Last February, TikToker Laila (@ltdubbz) got engaged and later found out that her fiancé had cheated on her the same day he proposed. At the time, she was 23 years old. They were living together in a cute little apartment in Orange County.
On the day he proposed, she recalls feeling giddy and overwhelmed with excitement because there had been many hints that led her to believe she would soon be getting engaged.
“I just remember feeling like, wow, this is going to be a really big day,” said Laila. “We woke up together, spent the morning together. We end up going to this reptile zoo, which is right up my alley.”
Next, they dressed up and went to a beautiful venue in the hills. As she walked down the driveway, she heard music and saw a gorgeous floral arrangement.
Then, her fiancé got down on one knee and proposed to her. Afterward, they headed to the beach to do a photo shoot and went out for sushi. It was the happiest day of her life.
Later, she found out that he had texted his ex-girlfriend on the morning of the proposal. When they got home from their engagement dinner, he texted his ex again.
The realization left her struggling to make sense of the situation. How could someone spend so much time planning a proposal, arranging flowers, booking photos, making dinner reservations, and still be focused on another woman?
“For some reason, he cheated before and after he proposed, the morning of and the night of,” said Laila.
“That’s just something I will never understand. I’ve given up on trying to understand how someone can be that evil. I think you just have to be a sociopath, and that’s just it at the end of the day.”
As painful as her story is, it resonated with many people who had experienced similar betrayals. Laila is glad for the opportunity to use her platform to make women feel seen, heard, and understood.
“Same thing happened to me. It was a public proposal, and all our close friends knew I was being cheated on, and no one told me. I didn’t even find out until after we called things off,” commented one user.
“My husband cheated on me the day before we got married. I found out the day we got back from our honeymoon,” wrote another.
“His ex-girlfriend was standing there during my proposal. No, I did not know her. I met her that day because he had invited a lot of his friends. No, I did not go through with the wedding,” added a third.
“My fiancé cheated on me four months after we got engaged. On our seven-year anniversary. An exact year before the wedding. Sending you love,” chimed in someone else.
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By Emily Chan
Emily Chan is a writer who covers lifestyle and news content. She graduated from Michigan State University with a degree in... More about Emily Chan
