The forbidden kind

I grew up in a town where everyone knew everyone. I had my first relationship at seventeen with a boy from a different religion. We used to meet at the back of the market every evening. His family found out before mine did. He stopped coming. I waited three evenings before I understood. Twenty years later I got a LinkedIn request from him. He's married. Two kids. I accepted it and then stared at his profile photo for longer than I should have. I never replied to his message. — 37, Lucknow