I had always believed that my boyfriend, Alex, and I were destined to be together. We had been dating for almost two years, and in that time, I had fallen deeply in love with him. But recently, things had changed. Alex had become distant, and I felt like I was losing him. No matter what I did, it seemed like he wasn’t as interested in me as he used to be.

In my desperation to get his attention and prove to him that I was worth fighting for, I made a decision that I never thought I would. I decided to sleep with his best friend, Ryan.

Ryan and Alex had been friends since college. They were inseparable, always together, always laughing. I knew that if Alex saw me with Ryan, he’d be jealous and realize how much he loved me. Or at least, that’s what I thought.

One evening, I invited Ryan over to my apartment under the guise of needing someone to talk to about my relationship troubles. I knew he had always had a bit of a crush on me, and tonight, I was going to use that to my advantage.

As we sat on the couch, I poured us both a glass of wine. “I just don’t know what to do, Ryan,” I said, feigning sadness. “Alex has been so distant lately, and I’m scared he’s not in love with me anymore.”

Ryan looked at me with sympathy, his hand resting gently on my shoulder. “I’m sure that’s not true. Alex loves you. He’s probably just going through something.”

I leaned in closer, letting my hand brush against his. “But what if he doesn’t? What if he’s lost interest in me?” I whispered, looking into Ryan’s eyes.

Ryan hesitated, his gaze flicking down to my lips. I could see the conflict in his eyes, the loyalty to his friend battling with his attraction to me. But after a moment, he leaned in and kissed me.

The kiss quickly turned passionate, and before I knew it, we were in my bedroom. It felt wrong, but I kept telling myself it was for a good reason. I needed Alex to realize what he was about to lose.

The next morning, as I lay in bed beside Ryan, reality hit me. I felt a mix of guilt and anxiety about what I had done. Ryan left shortly after, clearly uncomfortable with what had happened.

I waited for Alex to find out, expecting him to come storming over, demanding to know why I had done it. But days passed, and nothing happened.

When I finally saw Alex, he was his usual distant self. I tried to bring up what had happened with Ryan, hoping to provoke some kind of reaction.

“Alex, I have something to tell you,” I said, my voice trembling. “I… I slept with Ryan.”

He looked at me blankly for a moment, then shrugged. “Yeah, Ryan told me.”

I stared at him, waiting for the anger, the hurt, anything. But all he said was, “I guess I wasn’t enough for you, huh?”

I was stunned. “Alex, aren’t you angry? Don’t you care at all?”

He sighed, running a hand through his hair. “I don’t know what you want me to say, Jess. I mean, if you felt like you needed to do that, then maybe we’re not right for each other.”

My heart sank. All this time, I had been trying to make him jealous, to make him see that he needed me. But instead, it seemed like he didn’t care at all.

“Do you even love me?” I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.

Alex looked at me, his expression sad. “I did, Jess. But I don’t know if I do anymore. I think we’ve been holding on to something that’s just not there.”

I felt tears well up in my eyes. All my efforts, my desperate attempt to win him back, had done nothing but push him further away. I realized then that my actions had been a mistake, that trying to manipulate his feelings had only backfired.

“I’m sorry, Alex,” I said, tears streaming down my face. “I just didn’t want to lose you.”

He nodded, looking away. “I know. But sometimes, you have to let go.”

With that, he turned and walked away, leaving me standing there, alone with my regrets. I had wanted to make him jealous, to make him fight for me. But in the end, I had only proven to him that maybe, we were better off apart.

And as painful as it was, I knew he was right.