He Was My Boyfriend But He Was Also A Stalker

Throwaway account because I don't want this on my main.<br><br>Some backstory before I get into the weirdest thing that happened to me.<br>My mental health hasn't been fabulous recently and I started drinking more and when I drink, I get very vulnerable and trusting. It was around this time that I started going to a bar in my neighborhood because it felt like "home" - the workers there, and regulars knew me - everyone was very nice and looked out for me. It felt like my second family.<br><br>The last time I went to the bar (which was in December of 2022), I met a man - let's call him "Jim".<br>I was very vulnerable/ drunk, and this is something that Jim picked up on right away. He was very charming, good looking and we talked for hours. It was 2am and the bar was closing so Jim walked me home. Nothing sexual happened that night and we just talked on my fire escape. <br><br>For the next few weeks, I saw/ talked to Jim every single day. We hung out a few times a week and he was always so kind. I thought maybe this would be the guy I would be with long term. We still hadn't done anything sexual and I was okay with that because I felt like we were connecting so much on an emotional level.<br><br>However, weird things started to happen - like when he would randomly show up at the bar I was at, or comment on things that I wore.<br><br>One night, we were at my apartment and he was looking through my phone (something he did often because he said he was such a bad texter and wanted to "understand me better"). He found a text from my best friend of 8 years, inviting me to come stay with her out of town for a week. When he saw that, he got very angry - shouting at me and telling me not to go, or else. He left and didn't text me for 4 days.<br><br>I was so confused when he texted me saying he was sorry and that he wanted to make things right. He did an elaborate apology and I fell for it because when he's being nice, it's hard to say no. We hung out and he was being his usual, charming self.<br><br>However, the next day, it was a rainy, gloomy day and I didn't want to go outside at all. But this made Jim angry and he told me I was being "weird" and "unpredictable". I was just shocked - I had never even heard of someone being mad at someone else for not wanting to go outside and mingle.<br><br>The breaking point for me happened when he wanted to come over but I didn't because my mom was in town. I told him she was staying with me and he got angry - saying he couldn't trust me to be alone with my mom. When I got off work the next day, there he was - standing outside my apartment. He then proceeded to yell at me and then - he told me that he was worried I was a "sociopath" because of my job, I sometimes am alone for several hours - and that made him very scared. When he said that, I knew it was over.<br><br>The craziest thing happened when I blocked him though - my best friend from back home got a text from a random number saying "Your friend isn't a good person". It was from a number she didn't know but when she replied asking "who is this?" He responded and it was Jim's number. She told me and I texted him from her phone to see what he would say. He said he was "just trying to protect me from her" because he was worried I was a sociopath. I obviously blocked him from her number but that was so bizarre and honestly, it made me really scared. <br><br>I blocked Jim and that was that - I didn't hear from him again until 2 weeks ago when I got a strange message from an unknown number. It was "Hi. How are you?" I was confused, and asked who it was, and it was him - Jim. He had a new phone number and wanted to say hi. I told him I was good and asked him how he was. He said he was good too - recently got a new job, moved into a new place, and was doing great. We talked for a bit, and I thought maybe he was genuine this time. But - at the end of the text conversation, he said he still loved me and missed me. I was shocked and asked him why he was saying that because I thought he would have moved on by now. He said he had been thinking about me nonstop since we broke up and wanted me back. I told him that wasn't going to happen and I wasn't interested. He said okay and said he just wanted to know how I was doing. I was very confused and asked if we could talk on the phone since it had been awhile and I wanted him to do it because it felt like talking to a robot via text. We talked/ texted for the rest of the night until we went to bed.<br><br>The next morning, I woke up to 30 texts from an unknown number. I was confused, because when we were talking the night before, he said he only had one phone. I asked him why all these random texts were coming into my phone and he said it was just him - and that when we were together/ dating, he had 5 different phones. 4 for me and 1 for himself. The only way he communicated with me was through the main phone number I had for him - but the other 4 he said he would stare at all day/ everyday because he was so obsessed with me. When I read this text, I was honestly in shock. I didn't know what to say because it all made sense/ added up when I reflected on how he always knew exactly where I was and what I was doing. I asked him why he did this and he said it was because he was in love with me and wanted to be with me forever.<br><br>That was the last time I talked to him and I hope it's the last time I ever hear from him.<br>This whole experience has left me shook - not just because of him/ what he did but because I fell for it/ I was blind to his obsession with me. <br><br>I am not trying to sound like a victim but I just want to say that if you're going through something similar/ someone is obsessing over you, make sure you get out before it's too late.<br><br>I know that what happened to me was way too close to what happened to Sherri Papini - and if I would have been with him any longer, who knows what would have happened to me.<br>I am just glad I am safe.<br><br>EDIT: WOW!<br>I am so overwhelmed by all the support/ comments I have gotten - thank you all so much. It seriously means the world to me. I've never felt so supported and loved - so thank you :)