Gaslighting Isn't Real Novels & Stories

The sound bounced around, unfamiliar to either of us. Of course. Of course he’d say that. He and Amelia had always been masters at gaslighting, at twisting reality until I was the unreasonable one. “Oh, please,” I shot back, nostrils flaring. “We both know she’s capable of far worse. Your memory might be faulty, but mine isn’t. I remember exactly what the two of you put me through when I first came here.” My voice rose despite myself. “You attacked me in every way you could think of. Emotionally. Psychologically. Socially. And now you’ve added attempted murder to the list.”

It would be a waste to not grasp on the chances. "You're afraid of him, aren't you?" My eyes narrowed suspiciously towards him, witnessing his eyes wavered for a second. "What nonsense are spouting about!" He growled in bewilderment, which I was certain as an attempt to disclose his true feelings. That gained me some confidence, "No, you must be. No one had ever defeated you and suddenly, out of nowhere, he did. You know you couldn't win against him." Was it allowed to gaslight a person?

If anything, it widened. “Summer… my god, you’re intense. Passionate. Terrifying. I almost admire it. But you’re seeing what you want to believe. It’s not reality.” I leaned forward. Lowered my voice. “Jake. Please. For old times sake, the truth.” “I’m innocent,” he said. “Just stop it. You’re manipulating me. You’re gaslighting me right now. I know it! I know you know I don’t like it. I don’t.”

And it had all been for nothing. "I was so stupid," I said. "I actually thought he loved me. In the beginning, I believed it. The gifts, the attention, the way he made me feel chosen. I thought I'd won something. But I was just convenient. Just another possession he could discard when I stopped being useful." "You weren't stupid. You were hopeful. There's a difference." Elodie squeezed my hands. "He's a gaslighter. A master manipulator. He made you doubt your own reality until you couldn't trust yourself. That's not your fault. That's his sickness."

"Stay here in the light. Stay with us. Don't go back into the dark where it's lonely." ​I saw Silas lean in closer, whispering something into Malakai’s ear that made Malakai’s jaw tighten until the bone threatened to snap. The gaslighting was visible from here—the way they moved in on him like vultures every time he started to think, the way they used their bodies and their whispers to distract his primal mind. It was a slow-motion execution of his very identity, a spiritual murder being performed in a room that cost more than the docks I grew up on.

"Five years with my boyfriend. I worked four jobs to help repay his debt, but his family's debt keeps growing instead of shrinking. Today we were supposed to go home together for New Year's. He said something happened at the construction site and left again. I don't know when the debt will ever be paid off. Living on toast and pickles every day is really hard." When the train began to move, I hit "Post." I poured every cent I had taken from Anya's livestream into promoting the video. "Benjamin, every lie is a debt. From today on, you can repay it inch by painful inch. I won't stay to watch," I muttered.

I said. "But you think." He replied. I looked away. " I can't be sure. But I know Liam more than anyone. And something feels wrong." I admitted. “The police are still investigating." He said. "Yeah, I know. I'm sure they'll rule it as suicide." I fired back. “Claire—” “No,” I cut him off. “Don’t give me that look like I’m being irrational. I know what gaslighting looks like. I spent seven years with a man who lied so smoothly that it felt like the truth. Don’t treat me like I’m spinning.”

I saw the small frown forming on his face but I ignored it, keeping my face stoic. “I don't know what you were thinking when you sent that text, but it's not what you think.” He says and I scoff, looking away. Is this supposed to be an apology? It sounds like he is trying to gaslight and make me feel stupid. “It's not what I think? Really? Mark, I saw you with my best friend on the same bed both of you shirtless. And you're telling me it's not what I think? What am I supposed to think?” I ask, keeping my voice level. I wanted to scream at him and hit him but I couldn't let him know that he hurt.

Priya twisted the knife deeper. She made it sound like I caused it all. Like I drove Garrett away. Like Dominic only picked me up because I was broken and available. "He married you for the image," she continued. Her eyes narrowed. "To look like he won something. But men like him get bored fast. You'll wake up one day and he'll have someone new. Younger. Hotter. You'll be alone again. Just like you deserve after trying to trap Garrett." Gaslighting wrapped tight around every word. She made me doubt my own eyes. Doubt the betrayal I saw with my own eyes.