Merry prankster comes across as menacing to his friends
Dear Abby,
My husband and I are in our early 30s and spend a lot of time with three other couples. For the most part, it’s been fun — until one member of the group, whom I’ll call “Bill,” started turning every get-together into one of his so-called “jokes.”
At a picnic a few months ago, Bill poured the remains of a soft drink over one of the wives’ heads. She and her husband had to leave, and Bill brushed it off by calling them “party-poopers.”
Not long after that, at a dinner party, he yanked the tablecloth out from under another wife’s fine china — shattering her dishes. Once again, he dismissed her anger by calling her a “party-pooper.”
The last straw came at a recent pool party. I don’t swim and only agreed to go because my husband promised to stay by my side. Out of nowhere, Bill dove underwater, grabbed my ankles, and dragged me under. I was terrified. I told him then and there that I never wanted to see him again, and I meant it.
Now his wife, “Nicki,” is upset because I recently hosted a dinner and didn’t invite them. I told her she would always be welcome in my home — but not her husband. I honestly believe he needs professional help. Since then, Nicki has been retaliating at work (we’re in the same office building), spreading rumors that I “made a play” for her husband and am only angry because he rejected me. None of this is true, and so far I have not defended myself. My husband thinks I should tell people the truth about Bill’s behavior.
What do you think? Should I confront these lies, or let them go?
— The Victim, Not the Perp
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