The mad Macedonian

Many years ago I had stayed at a hotel in a Lugano for a couple of weeks. The cute macedonian breakfast waiter was always flirting with me. I slightly flirted back but nothing took place  since I was married at the time.
Years later, there he was again, bar tending in another restaurant in a city nearby. I was surprised to see Mehmet ( name changed ) and this time I let things take their course since I was no longer married and therefore free to do  anything and anyone as I pleased. After a couple of months Mehmet and I had a huge argument. The suposedly long divorced wife he had in Macedonia was still relevant and even pregnant. And on her way over with their three children. I was disgusted at the deception and immediately decided to break up.
Why do married men always lie about their status ?
How is one to know who is free and who is not ?
Instead of calling him to say I was leaving because of his treachery, I was dumb  enough to go up to his appartment to actually tell him in person.
Not a good idea. Not a good idea at all.
You would think he'd feel embarassed and apologetic, well you would think wrong. The adulterer was quite arrogant about liyng to his wife, to me and to a couple of others. Yes, the creep was two timing everyone.
During a very heated discussion I called him a liar and a cheat and expressed how sorry I felt for his poor wife.
His reaction ? You will never guess in a million year.
But you are a cheater too,he smiled, you have always cheated on me from day one, Ive been putting up with you sleeping with another man for years he complained !!!!
Scuse me ? for years ? I was dumbfounded, what years ?  Ive only been dating you for a couple of months, how could I do anything to you for years ?
I truly did not understand, I bet you dont either.
Maniac Mehmet had somehow counted the day we met in his old job, years ago, as the first day of our affair !
Are you joking ? I gasped with horror, I was married to Jake back then, I was married and I didnt even know your name. I never  even touched you.
Liar ! Mehmet yelled, we had something going on in our hearts and you were flirting with me, and sleeping with Jake at the same time, you are a whore ! you betrayed me with your husband back then !
Speechless. I was speechless. Not an customary state for me to be in.
I began to understand he must have been a very disturbed man and probably had dillusions about the nice  customer who  innocently smiled at the breakfast table.
Suddenly he grabed my throat and forced me to lay still on his couch. I realised I was in danger when he grabed a bottle of beer, looked at me coldly and quietly said :
shut up bitch, you are not going anywhere anymore.
While he was doing this very threatening act , his phone rang and he started flirting with some girl ! whilst still half choking me !
The nerve of that mad man was astonishing. Accusing me of cheating on him with my own husband at a time when I barely spoke to him, and flirting on the phone in front of me with some unsuspecting other woman.
I was furious with myself , how could I have been so stupid to get into such a dangerous situation ? Mehmet was obviously mentally ill and even if he killed me tonight, his lawyer would get him of the hook because of whatever mental condition caused his vicious  actions. What would my familly think if I got murdered in a grotty appartment from a crazed married macedonian ?
Could it be more embarrassing ?
Suddenly I had a stroke of genius, or of sheer desperation. I whispered to my potential killer :
Baby, pour me a drink and give me a fuck.
Mehmet was so not expecting me to say something like this he released my throat straight away while shaking his head in disbelief,  since when do you drink ?
The couple of seconds  the psycho was flabergasted  were enough for me to jump off his couch, grab my purse and litterally fly down the stairs.
I was almost on the ground floor when he screamed from the window :
Cherie ? Where are you going ?
To get you some cigarettes from the corner shop, I yelled back.
Was he kidding me ? If he really was  crasy , I would play the game too.
I can truly say I have never run that fast in my entire life. He rang repeatedly till I switched my phone off. I ran nearly an hour to get back home. So scared was I ,that I wouldnt even stop running long enough to hail a cab or board a bus.
I got home noiselessly and locked myself in the bathroom to vomit my guts out. What had happened ? I could have been dead because of my own stupidity.
How did I not notice he was insane ? How did I get so lucky tonight ? Did I even deserve this incredible blessing of getting away intact ?
I cried and I puked for a while, then I silently went to my bedroom, grabbed the  photos of Mehmet and I  from my diary and tore them to tiny pieces before flushing them down the toilets. What he tried to do to me was absolutely unforgivable. I chose not to report it to the police since I had no injuries and therefore the police would not have a case against him. But I never forgave the loony.
Mehmet , stalked me for months, I made sure he always saw me in compagny of men. He had called me a whore, I supposed that was what a free woman was in his eyes, I decided to take that as a compliment. Better be called a whore by a psycho, that be his submissive victim. I had long forgotten about him when, years later, I was having a meal alone in a sushi bar, after an argument with my second husband. He spotted me and came to sit at my table. I nearly jumped out of my skin when I recognised him. He looked different. Mehmet started to apologise about attacking me that night, many years ago.
Post traumatic stress due to the war with the serbians and alcoholism had driven him insane and unaccountable. Thats was his excuse for his agressive behaviour, but he didnt drink anymore, he was with alcoholic anonymous and had a stable job. At the time I felt vulnerable from the fight with my husband so I accepted Mehmet's apologies and I left with a hand shake. During the next month I bumped into him a few times. At the money automat in the bank, in front of a shop window I was admiring, at the tea room where I was waiting for Leila. Each time he said hello and asked me out, each time I answered no thank you. When Leila saw him leave the tea room she noticed he had been working out and looked really hot.
He may look hot but he is a very deranged psycho so it is not worth it.
Why did you forgive him then ? Leila wanted to know.
Just cause I forgive it doesnt mean I want to put myself in that trap again. I explained.

One day I was queuing up at the movies when a couple of guys gently tapped me on the shoulder.
Hello ! how are you ? they said quite friendly, 
Is Mehmet here ? This doesnt look like his kind of movie.
His two younger brothers ? How did they remember me ? It had been years.
And why would they wonder if he was at this movie with me ?
I greeted them back and asked what they had been up to. It turned out they had immigrated to Sweden and were here for a visit. Somehow they thought I was still dating their big brother. Why would they think that ? What was going on here ? When I asked how they recognised me after years, they talked about the framed picture of their brother and I in his living room. What ! Not to mention the small photo of us he carried in his wallet to this day ! re what !
In his sick mind Mehmet still thought we were an item. Worse even he had lied to his brothers for years about it. Obessive  much ?
This was even worse than I had feared. I rang the lunatic to confront him with this ridiculous obsession of his, this time I was smart enough to do it on the phone.
He pleaded with me not to tell his brothers the truth, besides  " it was not really a lie since he knew I still harboured strong feelings for him and we belonged together, he was only anticipating things."
Im not repeating the exact words I hurled at him, suffice it to say it involved a lot of F's. The sick obessesive S.O.B. was truly dangerous and I had narrowly escaped it. Again.
I never spoke another word to the psycho even though he phone stalked me for years. Im guessing he finally got it by now.
Frightening how quickly a man can turn into a monster when you want to leave. Think twice before you trust a guy and please please please, if you are leaving a guy, do it in a public place with a quick access to your car or taxi rank.