I was in the country only eleven days, and four weeks. That’s why she wanted to stay in a hostel, but I didn’t. I worked hard and wanted to enjoy my vacation, where a little luxury wasn’t superfluous. Gabriella and I got into the most heated argument we’ve ever had. I thought I had to adjust to her needs and I just didn’t feel like it. We decided to book our stay separately and didn’t speak to each other after that.

A few weeks later we met at the Schiphol Gate. She didn’t look at me, didn’t say hello until I greeted her, and reserved a seat on the other side of the plane. On vacation she did everything she could to avoid me and when we met on the balcony she moved to another table further away from me.

Voice memo

“Because I didn’t want to ruin my vacation and hers, I didn’t say anything about it. But when she got back to Holland, I wanted to talk about it. I approached her and got a 35-minute (!) audio memo. She screamed and cried and went through the rest of the emotional rollercoaster too. As She sent me a written note. “If you want to talk about this, call me. I don’t want you to reply via WhatsApp. Oh, and if you’re not going to apologize, don’t call at all.

Something broke inside me. I found her response unreasonable and made it clear to her. This was clearly not appreciated, and someone else followed suit bravado in which the friendship ended. They set me aside for something to talk about. But I refused — and still do — to apologize for something I stand for.”

*My names have been changed to Gaby and Gabriella. Their real names are known to the editors.

This article previously appeared on LINDA.meiden.

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