I’m Anna, and I live with my husband, Takuya, and our preschooler, Asahi. Being naturally shy, I was always drawn to Takuya’s bright, outgoing personality—which is exactly why I married him. He treats Asahi and me like royalty, and every day has been a dream. Recently, we had to relocate for Takuya’s job. I was so worried about fitting into a new neighborhood, but the first people to truly welcome us were the Moritas—Meiko and her son, Naoto. Naoto became a great friend to Asahi, and Meiko became the one “mom friend” I felt I could really trust. We even started visiting each other’s houses. But then, Meiko met Takuya… and suddenly, everything felt off.
The second my husband walked through the door, Meiko practically bolted. Takuya mentioned they might have been classmates back in the day, but did Meiko just not remember him? I wanted to ask her about it, but ever since that day, she’s been completely icing me out. When I say hi, I get nothing but formal, polite brush-offs. Every time I ask to hang out, she’s “busy.” She even pulled her son out of their extra-curricular classes without a word to me. Something is obviously wrong with Meiko. I’ve decided I have to go straight to the source and confront her.