Okay, add one more piece of advice to the pile... Quick background info - I'm a forever single guy (though not that cut up about it), so I may not be the best person to be giving this sort of advice. But I can promise that it's well thought out advice - I just don't have any experience to back it up.
Squilookle said:
Naturally, there is also the possibility that she will find someone that makes her happier, and while that would make me feel pretty pathetic and worthless as a human male, at least I would know that she was happy, and I would rather her be happy with someone else than be with me if it wasn't making her happy. I feel that to let her go is the right thing to do, and something I can do without regretting my actions. I still hate it with every fiber of my being, but I can see no better solution.
So you're a decent human being. You're willing to accept her being happy as the priority.
Good. It may hurt, but you've accepted that.
Well done. Seriously.
[HEADING=2]My Question for YOU[/HEADING]
Here's the problem though- I've just spent two days blindly talking and reasoning her into giving us another chance at the relationship, before realising that it can't sustain itself. It has to end or there will be no future for it. But I don't know how to do it.
I... don't agree. She's experiencing something of a 'grass-is-greener' point of view, as far as I can tell. This doesn't necessarily spell doom for the relationship - but she does need to find out what it's like on the far side of that fence. That said, she doesn't need to dump you to find out. I'd encourage her to speak with her friends.
The reasoning here is two-fold. First:
She needs a second opinion. She needs the point of view of someone completely outside of the relationship. A trusted friend could provide that, either encouraging her to stick with the relationship, or otherwise.
Second: she needs to hear about both sides of being single. The pros and the cons. From what I've read, it sounds as if she's heard all the fun stuff, but is lacking any knowledge of the frequent break-ups, the discovery of guys who are complete jerks when you thought they were fine, the loneliness, that sort of thing. Honestly, being single is
not bad, but she needs a complete picture of what she's going in for.
I could go to her straight away, and explain what I wrote about in the aftermath- tell her we'd be better off if we broke up, and end it quickly. This would bring closure sooner, but I fear she would not appreciate being so thoroughly talked into expanding the relationship only for me, once her decision had been put to rest, to bring out one of my own that ends it definitively- effectively robbing her of the decision.
I agree with your last point here:
It's her decision. Yes, it's a decision that involves both of you, but you've made it fairly clear that you want to keep the relationship. The question is whether or not she does. So no, I wouldn't break it off.
I could let her do it her way, by going on until May the way we are now, and when she tells me she still wants to break up, I agree, state my thoughts on needing to let her experiment, and hopefully we end it there. Benefits include that she, as the one with the doubt and the desire to break up, still gets to do it. The big downside is that while we're getting along great now, if things start to slide, they're probably going to deteriorate a lot, and we won't end on peaceful terms, which for me is the absolute highest priority. I want to end the relationship with her thinking of me in the best possible light, to leave open a rekindling in the future.
This is the choice I would make. It's her decision, let her do it her way. In the meantime:
Be the best man that you can be (I realise that's a lot to ask). If it's the end of the relationship, you want to end it in the best way possible. Otherwise, being the best that you can be could convince her not to give it up. Just
be aware that, come May, the relationship might be over. And in the meantime, enjoy it as much as possible while it lasts.
Finally, I could opt for something in between, by waiting a little while then doing it myself. This seems to have all the dangers of the other options, but I won't lie to you- every further second I spend with her is like a wonderful snatched moment of borrowed time I've stolen from the inevitable. Maybe it isn't healthy, but unless I can be convinced just how unhealthy it is, I am leaning towards trying my luck with staying by her side for as long as possible.
This feels like a re-hash of the first choice, so again, No. I don't see any advantage of delaying a bit and then breaking it off. Maybe break it off if things start going severely downhill before May, but in the meantime, try and keep things going good.
It sounds like you both need time to think. That's good - as the cliche says, relationships need work - and keeping going until May will give you that time. Her holiday will act as a break away from you - again, good, since it will help you both reassess how you feel about each other. When she gets back - either break it off with style (by which I mean:
Give yourselves both a good final memory of your time together), or agree to work at it.
A final word of warning on this point - sticking it out until May was your idea, not hers. I have only just remembered this, but it does mean that sticking it out until May isn't exactly
her way. So, there's a chance that she'll break it off before then. That doesn't change my advice though.
Some notes:
1) Rather than just breaking it off, she chose to talk to you. This is
very encouraging, as it implies that some part of her does want to keep the relationship going (as does the fact that she hasn't made a decision yet). Bear in mind that it doesn't sound like your relationship is doomed just yet. In danger? Yes. Doomed? No.
2) From your description of how things were before this conversation... the relationship got comfortable. This is a blessing and a curse. It's why tv-shows, video games, films etc always show relationships starting or finishing, rarely in progress. Because you get bored. And the boredom saps the polish away from the relationship. Things aren't exciting when they are comfortable. Rollercoaster rides are far more exciting, and attractive, than the couch. So maybe find something to spice your lives up a bit in the next couple of months.
3) Leading on from 2, then, to ask the evil question, especially when it sounds like your relationship might not still exist in a few months...
Do you know where this relationship is going? Assume you stay with her, assume you work it out and decide you want to stay with each other... what next? What are your plans? Don't let things stay still and gather dust. Even if it's an extremely hypothetical, far-off conversation about the future: have a plan.