«That’s all your friend,» my ex said, almost as a joke.
I stopped dead in my tracks. «Wait, what? I don’t get a thing you’re saying.»
He laughed. «Of course you dont! Youre playing the clueless, wellmeaning, totally clueless act. Think Im just going to turn a blind eye?»
Sometimes life looks perfect youve got a decent job, a loving family, a solid circle of mates, and even a bloke who actually cares about you.
Then, out of the blue, a tiny grain of sand gets stuck in the shoe. Its so small you barely notice it at first, but the longer it sits there the more it irritates you, and you just want to fling it as far away as possible far enough you never have to see that awful colour, taste, or voice again.
For Poppy, that grain was a person, and a very close one at that.
Her best friend Ivy had been by her side since they were in nursery. Everything seemed fine for years.
Everything changed after university when the two of them stepped into adult life. Ivys world shifted new jobs, new friends, a whole new scene that didnt overlap with Poppys anymore. Maybe Ivy thought Poppy was doing better, earning more, and a pinch of envy slipped in.
That jealousy found a strange outlet.
Honestly, for the first year or two even five years it didnt feel like a problem. But then, as the old saying goes, water wears away the stone.
Ivy started dropping little jabs.
«Love, that dress isnt exactly maternityfriendly.»
«You could buy it, sure, but youll need a makeover before you even think about wearing it fashion moves on a hundred times faster than that.»
«Better stick with the jumpers we looked at earlier, yeah?»
Poppy, just out of the fitting room, felt a heat building inside.
«Seriously, can you stop raining on me with that crap?»
«What crap?» Ivy snapped, eyes wide.
«The stuff like not for a mumtobe, wait until you get your shape back are you some sort of fashion police?»
«Poppy, you invited me to help you shop. Im being honest.»
«If you only wanted me to say it looks great, take it, you should have said so from the start.»
«What am I supposed to say? That you shouldnt be so toxic?»
«That there are limits to whats acceptable»
I stopped myself again. «Im completely lost.»
«Exactly! Youre playing the clueless, goodnatured, clueless act again.»
«You think Ill just stay silent and let you dump all this negativity on me?»
«Dont think Ill be that naïve little girl you can use as your trash bin.»
«So know this Im done. Enough from me. If you want to keep calling, dont bother. Ill still take the dress, though, so just know that.»
Poppy snatched the dress, bolted past Ivy, who was frozen like a statue.
Ivy seemed more worried about the onlookers noticing their spat than about the fact that her friend had finally had enough. She lingered a moment, thinking, then shrugged and walked out of the shopping centre as if nothing had happened.
From then on Poppy never rang Ivy again and made no effort to patch things up, because she understood where the sudden sourness had come from. It was either Poppy would listen or not there was no point trying to sway someone whod already made up their mind.
Poppy kept living the life she thought was best. No more snide remarks about helping relatives, no nagging about her husbands involvement around the house, and, most importantly, no jokes about the little girl Vicky starting nursery.
Her motherinlaw, hearing about the fight, sighed and muttered something about eventually having to shake the leeches off her neck. Poppys own mum said the same.
Then the oddities started.
At Vickys nursery, a new caregiver, who oddly sounded like Ivy, mentioned that Vicky showed some behavioural quirks that could point to a notsopleasant diagnosis. She suggested a quick trip to a neurologist and a psychiatrist, preferably privately, to catch any issues early.
«They just want to put a label on the kid,» her motherinlaw groaned when Poppy told her about it. «Weve never had an autistic child or any of that before.»
Still, Poppy decided to take Vicky for a checkup, just to ease anyones conscience. The doctor said it was good theyd come early a little intervention now would make any later fixes easier.
Thats when Ivys words resurfaced. Six months earlier Ivy had mentioned seeing a neurospecialist, saying, «Maybe we should show Vicky to them; shes acting odd.»
Back then Poppy dismissed Ivy as toxic and bad, not giving the comment much weight but it turned out to be a hint.
More unsettling calls came from Poppys mother and motherinlaw. Ivy kept telling them that the grandmas didnt actually need a granddaughter; they just wanted Poppys wallet. As soon as extra expenses for Vicky popped up, the grandmas vanished one after another, citing busy lives and too many errands.
It all boiled down when Poppys husband announced he wanted a divorce.
Listen, Poppy, I promised to be there through thick and thin, but your endless drama with Vicky leaves me with no time for anyone else. I cant go on like this.
In a few months the oncehappy family fell apart.
Poppy took Vicky and moved into a flat shed inherited from her grandmother. This meant a fresh row with her own mother, whod grown used to using that flat whenever the whole clan turned up for a visit.
Poppy, you know itll be awkward if you move in there, her mum complained. Family should support each other in hard times, and you
Poppy heard it all before. Only Ivy, watching from the sidelines, kept pointing out that everyone was getting help from Poppys side, not the other way around. Ivy wasnt offhand dropping toxic comments; she was trying, within her limits, to open Poppys eyes to what was happening.
Now her mother, as if nothing changed, tried to stir up old arguments, even after repeatedly refusing to help Poppy when things got rough. She wasnt worried about where Vicky and her grandma would live; she fretted about where to park visiting relatives so no one felt out of place.
Ivy was right about everything, it seemed. And Poppy? Shed just blown a fuse.
Maybe she should have listened to Ivy, taken a step back, and seen things from the outside. But thats in the past.
After finally cutting ties with her mother and settling into the grannys flat, Poppy gathered flowers, a bottle of champagne and some chocolates, hoping she wouldnt get them thrown back at the door. She walked to Ivys place to try and make peace.
Ivy, please hear me out, dont shut the door on me straight away, she started, as the door creaked open. Im such an idiot, Ivy
Come in, tell me everything, Ivy sighed, letting Poppy and her gentlemans kit inside.
There were tears, promises of unwavering friendship, and vows never to doubt each other again.
Now Poppy finally knew who truly wanted her wellbeing and who only thought of themselves, bolting away the moment things got hard.
The two friends eventually patched things up, though Ivy warned Poppy that history tends to repeat itself if youre not careful. Poppy promised shed never let that happen again.
The exhusband tried to make amends later, but Poppy flatout refused to rebuild anything the same man had smashed.
Thats all your friend, you know! Shes turned you against the family, the ex had once shouted.
The same line was echoed by Poppys mum and even her former motherinlaw, all oblivious that the bed theyd made for themselves was their own doing, with no Ivy to blame.
