My friend and I were sitting, drinking coffee, and, as often happens, the conversation smoothly turned to the topic of exes. More precisely, to one specific ex. I recounted it with emotion, detail, and a "you know what I mean" tone. I laughed, gestured, and, of course, spoke a little louder than necessary. At that moment, it seemed like all around me was just background noise: people, tables, cups, music.

And then, in the midst of my monologue, my friend suddenly fell strangely silent. She didn't laugh, didn't nod, but simply looked past me. I thought, "What's with the dramatic pause?" and continued... until she turned around.

At the next table.
Him.
The same one.
The ex.

Sitting. Quietly. Drinking coffee. And from the look on his face, I can tell he's heard. If not everything, then too much.

At that moment, everything flashed through my mind: from the urge to immediately disappear into the floor to the thought, "Maybe he wasn't just thinking about himself?" Spoiler: he was. The eye contact was too telling.

My friend and I fell silent. The coffee suddenly tasted bad. The air thickened. And the situation became incredibly awkward. I pretended nothing had happened (classic), even though inside I was laughing and dying of shame at the same time.

What did this story teach me?

First, a cafe is not a confessional.

Second, exes have a strange tendency to reappear precisely when you're discussing them louder than usual.

And third, sometimes the most ridiculous moments later become the best stories.

Now I remember it with a smile. So what if I heard it? So the Universe decided it was useful for him to hear my side of the story. 😌

Have you ever found yourself in such an awkward situation?