They're Happy Slash We're Over

It really is okay.

There’s an episode of Sex And The City, Season 2 Episode 18 to be exact, where Carrie tells her girls over brunch she ran into her ex Mr. Big and his new girlfriend.

“I saw them at Café M. He was holding her hand and smiling and…I finally got it. They’re happy, slash, we’re over. It was okay.”

They’re happy slash we’re over.

It’s okay.

In the past couple of weeks, I’ve had two they’re happy slash we’re over moments.

Ideally, I would have avoided it for a little longer. Neither time were in person. Both times were via video, unintentionally bearing witness to moments from a holiday abroad and very much a result of happenstance. But the sting. The sting.

No matter the circumstances of any breakup, I do believe seeing your ex with someone new is tough. At least the first time. It’s rattling. It seems wrong. It feels bizarre.

Seeing your ex happy with someone new…that might be tougher.

I don’t want my ex back. I could, honestly, think of nothing worse.

I am, despite the ups and downs, despite the rollercoaster, very happy with where I’m at.

But the sting.

The first time caught me so off guard, I felt instantly sick. It wasn’t so much the visual of another woman. It was his voice in the video. I could tell he was happy. I heard it. His laugh in it tormented me the entire night. It knocked me for six.