A Good Reputation

(Part 1/2) "We met online and exchanged phone numbers. I was naive. I was young. I judged people according to the way they spoke to me. And he was well mannered. We had exchanged numbers and we would talk. I would tell him everything. We met and I could see he was a good man. He said he was employed and had a good reputation with friends. We continued speaking on the phone. I fell in love with him. And he said he has too. So we decided to get married. I knew that my parents would not agree with our relationship. So we decided to elope. I got on the bus he was on and went to a different city. The bus stopped en route for lunch. He asked me to wait on the bus and went out. With he came back he had bought water, chips and other things. When he sat next to me, I could smell the stench of cigarettes and alcohol. I told myself that the smell was not from him. As the bus left and he started talking I could sense that he behaved differently. I asked myself again. Did he got out and drink? Did he go out and smoke? Maybe it was not him. Maybe it was the other passengers. But what if it was him? What other lies could he have told me?"

SoN X Apeiron in Nepal