A woman was crushed when she found out that her family had been helping her fiancé hide his relationship with her best friend. She detailed the open-phone policy she and her fiancé, Alex, 23, have in place, which allows them to freely look through each other’s messages.

Both of them had been cheated on in past relationships, so they agreed to this rule. But they trusted each other so much that they never felt the need to use it. Things took a turn when the 22-year-old caught her best friend, Peach, dialing her fiancé’s number while he was in the shower.

On Reddit, she shared: “Alex was in the shower and had left his phone on our bed. As I carefully packed my suitcase, I couldn’t help but feel excited for the family trip following my rehearsal dinner tomorrow. I could hear the constant ringing of his phone. As I was going about my day, a sudden request came from the bathroom: “Can you please silence my phone?”

As I reached for his phone, I noticed that Peach was the one calling him. Initially, I was intrigued, but considering she’s a member of my bridal party, I didn’t find it overly concerning. After muting the phone, I quickly sent a message to Peach from my own phone.

She told Peach that Alex was in the shower and asked what she needed from him to make sure everything was okay. Peach casually replied, “Oh, nothing!” I’m reaching out to finalize the details for the flowers in your bouquet and for the aisle.”

The woman expressed confusion, stating that she had not changed her flowers at all. She also confirmed that her step-dad had paid for them in full a month ago. Afterward, Peach chimed in, asking, “Are you sure?” I remember him [Alex] telling me you changed your mind?”

Without overanalyzing, the close friends chatted about her upcoming wedding before ending the call and going about their day. Reflecting back, it seemed odd that she felt the need to call multiple times to discuss a flower selection that could have easily been handled through a text message.

“When Alex got out of the shower, I told him Peach had called him about the flowers I wanted to order.” I asked him what made him think I changed my mind on the flowers for the wedding. After a moment, he stopped to collect his thoughts. I now know that when I asked him, he was just stalling and making the “Oh, I’m thinking” face.

Later, he mentioned that he believed I had casually brought it up over dinner. I informed him that I couldn’t remember that. After that, he simply shrugged, picked up his phone, and returned to the bathroom. Regrettably, I must admit that my gut truly sank this time.

“I felt really suspicious and couldn’t get rid of it. I tried to tell myself that it was just the memory of my ex-cheating boyfriend coming back to haunt me. But I simply couldn’t shake this off.” Trying to avoid any confrontation, the woman decided to wait until Alex had fallen asleep that night before going through his phone, in an attempt to ease the growing unease in her stomach.

It was a shocking discovery when she stumbled upon the group chat that included Alex, Peach, her mom, Maria, her half-sister Angie, and her half-brother Richard. She mentioned that once she realized he was in a deep sleep, she decided to check his phone again. After thoroughly searching through his Instagram, Snapchat, and messages, I came up empty-handed.

Afterward, I decided to check his Facebook messenger. He uses a messenger app to stay in touch with his family who live abroad. My interactions with him were mainly with his immediate family, and the majority of our conversations revolved around making travel arrangements for the upcoming wedding.

Our wedding was originally planned for December, with a beautiful winter wonderland theme. Looking back at my past relationships, I used to browse through his Messenger archives. It was at that moment that the shocking truth was revealed.

A group chat was initiated with Peach, Alex, Richard, Angie, and Maria. It’s been a year since the group chat was created, and that’s when Alex and Peach dropped a bombshell by admitting to my family that they were having an affair. Initially, my mother did express disapproval towards them. Yet, she later asked Alex did he truly loved Peach ‘because you can’t help who you love’ (Really great mum – that was super helpful).”

Alex’s half-sister, Angie, and half-brother, Richard, proposed a solution for his dilemma – suggesting he approach Peach for an open relationship to avoid having to make a difficult choice between them. “They both are in open relationships and married and apparently it’s working for them in whatever la-la land they live in,” she said.

By this stage, we were already engaged. Alex said that he thought it was too deep to try to bring up. My mother, who I’m starting to have mixed feelings about, mentioned that they would support Alex and Peach until he was ready to discuss an open relationship with me.

“As I read, all I could think was how the f*** could my family abandon me in such a way. I can’t believe Peach would do something like that to me. We have been friends since our early days in Kindergarten. Alex was practically a part of our childhood. How could she even fathom the idea of being with my fiancé and claiming to love me as well?

“Can you believe everything that’s happening in this awful group chat? Can you believe Alex actually had the audacity to claim he loves me too? To experience firsthand the feeling of being betrayed in such a way. I felt a strong urge to vomit.” Feeling shocked the woman began capturing screenshot after screenshot until she found out that Peach had taken her spot on her last family vacation, which she missed due to a stomach bug.

She exclaimed, “I can’t even fathom what they experienced during the journey. What truly stings is the realization that my mother was completely fine with the situation. Discovering that my fiancé had been unfaithful for an entire year was a devastating revelation. It seems like it’s taking forever to sink in.” Turning to the Reddit community for guidance, she has reached out for suggestions on how to navigate this difficult situation and address those responsible for causing her pain.

She exclaimed, “I’ve been aware for an entire week!” It’s been making me angry, and I want to blow up and swear at them all. I am determined to make them suffer just as they made me suffer. Dealing with intense emotional pain can be overwhelming, especially when it involves confronting someone. Seeking advice on how to approach the situation can provide clarity and guidance. How do I even begin? What should be my response?”

The intensity of my anger is overwhelming, making me fear that releasing it would portray me as insane. Please reddit, anything will help. Tomorrow at our rehearsal dinner, I have decided to address the situation with them. One person replied, “How nuclear do you want to be? Make an exit plan, get your ducks in a row, and disappear. I think you should post pictures of those screenshots, tag all your family, block and ghost everyone.”

Another user commented, “Girl, I would totally disappear without a trace. I would keep a fake face on, make an exit plan, grab my essentials, and literally move as far as possible. I would deliver heartfelt speeches to each of these individuals, praising their unwavering honesty and integrity. Offering a final opportunity for validation before deciding whether to continue having them in my life.”

“Then I would change my number. Then I would leave. Maybe follow that one person who put the dead fish in the curtain rods. And then as I leave I would post every single screenshot online. And then I’d be gone. With no means of contact, it’s impossible to find me. Hell I’d even change my name.”

Another user shared: “For a more impactful approach, consider creating a video showcasing their conversations (receipts) during tomorrow’s rehearsal.” It is important to have someone read the messages. Maybe give out copies to guests… Share with the world how your family was aware of… Express gratitude to all the attendees for their presence and then announce that there will be no wedding, followed by a declaration that they are all no longer important to you… ”

That’s not what families do; all you have now is matching DNA. Block delete therapy and move on from all these horrible people.”