The Plight of the Messenger
I am going to say this as plainly as possible: Being cheated on sucks.
Period.
It is heartbreaking.
You have put your trust in someone's feelings and care for you and if they cheat on you, it can feel like your heart is being ripped from your chest.
For the two people in the relationship in question, life can get extremely rough.
Something we don't tend to consider very often is that most couples have friends, some mutual and some not.
They get affected by relationship problems, too.
It's awful being stuck in the middle of a couple going through such serious turmoil.
It's even worse when you are a friend that knew what was going on before the "victim" did.
So what do you do when this happens? What do you do when you either know that your friend is cheating on their significant other or when you know that your friend is being cheated on? There are two fundamental ways to go: tell or keep your mouth shut.
The idea of "killing the messenger" might come to mind when debating whether or not you should tell your friend what their lover is doing behind their back.
The chance that when you tell them they will take their anger out on you does exist.
There is also the possibility that your friend is already aware that they are being cheated on and either a) they have decided to let it go and were hoping no one else knew, b) they are still figuring out what they should do about it and aren't ready for anyone else to know, or c) they don't think it's anyone else's business and can't believe you would actually bring it up.
While all three of those are plausible situations, there is a greater chance that they are not aware of the infidelity going on.
Even if they get angry at first, most likely when they calm down and think rationally, they would rather know about it than not.
In all likeliness, they will thank you for looking out for them.
In the very least, you can be a shoulder to cry on.
You can also give them some advice.
There is the vague possibility that you were mistaken in what you saw, heard, etc.
Practical people often like to have further proof before they go to their spouse or significant other with such a serious accusation.
Period.
It is heartbreaking.
You have put your trust in someone's feelings and care for you and if they cheat on you, it can feel like your heart is being ripped from your chest.
For the two people in the relationship in question, life can get extremely rough.
Something we don't tend to consider very often is that most couples have friends, some mutual and some not.
They get affected by relationship problems, too.
It's awful being stuck in the middle of a couple going through such serious turmoil.
It's even worse when you are a friend that knew what was going on before the "victim" did.
So what do you do when this happens? What do you do when you either know that your friend is cheating on their significant other or when you know that your friend is being cheated on? There are two fundamental ways to go: tell or keep your mouth shut.
The idea of "killing the messenger" might come to mind when debating whether or not you should tell your friend what their lover is doing behind their back.
The chance that when you tell them they will take their anger out on you does exist.
There is also the possibility that your friend is already aware that they are being cheated on and either a) they have decided to let it go and were hoping no one else knew, b) they are still figuring out what they should do about it and aren't ready for anyone else to know, or c) they don't think it's anyone else's business and can't believe you would actually bring it up.
While all three of those are plausible situations, there is a greater chance that they are not aware of the infidelity going on.
Even if they get angry at first, most likely when they calm down and think rationally, they would rather know about it than not.
In all likeliness, they will thank you for looking out for them.
In the very least, you can be a shoulder to cry on.
You can also give them some advice.
There is the vague possibility that you were mistaken in what you saw, heard, etc.
Practical people often like to have further proof before they go to their spouse or significant other with such a serious accusation.
