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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Boyfriend's female 'friend'.

157 replies

iriswildflower · 09/04/2021 19:43

I've been with my BF for two years now, and I am beginning to get really fed up with his female 'best friend'. I'm starting to feel like a third wheel in my own relationship!

At the start, BF was very open and honest about his friendship with this woman, telling me how they were very close, she was his best friend, in their friendship group she was the one he could really turn to and rely on. She's caused issues in his relationships before me, but he assured me that he'd always put me first and he'd learnt from his mistakes in the past. I was pleased with the fact he'd been transparent and honest about it. I've had relationships with men in the past who've had very close friendships with females and it has never bothered me. However, BF is less than honest about things. The issue all started when he lied about going for dinner with her one time, only for me to find out months later. It just set an unhealthy precedent, and I've never been jealous / controlling in the past, but he is making me feel like I am!

A few examples:

  • He won't mention when he's seen her, only when I directly ask. For example, they will frequently go to the gym together, walk their dogs together, go for lunch/dinner/to a bar... recently he mentioned how much he loves a certain type of cake, so she baked it for him and delivered it to his house. He is never open with any of this, if I ask him how his day is he will never mention it. He only ever tells me if I specifically ask, 'have you seen x recently?'. He doesn't accept that this is lying by omission, he just tells me he doesn't see the point in telling me as I will 'make an issue over nothing'.
  • He deletes their conversations with one another. I have his password so will often use his phone for social media, googling, listening to music and watching films. It became obvious he deletes conversations, as messages from her would pop up whilst we were on his phone, the messages were continuing a conversation, but when he clicked on it, it would be the only message in the chat. When I asked him about this, he admitted he deleted it as he 'doesn't want me to make an issue out of things'.
  • Back in the summer, he had a garden party with all his friends and family. It all got a bit boozy and everyone was a little tipsy. At one point, his mum wrapped her arms around female friend (in front of me and all the other partygoers), and exclaimed 'I love you so much x, you are like a daughter to me!' He has also said that his friends and family have often questioned him on what is really going on in their friendship, whether they are secretly dating etc.

The recent cake situation was the final straw for me, and I told him how unhappy I am with this dynamic. He's now saying he wants to keep the friendship and that I am controlling and he worries I will control other aspects of his life?! I've been in relationships in the past, and never had an issue with them having friends of the opposite sex. They are always open and honest about it. It's got to the point where I want to break up with him because I'm fed up of him lying by omission, not seeing why this might get my back up and feeling like I am in some weird love triangle!

OP posts:
NewMinouMinou · 10/04/2021 16:02

To Greyhound.
We’d been friends for years previously and it was actually me who set them up!
I moved away a few months after their relationship started (not because of it, though) and didn’t really keep in touch.

I felt that DP’s ex and her friends were very unfair at the time as they all started excluding me and DP confessed years later that this was deliberate as she felt threatened. I was involved in a LD relationship at the time and moved to be nearer my ex and to do my postgrad.

BlueDahlia69 · 10/04/2021 16:13

I need to end this.

Glad you're see things clearly OP.

sykadelic · 10/04/2021 16:14

The key to whether he is hiding things is to substitute what he does/says with a guy vs. what he does with her.

Would he tell you a guy friend popped over with a cake? Probably randomly come up in conversation.

Would he tell you who he was going to lunch with?

Would he delete conversations with male friends to “prevent issues”?

It seems he has gotten used to hiding parts of this friendship/relationship b/c of the “trouble” he had in his last relationship... however I’m inclined to believe he’ll tell his next relationship the same about you as well. That you just couldn’t handle the friendship with the girl.

This is not about the girl or his relationship with the girl. This is about him lying to you, keeping things from you, and being untrustworthy. Make sure he is aware that is why. He tends to lie about her the most but I’m sure there are other things he’s not being honest about.

Definitely get out sooner rather than later!

GreyhoundG1rl · 10/04/2021 16:15

Sounds far less intrusive that op's rival, Minou, to be fair!

LondonStone · 10/04/2021 16:17

I completely 100% agree with you @MsDogLady

I suspect he loves having the two of you vie for his attention and/or she loves the dynamic of being “the female best friend”.

Is one or the other significantly better looking? In my twenties I had a friend who was really pretty and she strung along her lifelong male ‘best friend’ for years because he was such an ego boost for her, he absolutely doted on her. God knows how many relationships it ruined for him because he was just waiting for the day she would finally want him. (It never happened.)

Sorry I don’t really have any helpful advice, I couldn’t be arsed with all this drama so I’d cut my losses but I really hope you work something out!

krustykittens · 10/04/2021 16:23

Far too much drama from a man who seems to like having women fighting over him. ALL of these problems are of his making, OP, and he gaslights you to boot. Don't waste anymore time on him, get rid.

2Rebecca · 10/04/2021 16:54

I would hate this and be worried about an emotional affair or real affair developing. It's not worth the angst. He has chosen her over previous girlfriends and promised to be different but when you raise his secrecy over their relationship as an issue you are "controlling". Not worth the hassle.

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