.
In the afternoon, she dragged me to the mall, browsing the brands I liked.
“This one looks good, try it on.”
She picked out a dark gray plaid suit, my usual style.
When I came out of the fitting room, I saw her holding up her phone, posing. She was on a video call.
I walked up beside her, and Ryan was on the other end of the call. She was still smiling: “This suit really suits you, I knew it was perfect at first glance.” Noticing I had come over, she asked for my opinion: “Honey, don’t you think this matches his low–key sexy vibe?”
Ryan chuckled on the other end: “So what? Are you going to buy it and send it over to me?”
“That’s just a matter of saying the word!”
They were still laughing and joking around. I calmly turned away, picked out another suit, and went back to the fitting room to change.
I paid for the suit without any emotion, seeing she was still on the video call with Ryan, so I just left on my own.
Lily chased after me, complaining: “Why didn’t you wait for me?”
“Are you angry again? Is it really worth it?”
I smiled: “No, I’m not angry.”
This time it was the truth. I really wasn’t angry.
After all, I was used to it by now.
