How My Best Friend Stole from My Purse
Six months of betrayal and stolen trust
Maria and I became good friends in our office in Italy. We spent so much time together, from eating delicious pasta during our office lunch breaks to exploring the city after work. She would often come to my apartment, and we would spend hours together doing groceries, cooking, etc.
We were both so busy that we never talked much about our pasts. I knew Maria moved from Texas to Italy on her own after her parents split up, and because it was a sensitive topic for her, I didn’t press for more details.
She seemed good, always doing charity work and collecting funds to help others. I trusted her so much that I gave her money to support her causes without thinking twice. But, behind all that, Maria was hiding a secret that would break my heart and trust.
The First Betrayal
One day, something happened that I could never have imagined. I caught Maria taking a $100 note from my bag! Her eyes were quickly looking around to see if anyone was watching her. She didn’t know I was there, seeing everything.
Maria carefully put the money in her pocket, like she was good at this. My heart and hands were pounding, and I didn’t know what to do. I decided to stay quiet and watch her more closely.
I wanted to understand what was happening and why my best friend would do something like this. It was tough to act normal around Maria, pretending like I didn’t see her steal from me. But I needed to know more before confronting her.
A Pattern of Deceit
I kept my eyes on Maria and pretended everything was fine. One day, while we were getting ready to go out, I saw Maria stealing my undergarments and quietly putting them in her bag. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. I had to be strong and learn more about what Maria was doing behind me.
I started noticing even more things that didn’t add up with Maria. She was always talking about helping others and doing charity work. But now, seeing her true colors, I knew I needed to find out if this was real or just another one of her tricks.
It broke my heart to discover that she was not the kind and honest person I thought she was. There was no charity, and there was no helping others. Instead of using the money for good causes, Maria was using it all for gambling. Every sweet word and kind gesture was just a trick to take money from people, including me, her supposed best friend.
The Shocking Reality
Maria, who once seemed like the kindest person, was revealing herself as a complete fraud, and I was left picking up the pieces of our broken friendship. I began to see Maria for who she truly was, not the caring friend I thought I knew.
I remembered all the times things went missing from my apartment — money, makeup, even my undergarments. I always thought I just misplaced them. But now, everything made sense. Maria was stealing from me all along, right under my nose.
She always knew what to say, making me think I forgot where to put things. “It must be somewhere in the closet,” she would say, or “You must have forgotten where you put it.” But it was her all along. It was hard to believe and even harder to accept. I was so angry and hurt. How could someone I trusted so much do this to me?
The Confrontation
Facing Maria after knowing all her dark secrets was really tough. But I knew I couldn’t stay silent and let her do this to others. After confronting Maria, I cut all ties with her. It was hard, but it was necessary. Healing from this betrayal took a long time.
Trusting people became difficult, and making new friends felt almost impossible. But slowly, I started putting myself back together. I learned to be more cautious, to look for red flags, and to listen to my gut feelings.
