Nobody wants to hear this, but sometimes the person you want most is the person you’re best without.

Let me share an experience.

I met someone while roaming the streets of Facebook back in 2021. We got talking and before I knew it, I fell—hard. At least, that’s what I thought it was—love. It was so effortless, so smooth, like it was meant to be. He was just a fresh Corper trying to find his feet, and I didn’t care that he didn’t have money or a concrete plan for the future. There was no promise of forever, but I didn’t mind. I just wanted to love someone, to be there for someone... and be loved in return. And yes, I loved him.

But life doesn’t always give us what we hope for.

For two years, I poured myself into him. Every drop of affection, every ounce of my energy, my prayers, my patience—I gave it all. I carried us like my life depended on it. I overlooked the late replies, the unreciprocated effort, the empty promises, the emotional absence. I kept showing up, even when he didn’t. Until one day... I looked in the mirror and realized the woman staring back at me was exhausted. Not just tired, but emotionally drained, forgotten, and fading. That’s when I knew—I had to stop.

Not because I stopped loving him... but because I finally remembered I needed to love me more.

So I stepped back. I started rediscovering myself—my peace, my joy, my voice, my worth. I cried some nights. I missed him on others. But I kept going. Slowly, the fog lifted. I remembered the sound of my own laughter, the glow of my own light, the power of being whole all by myself.

And then... just like in the movies, he came back.

He came back with apologies, with memories, with regrets. He said he missed me, that he realized what he lost. But he wasn’t coming back for the woman I had become. He came back searching for the girl who would do anything to keep him—the girl who loved blindly and endlessly, even when it hurt.

But she no longer existed.

In her place stood a woman who had learned. A woman who no longer begs to be seen, heard, or loved. A woman who understands that love isn't meant to cost your self-worth. That peace is too expensive to trade for temporary affection. That real love—true, reciprocal love—starts with yourself.

He came back wanting her.
But I chose me.