I have a friend who I've known for over 20 years, we aren't best friends but been pretty close over the years. It's been one of those friendships that has kind of ebbed and flowed depending on what's going on with our lives.
About 5 or 6 years ago, after breaking up with a pretty awful boyfriend, she met a guy. Seems a nice chap, I've met him a few times. Fairly early on in the rship, they had the conversation about the future and he said he didn't want to get married or have kids. Fair enough, his choice, and he's never changed his mind about either.
My friend however very much does want both marriage and kids. She thought that he was such a good guy and they were such a good match he would come around to it eventually. She moved in with him and seem to have a fairly normal rship at least from what she's said. He's not abusive or anything like that, fairly laid back, pulls his weight at home, up for doing things etc.
That's the backstory because gradually over the past few years she has turned into a bit of a drama queen about how he won't marry her and how her womb is ticking away (she's nearly 40). It got worse and worse, to the point where she just didn't care about anything going on in my life and just wanted to badmouth him. Even though she has made the decision to stay, he isn't misleading her, she just thinks he will eventually change his mind. I was sympathetic to start but quite frankly it all got too much.
I've gradually pulled away contact recently as I've been really busy and my dad has been fairly ill. She knows my dad was ill (yes, covid related) and has asked after him, so she's not completely self absorbed or anything like that.
She now wants to meet up for coffee but I really don't want to as I don't want it to end up in yet another rant about her boyfriend. I feel bad as we've been friends for such a long time, but I can't do anything about her decisions. We don't have any mutual friends I can ask either.
Sorry for the long post!