I was sitting at a bar, drinking coffee, reading a manga on my phone, when I looked up and saw a figure walking towards me. My eyes were dizzy from staring at black-and-white pictures. By the time I rubbed and opened them, you were sitting in front of me, wearing hell on your face. I asked you what the matter was, but you’d raised your hand, signalling the waiter to come to our table.

I waited as you ordered a beer and then waited some more for it to arrive. It took you three minutes to down the drink and another two to order another one. It was during that lull that I wanted to ask you what the matter was, but you cut me short.

“Did you sleep with my girlfriend?” you asked me. And I replied, curtly, “No”.

The hell you wore softened. But it was still there. I asked you why you thought that. I asked you why you would even think your girlfriend cheated on you. You fell back on your chair. Your body almost melting into it. “Has she done this before?” I asked you.

You didn’t say anything. Outside, the cars and bikes created a cacophony that one could easily lose themselves in, and I wanted to, but no, you needed me, so I pressed on the question. “Has she cheated on you before?”

“Yes,” you replied. “Yes, she has. She has a problem. It’s not her fault,” you said. “She’s…well, she didn’t grow up in the best sort of house.”

“Look,” I replied. “Whatever her problems, it doesn’t give her the right to treat you like that.” I wanted to say more, but I held my tongue. I didn’t want to say too much.

You looked morose. Your second drink arrived, and you drank this one slowly—only half a glass in the first gulp. I lit a cigarette and offered it to you. You stared at the cigarette, then at me, and thought about it. The hell you wore grew brighter then died down, and you took the cigarette out of my hand, held it to your lips and sucked in the smoke.

“How many times has she done it,” I asked.

“It used to be more frequent before we moved in together,” you said. “I didn’t even know about it for the first six months we were dating, you said.”

You are a fool.

“Every Friday, she would go out with her friends and end up at some guy’s place. I mean. I was one of those guys at the beginning. I met her at a club.”

“I know,” I said.

“Yeah, the first time I went to one and met someone.” You are a lucky fool.

“Anyway, I didn’t know she’d keep doing it after we started dating. So, she kept doing it, and I was blissfully unaware. It was only when we were celebrating our half-year anniversary that she broke down in my arms and told me what she’d done. What she had been doing.”

You are an easy fool.

“And you didn’t break up with her,” I asked. “I was already in love by then,” you said. I downed my coffee and thought of ordering a gin and tonic. Oh, wait, that’s her favourite drink. I ordered a rum and Coke. “That was when you two moved in together, right?”

“Yeah, that’s when we moved in together. I thought if I could keep her in my sight, then she wouldn’t do me like that…listen, she loves me. I know she loves me. She has a problem.”

“After we moved in together, she started bringing in guys during the day. When I was at work.”

“How did she even meet them,” I asked. “Apps,” he replied. “It was another couple months of this, and finally, I had had enough. I told her I was done. But she knew I wasn’t. She knew I couldn’t leave.”

“Why couldn’t you?” I asked. The hell you wore on your face grew colder, went out, and was replaced by a rainy day. “I… I don’t know,” you replied. “I just couldn’t. I just can’t. But she said she couldn’t too. She told me how sorry she was. She apologised. And she told me why she couldn’t stop doing what she did. There was something wrong with her but she said she would try. She would try to control it. Just don’t leave, she begged.”

“I put app blockers on her phone. I told my office I had to work from home. I kept her in my sights 24/7.” Your voice cracked. You almost started sobbing.

You are a crazy fool.

“So, what’s the problem then? Why do you think she cheated on you, and that too with me?” I asked. “It was fine the first month or two after that,” you replied. “We spent more time together. We…‘did’ a lot of things together. I felt closer to her and I know she did too. It felt like our relationship was healing. But then, a week ago…”

“You had to leave for that work trip,” I finished your sentence. You nodded.

“The deal with work was that I could work from home, but if there were any work trips, my name would be the first on the pick. I tried to fight it, but I couldn’t. It was this or that. And plus, the trip wasn’t that long—three days. I thought she could manage. She told me she could. She looked me in the eyes, kissed me, and told me she could manage.”

“She didn’t,” I replied.

“She didn’t,” you said.

“Then why come to me?” I asked you. You sat there, silent. Four beers deep now, while I was still nursing my rum and Coke. I looked you in the eyes and asked you again. “Why did you think she cheated on you with me?”

“Well,” you replied softly. “When I returned, I could just feel that another man had been there. This time was different. She had tried to hide it. Or whoever it was had tried to hide it. But I just knew. I knew someone had been there—another man. I didn’t say anything, but that night, when I held her, that’s when I knew for sure. She felt different. The next day, I asked her. And she just lost it. She told me how much she had tried. That if I could never forgive and forget, I should just leave. She’s never said that before. So, I let it be. She’s still angry, but I am too afraid to bring this up to her again.”

You wore a full monsoon on your face now. I leaned forward and put my hand on your shoulder. “She’s right,” I said. “You’re only worried because of what happened in the past. Listen, if you ask me, you should’ve left her a long time back, but you didn’t. You chose to stay. You chose to believe in her. And look, she’s done it. She has overcome her carnal desires for strangers because of her love for you.”

The monsoon you wore on your face was softening. Perhaps you were ready to let some sun in. “You really think so?” you asked. “Yes, I do think so,” I replied. We sat in silence as we both finished our drinks, and after I did mine, I got up, threw some cash on the table and made to leave.

I looked back at you and said, “Listen, things are alright. You had a fright, which is fine. I hope you and she see this as something that’ll strengthen your relationship. Believe in her. She’s asking you to, too.”

“Yeah,” you replied.

“I gotta head now. You should drink some more. Maybe you’ve spent so much time thinking about her and your relationship that you’re stressed out. It’s clear to see. She’s fine being alone now. Take some time for yourself.”

“Yeah,” you replied.

“Alright,” I said. “I’m sorry I doubted you,” you said. “It’s fine, I get it. After all, I was the only one you’d told you were gonna be gone. So, I understand why. But hey, no hands were thrown. We talked it out like adults, didn’t we?”

“Yeah,” you replied, wearing the first rays of sunlight after a flood on your face. I smiled at you and walked away.

You absolute sweetheart of a fool.