I Refuse to Save My Toxic Best Friend

In my past life, right after my best friend gave birth, she flexed the gift her husband gave her on Snapchat. "The perks of being a boy mom!

Look at the designer gift my hubby got me!" With just one glance, I saw right through it. That makeup bag was nothing but a free giveaway from a luxury brand’s purchase.

I tried to warn her out of the goodness of my heart, but she turned around and accused me of being jealous. "You're just jealous because I had a son and have such an amazing husband, and you have nothing!" Later, she told her husband what I said.

He held a grudge against me, thinking I was sticking my nose where it didn't belong. In the end, he literally ran me over with his car.

After I died, my best friend was so afraid her husband would go to jail that she swore to the police I had committed suicide.

When I opened my eyes again, I was back to the exact day she posted that Snapchat story. This time, I was never going to meddle in her life again.

I opened Snapchat and saw the familiar caption Scarlett had posted. "The perks of being a boy mom!

Look at the designer gift my hubby got me!" Below the text was a picture of a luxury brand’s cosmetic bag. Staring at the words and the picture, it finally hit me—I had been reborn!

I remembered this exact post from my past life. I had spotted the issue with the bag immediately. If I remembered correctly, that cosmetic bag wasn't a real gift at all.

It was just a free giftwithpurchase from a luxury brand. At the time, as Scarlett's best friend of many years, I didn't want her to be kept in the dark.

So, I chose to gently warn her.

I had read news stories before about cheating husbands buying expensive bags for their mistresses and bringing the free giveaway items home to their wives as "gifts." I told her the truth about the bag and subtly hinted that she should keep an eye on her husband, Tyler, to see if he was seeing someone else.

But my kind warning was met with Scarlett’s ridicule. She straight up told me I was just jealous.

Scarlett rolled her eyes and sneered, glaring at me. "Chloe, stop talking trash!" She snorted. "I see what's going on.

You're just jealous because I had a boy, and I have a husband who spoils me, while you have nobody!" At that moment, I found her words absolutely ridiculous.

We had been friends for so long. She should have known what kind of person I was. Would I make up lies about her husband just because of jealousy? No good deed goes unpunished.

I was so furious and hurt by her words. I never expected that after all our years of friendship, she actually thought of me that way. I didn't bother arguing with her.

I had said what I needed to say. Whether she paid attention or not was none of my business. But what I never expected was that Scarlett would tell Tyler everything I said.

Tyler had a nasty temper. He was always yelling at Scarlett over the smallest things at home. When he heard what I had said, he flew into a rage.

Maybe he was feeling guilty because I exposed the truth, or maybe he was just humiliated. Either way, he began to hate me with a passion.

He became so psychotic that he stalked me after work. When the perfect opportunity came, he hit the gas and ran me over.

After I died, Tyler fled the scene, terrified of getting caught. And my "best friend," Scarlett? Upon hearing the news of my death, she wasn't sad at all.

Her immediate concern was protecting her husband. Terrified that Tyler would go to prison, she insisted to everyone that I took my own life.

She even lied, claiming I had severe depression and had told her I wanted to end my life. And because we had been friends for years, Scarlett knew my handwriting well.

To clear Tyler of any charges, she forged a suicide note in my handwriting as evidence. As a ghost standing in the corner watching that scene play out, my heart completely died.

Ten years of friendship meant absolutely nothing to her compared to her trash of a husband. To her, I was completely disposable.

Perhaps even God couldn't stand my tragic fate, so he gave me a second chance. When I opened my eyes again, I was back to the day Scarlett posted that photo.

Looking at the familiar text and image, I let out a cold laugh in my head. This time, I was going to stay far away from their toxic marriage.

If she wanted to live happily ever after with her "perfect" husband, I would gladly give her my blessings. I tapped the comment section and wrote, "Wow, so happy for you!

Wishing you guys a lifetime of happiness!" This comment immediately fed Scarlett’s ego. She rushed to my Snapchat DMs to brag. "Chloe!

I literally feel like the happiest woman in the world right now! I have the cutest baby boy, and a husband who treats me like a queen!

I must have done something amazing in my past life to deserve this!" I rolled my eyes and replied, "Yeah, so make sure you hold onto Tyler tightly.

Don't let a good man like him get away." Text messages couldn't convey my sarcasm. Scarlett replied excitedly, "Of course! My Tyler told me he only has eyes for me.

Other women couldn't steal him even if they tried!" "Chloe, honestly, you're not getting any younger. You need to find a good man and settle down before all the good ones are taken!

You'll regret it if you don't. How about I have Tyler introduce you to some of his friends?

Maybe you'll find someone you like!" I sneered. "Thanks, but I want to focus on my career right now. Don't worry about me." Birds of a feather flock together.

What kind of decent friends could a trash man like Tyler have? Keep them for yourself, sweetie.

But Scarlett had zero social awareness. She couldn't tell I was brushing her off and kept pushing. "Oh, Chloe, come on! A woman’s priority should always be her family.

Don't waste your life working so hard out there! Leave the career stuff to the men!" "If you find a wealthy husband like I did, you can just let him take care of you.

Why stress yourself out?" "Just think about it. Staying home, playing with the baby, doing some light house chores.

Isn't that way better than grinding 9to5 in a depressing office?" Honestly, before Scarlett got married, I had no idea her views were so twisted.

We went to the same high school and college. We had the exact same education. I had no idea why she turned into a 1950s tradwife the moment she got married.

It was like she became a completely different person after she met Tyler. I had to admit, Tyler was a master of brainwashing.

He didn't just turn an educated college graduate into a willing, submissive housewife; he also made her completely indifferent to the life of her best friend of ten years.

Everything was about him. I should have seen through this in my past life. But back then, I was too naive.

I genuinely cherished Scarlett as my best friend, so I naturally overlooked all her red flags. Thinking back, it was so ironic.

Scarlett kept messaging me, trying to brainwash me with her outdated nonsense. But I wasn't an idiot like her.

I knew one absolute truth: you can only rely on yourself in this world. Instead of putting my future in someone else's hands, I’d rather work hard.

I would never give up my career for any man. I didn't bother arguing. I just sent a couple of dry replies to end the conversation. A few days later, Scarlett was back to bragging.

This time, she posted a pair of limitededition designer flats on her Snapchat. "Only ten pairs of these in the world!

I just said I liked them, and my hubby bought them for me instantly! I am truly the luckiest girl alive~" But within a minute, her post was debunked by a mutual friend of ours.

The girl was Audrey, our former college classmate. We weren't close and rarely talked. But I knew Audrey came from a very wealthy family. Her dad owned a massive company.

She was a genuine rich girl. Audrey commented, "Those shoes are definitely fake.

Your husband got ripped off." Scarlett immediately lost her mind. "What the hell are you talking about?! My husband would never buy me fakes!

You're just jealous!" Audrey didn't get mad. She replied calmly, "I'm saying this because I actually own a pair. Comparing yours to mine, it's obvious yours are replicas.

I didn't mean to offend you, just wanted to let you know." But Scarlett was stubborn. "How do you know mine are fake?

Maybe yours are the fakes!" Once that comment was posted, Scarlett became the laughingstock of our entire college circle. Anyone who knew Audrey knew she was loaded.

She had no reason to buy replicas. If one of them was wearing fakes, it was definitely Scarlett. Embarrassed and angry, Scarlett privatemessaged me to take her side. "Chloe!

Tell me, are my shoes fake or are Audrey's? I bet she's just jealous because she doesn't have a husband who spoils her like mine does! Such a hater!" I almost burst out laughing.

Where did she get the confidence to think a literal heiress was jealous of her? But I wasn't going to get involved. So, I pretended to be conflicted. "I honestly can't tell.

But Tyler treats you so well, I'm sure he wouldn't buy you fakes. If you're really worried, why don't you get them authenticated?"

Scarlett had originally been confident in her husband, but the nonstop mockery from everyone got to her. Doubt started to creep in.

When she thought no one was looking, she actually took the shoes to an appraiser. The appraiser took one look and said, "These are cheap knockoffs.

The material, the stitching... it's not even a highgrade replica.

They're worth twenty bucks at most." Hearing that her "limitededition" shoes were worth twenty bucks, Scarlett froze. But her brain worked in mysterious ways.

Anyone else would have gone home to confront their husband. But not Scarlett. Her first thought was that her husband had been scammed by a bad seller.

She complained to me again. "Chloe, people these days are so dishonest! How could they scam my Tyler like that? Where is their business ethic?!" I was speechless at her logic.

I asked her, "Why don't you just ask Tyler about it?" Scarlett gasped. "My Tyler is a guy, what does he know about women's shoes? He was clearly scammed!

If I ask him, it'll break his heart!" She rolled her eyes at me. "You're not married, you wouldn't understand.

Asking him would only hurt our relationship!" I had absolutely nothing to say to that. Fine. If she wanted to comfort herself like that, I wasn't going to stop her.

In Scarlett's eyes, her husband was perfect. Even if he gave her trash, it was always someone else's fault! But unfortunately, reality slapped her in the face very soon.

One night, Scarlett called me out of the blue. She whispered into the phone, her voice trembling. She had sneaked a look at Tyler's phone while he was taking a shower.

She found a Snapchat chat with a woman she didn't know. They talked every single day, and the messages were incredibly flirtatious.

They were even calling each other "babe" and "hubby." On top of that, Scarlett saw credit card transactions showing Tyler spending thousands of dollars at luxury boutiques.

Clearly, he was buying expensive gifts for his mistress. The evidence of his affair was undeniable. This time, even Scarlett couldn't find an excuse for him.

Just when I thought she was going to have a massive showdown with him, her next words left me completely dumbfounded.

Sobbing, Scarlett growled, "It must have been that homewrecking slut who seduced my Tyler! He's such an innocent, sweet man.

He would never do this unless that snake manipulated him!" "That shameless bitch! How dare she steal another woman’s husband!

I'm going to make her pay!" "Chloe, are you free tomorrow? As my best friend, you can't just watch me get bullied!

You have to come with me to teach her a lesson!" I was amazed by her mental gymnastics. This was clearly a consensual affair, yet she still painted that toxic cheater as the victim.

I immediately made up an excuse to decline. No way in hell was I going to play the fool with her. "I'm so sorry, Scarlett. I have to go out of town for a business trip this weekend.

I can't make it!" "But I support you in spirit! Good luck! I know you can handle this on your own!" I’d rather let Scarlett make a fool of herself alone.