Dear Rebound,
I hate that I’m calling you that, because it just seems to have such a negative connotation, but that’s what you are. You’re the guy I somehow found in my life after one of the most devastating breakups I’ve ever experienced. But you’re also more than the stepping-stone stereotype.
When we met, I was crying myself to sleep every night, listening to sad songs, and wishing every day that my ex would come back into my life. When we first met, the concept of “us” was the furthest thing from my mind. I was in this dark place that I just couldn’t seem to find my way out of. Even though my ex was gone, he still had this hold on me. I was still doing everything I could to win him back.
I wasn’t in any position to do anything that remotely resembled feelings, and to be perfectly honest, I didn’t want to. I was content with being emotionless because I couldn’t get hurt that way. And that’s when I convinced myself that if I could just find someone who liked me more than I liked them, I’d be able to stay in control and move on with my life.
And that’s where you came in. You had always been around. You were friends with my friends, and we had always been friendly. At first it was just casually hanging out with all our friends at the house, or going out with friends and meeting up at a bar, but somewhere down the line, you became more than that.
You had always been nice to me. You had always flirted with me. And maybe I was just to wrapped up in my own dark cloud to notice, but suddenly I did. Suddenly I realized that I was much happier than I’d been in awhile. And I was also spending more and more time with you.
I’m not really sure how it happened. My friends agreed, saying that somehow, you had just made your way into my life, making it a little easier to wake up every morning. Maybe it was just the fact that someone was being nice to me at a time when I had essentially given up on being happy with anyone. Or maybe it was because you were paying attention to me, even when I wasn’t to you. My planned had backfired a little, but I really felt like I was moving on—because every day I spent with you, was a day I thought about him less and less.
So thank you, Mr. Rebound. Thank you for making me smile again. Thank you for being everything my ex wasn’t. For never making this anything more or less than what it is. Thank you for being my friend (and more). Thank you for always being honest with me.
People say that you should never fall for your rebound or that rebounds never turn into something real. And if we’re being honest, I don’t know where this is going to go. We’re taking life as it comes, and it feels great. So whether you stick around for years, or you walk away tomorrow, just know that even though you were my “rebound,” you were also so much more. You were proof that I could be happy again.
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