HER BESTFRIEND IS A MAN

I am Daniel and two years ago I fell in love with Cindy at a wedding attended by mutual friends. Sounds romantic, doesn't it? But in my case, it really was love at first sight. In a beautiful burgundy dress and curled hair brought her face into sharp focus. Her laughter was contagious and attracted people the same way a magnet attracts metal. When she talked, her intelligence was so clear that I was hooked.

A friend of ours introduced us, and after just a conversation, I realized she was different. As a senior marketing executive in a leading advertising agency, Cindy showed her passion for her work when talking about her most recent advertisements. She spoke well, made everyone laugh, and somehow made every person near her feel special.

Once we began dating seriously six months after our wedding, Cindy was honest about who she was. She talked about how busy her career was, how close she was with her relatives, how much she enjoyed traveling and, needless to say, about Frederick, who'd been her best friend since University.

When I first saw it, I didn't pay it too much attention. I also had female friends in my engineering classes at university. I thought that over time, I'd end up being the one she turned to, told her secrets to and counted on the most. I wished for all the heart-to-heart talks, fun inside jokes and very personal friendship that exists between close companions.

Yet over the past few months, this attitude has disappeared. Because Frederick was always her first choice to share things with, I slowly lost confidence in areas I hadn't anticipated.

It was about eight months into our relationship, during a lazy Saturday, that I saw just how close they were to each other. We spent the night at my home in Victoria Island, laying on the couch and watching a film. Cindy's skin was covered with warm, golden light from the sunlight streaming through my tall windows. She looked so gorgeous, with her pinkish skin and relaxed, in one of my extra-large t-shirts and shorts, tucking her legs beneath her. Everything was perfect then and there.

Next, her phone started to ring. As soon as Frederick's name showed up on the screen, you could see her whole attitude change. She seemed genuinely excited when I asked her.

"Hey babes, what's good?" she answered, her voice taking on a warm, affectionate tone that I recognized as reserved for her closest friends. "You're not serious!" she laughed, and I felt a sharp, unexpected pang of jealousy pierce through me.

The conversation continued for what felt like an eternity but was probably only about five minutes. Frederick had apparently just returned from a business trip to Dubai and was telling her about some amusing incident at the airport. Cindy was laughing freely, occasionally reaching over to touch my arm or play with my hair, but her attention was clearly focused on their conversation.

Wish you were here now, I will talk to you soon, I love you! I'm absolutely enjoying my time with my baby," she said, stroking my hair gently. I promise, you will meet him properly before long.

After the conversation ended, I'm sure I looked anxious and Cindy could tell how I was feeling right away.

What is the matter with you, baby? I noticed you look a bit upset," she said, facing me totally as her brow was wrinkled with caring.

Still, I didn't speak out to prevent coming off as petty or controlling. "It's just... Calling him 'babes' wasn't something I felt comfortable with. It might sound a bit funny, but when you say a word like that when I'm with you, I take it as disrespect.

Cindy's expression became more serious and I could tell she was getting guarded. "Daniel, please. That's Frederick. We've always called each other this way because that's our habit. Don't make me believe you're feeling jealous of my best friend.

The tired sound in her voice made me think I had been unreasonable. Since I could see the conversation would go nowhere, I forced a smile and moved on. All of this had already taken its toll. The thought had occurred to me and I was struggling to believe I was not in competition with someone else for her attention.

Over time, I began to care even more. I had started to observe how often we talked about Frederick. She would mention events he described, places they had visited and jokes they had. She'd send me funny images he had sent her or talk to me about what they had discussed about life, work or their relationships.

She didn't conceal anything from me-just the opposite happened. She was completely upfront about her friendship with Frederick which seemed to make everything worse. Because she didn't see anything wrong with the way things were, I started wondering if I was the wrong one.

Things got serious on a Thursday afternoon, when I surprised Cindy at her apartment. I got off from work early, so I decided to spend the extra time with her. I made a stop at her favorite restaurant so I could bring her some rice and some grilled chicken.

I discovered Cindy and Frederick snuggled on the couch playing FIFA on her PlayStation when I used the key she had given me to get in her house. They were both yelling at the game, insulting each other and laughing as if young teenagers.

"Yes! Goal!" Seeing the name, Frederick got up from the couch and did a little jig of happiness. That's what I meant!

You've just lucked out! Cindy laughed and hurled a throw pillow toward him while protesting. You know as well as I do that that was only luck!

Thanks to how eager they were to play; they didn't spot me in the doorway with the food. When I cleared my throat, they turned around.

"Daniel!" She looked genuinely happy and surprised when she saw what had happened. She leapt from her seat and walked toward me to hug me. I'm surprised and glad this happened! I had expected you to arrive after a bit.

I returned her hug and breathed in her perfume, but was still watching Frederick, who was now watching us with a smile

Cindy chuckled and glanced back and forth between Frederick and me, not sure what to do. Would you be okay if we complete this one game first? Frederick has been bragging and should be clear that I'm not impressed by his words. "Hey, Daniel," Frederick said and stood up to greet me. It's great to be able to see you once more. Cindy mentioned the project that's keeping you all so busy at the construction site. Sounds like it would be interesting."

I took his hand and acted as calmly as I could. His good looks were obvious: tall, strong, always smiling with confidence. It made sense why he matched so well with Cindy. He was in finance and shared Cindy's strong ambition.

I answered, "Everything's going good so far," as I set the meal on her table. I came by with dinner for you if you'd like to eat.

I hugged Cindy tight when she responded, "Thank you." We were right at the end of this game. Frederick was already getting ready to leave.

Yet, Frederick stayed at the table and didn't hurry away. Instead, he went back to the couch, grabbed his controller and got back to playing.

On second thought, I'd like to finish the tournament we've been preparing for," he told Cindy. It's tied two-two and I'm not ready to let you think you're better at FIFA.

Cindy laughed and looked between Frederick and me, clearly torn. "Baby, would you mind if we just finished this one game? Frederick's been talking trash all afternoon, and I need to put him in his place."

I wanted to say yes, I did mind. I wanted to point out that I had brought dinner, that this was supposed to be our time together, that Frederick could play video games with her any other time. But I also didn't want to be the controlling boyfriend who couldn't handle his girlfriend having male friends.

"No problem," I said, even though it wasn't true. "Go ahead."

I was there at the table, eating rice alone as my girlfriend and her best friend played video games together. Everyone was totally involved in the game, chattering, making jokes and disputing with one another. Frederick joked earlier that he would watch me cry as he beat her so when he was about to score, she ran over and wrestled the controller away from him.

It was in that moment, as I saw them laughing and touching without thinking much about it, that anger and jealousy hit me with a force I thought I wouldn't feel. It was obvious how easy they were around each other. It was an experience like someone watching a couple after many years together.

I didn't say anything as I finished my meal and felt awkward as a visitor in my girlfriend's place.