Twitter tales: A love story in 140

The first in a series

It started about a year ago and ended 8 months later.

She got to know him online via Twitter. They connected over war and conflict, a topic of mutual interest.

It later seemed somewhat like a premonition.  

She said she’d like to meet him and he started DMing her in an overtly seductive manner.   

She responded, thinking he was genuinely interested in her.

He told her he had an online girlfriend he’d never met in person. He said he wasn’t interested in having a girlfriend in real life.  

 A contradiction, it’s true.

Sometime later he told her he had split up with his online girlfriend. Things seemed to be swinging in her favour. 

Eventually, they met in person and they had an intimate sexual encounter.

Afterwards, he said he would call her, but he never did.

She hadn’t thought to ask if he was interested in having a regular friendship because she thought they were friends. 

Wrong. 

She was very sad. She felt exploited. 

Alone.  

 She caught up with him on Twitter a few days later and he said he’d been sleeping, that he’d enjoyed the experience they’d had together. 

He had changed.

Things got complicated in the Twitter world. He refused to speak to her on the telephone. She didn’t have his number so she was powerless. 

She then discovered that he was treating other women the same way on Twitter. 

Sadness turned to fear and anger. She felt isolated, vulnerable. 

Trapped by 140, by the world wide web.

She had no one to talk to. 

She looked for help online. 

She needed help. She called a bullying hotline for parents and children. 

They told her to call the police. She did. 

The police officer was kind. Helpful. She felt better.

The officer said all she could do was to warn others.   

She did. He found out. 

Afterwards, he told her he would never speak to her again. 

He hasn’t. 

Heroes.