I’m From Riner, VA.

by Cat D.

Satellite overhead image of Virginia from Google Earth 2022

I met the love of my life on November 3, 2008, the only problem was I already had a girlfriend whom I loved very dearly. This new woman (Toni) was simply irresistible. I kept making up excuses to have her come over to my house, the most common one being “I need help with GSA stuff” since I was the founder & president.

Our first kiss happened the first day she came over, we goofed around and ended up drawing mustaches on each others faces in orange highlighter, the sweetest, yet dorkiest thing I have ever done. Things soon ended with my girlfriend and Toni and I got together, I was on cloud nine. Things moved pretty fast; we slept together in the first week which was a semi-new experience for me being as my previous girlfriend and I weren’t very sexual. Soon enough Toni and I were head over heels in love. I never thought I could feel that way about anyone in the world. I loved her for who she was including all her imperfections, which there were a fair amount. It was pure bliss for a while, then things started to go down hill.

I didn’t like the fact that Toni smoked weed or the fact that she sometimes drank as I didn’t trust the people around her so we fought and fought but ended up in a stalemate because no one should be told who they can and cannot talk to. I tried to make her choose between me and her friends. Big mistake. She chose me but lied because she was still seeing the people I didn’t want her to see. Things cooled down and our relationship got back on track. Then something happened and I didn’t believe what she told me so we fought some more. Eventually things got better but then something worse happened to me even though I didn’t mean for it to. It was a mistake and I should have stopped it but I didn’t. So she broke my heart, again, and I was left alone and with a bad reputation. Slowly we started talking again but then over New Year’s Eve she was sort of with me and sort of with someone else (my ex’s new girlfriend) and they had been sleeping together and that really hurt me, so on New Year’s we got into a huge fight and she hit me. I had a black eye and bruises for my birthday while she was sent to a hospital.

When she came out things got worse. She drank more, smoked more and hit me more even though I stuck by her side no matter what. I reached my breaking point when she started having an affair with a 36-year-old married man who was also her co-worker. She left me so she could sleep with him and not feel guilty about it. So I was heartbroken by this woman many times over the year and a half we were together and after this final time I decided to move on.

I met a nice, sweet honest girl who lives in the mountains and shares the same hopes and dreams as I do but I couldn’t stop thinking about Toni. We went to the same school so I saw her almost everyday and it killed me. I wanted her so badly, I believe I was truly in love with her. At one point we became close again with hugs and kisses so when prom rolled around last week and my current girlfriend couldn’t come so I went with Toni. Long story short we had sex and I broke up with my girlfriend for a shot with the woman I believe to be my soul mate. I may be wasting my time but you should never give up on love…who knows maybe we’ll be together again soon.

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