He Said Someone Like Him Would Never Date Me — So I Made Sure He Never Would

And for a long time, I didn’t feel used. I felt needed. The distinction between those two things is so thin you can miss it entirely until you’re $36,000 deep and the person you needed to need you is laughing at you in front of his friends.

Two days after the rooftop bar, Derek texted: We should talk.

No apology. No acknowledgment. Just a request, like continue reading …