The Friend She Fired… and Never Spoke Of Again

Aug 6

The Friend She Fired… and Never Spoke Of Again

Being Lied to by a Best Friend and Soul Mate – How to Navigate and Move Forward Based on Our Beliefs

For years, Shalini never really spoke about it. Not to her therapist, not even to her husband.

She had tucked the incident away into the quiet drawers of her memory, the way we sometimes do with old photographs we no longer frame. The event itself wasn’t dramatic, but it left a permanent mark in her life. The kind of emotional experience that isn’t immediately visible… but stays, quietly shaping how we trust and relate to others.

Her story is about friendship, trust, and how badly mistaken she was. Shalini often said she was lucky to have a best friend who had been with her since their teenage years. They’d grown up together, laughed and cried through life’s chapters, and supported each other through career changes and marriage. When Shalini eventually launched her own boutique marketing firm, it felt only natural to bring her oldest friend in as a partner. It wasn’t just a business decision. It was a gesture of love, trust, and a shared future—one that only old friendships can inspire.

But one incident changed everything.

A high-value client praised a presentation. One that Shalini had stayed up all night preparing—something she was particularly proud of producing. The compliments, however, were mistakenly directed at her friend, who smiled and simply said, “Thank you.” No pause. No mention of Shalini’s name. No acknowledgment of the source and creator.

It was a significant moment for Shalini. Something cracked open in her mind.

True to her style of avoiding confrontation, she didn’t speak up. She didn’t create a scene. In fact, there were no confrontations at all. But something was brewing inside her. Two days later, she sent a polite but distant email that ended the partnership—professionally and personally.

For years, she told herself it was the right thing to do. She buried the memory. She justified it as an integrity issue—bordering on dishonesty, even betrayal. She told herself that when someone crosses the line, the only option is to walk away. That boundaries mattered more than sentiment.

And yet… when she finally told me this story, she didn’t sound resolved. She sounded tired. As if she had been carrying a quiet but heavy regret for far too long.

“I don’t have a best friend anymore,” she said softly. “I have friends… but not one I can truly count on.”

It wasn’t the incident that haunted her. It was the loss of a soul mate—something only a once-in-a-lifetime friendship can offer.

As we unravelled her feelings, it became clear: the belief that trust, once broken, could never be rebuilt had defined her response. She had once been proud of that belief. That people either deserved to be in your life or they didn’t. That being right mattered more than being vulnerable.

But her decision to walk away hadn’t only been about her friend’s mistake. It had also been about her own discomfort with imperfection—her own demons and shadows. Her trust issues. Her insecurities.

Because when the lie comes from someone we love, it hurts more. It shakes us. It makes us question not just them—but ourselves.

Her friend’s lie—or perhaps omission—triggered something deeper. A belief system shaped by years of needing to be morally upright. The “good girl.” The responsible one. The one who doesn’t tolerate dishonesty.

But as she sat across from me, reflecting on that moment, she admitted something quietly:

“I’ve lied too,” she said. “Not about that kind of thing. But in my own ways. To protect myself. To avoid shame. To get by. I’ve just never… been caught.”

And that’s when it landed. Her regret wasn’t just about the friend. It was about the rigid belief she had used to protect herself from a more difficult truth.

The truth that people lie.
That she lies.
That all of us do.

And maybe, just maybe… it’s not the lie that breaks us.
It’s the belief that we shouldn’t have lied.
That they shouldn’t have.
That being honest is binary.
That trust is either whole or broken.

But what if trust—like love—is something we need to rebuild again and again?

Shalini didn’t feel broken after that realisation.
She felt free.
Because she could finally stop pretending her beliefs made her better.
And begin recognising that beliefs that don’t leave space for humanity—are not beliefs worth holding.

A Quiet Reflection

Maybe you’ve been Shalini.
Maybe you’ve walked away from someone, convinced you had to—because a belief you held told you so.

But was it truth?
Or was it a belief dressed as truth?

And how many times have you replayed it in your head—wondering what might have been different, if your beliefs had been just a little softer… a little more forgiving?

In Part 2…

Did Shalini ever reconnect with her once-in-a-lifetime friend?

In Part 2, we explore the quiet pressure to be morally “good,” and why we may have misunderstood honesty all along.
Everyone lies—but not everyone reflects.
And that’s where Mind Mastery begins.