Dear Meredith,

My ex reached out to me last week after months of silence. In a word, our relationship was tumultuous. He was my first serious boyfriend and I loved him to a fault, for he had some less than desirable qualities. When he dumped me (which was over the phone while I was at work), I felt a great weight had been lifted — he did what I could not. Shortly thereafter, I was consumed by a wave of sadness and loss (which at times resurfaces, although less frequently and less intensely).
He didn’t make it an easy break up either. He made me pay him to get my things back. When I tried to reach out to him after the fact, he still wanted money to speak with me. He was done and I was never going to get a cordial way to end our relationship because that was just not in him.
Through loads of therapy and self-reflection I now know that I was in a hopeless, one-sided relationship with an abusive man.

Then, last week, he e-mails me. It was unapologetic and extremely brief (4 words, lacking capitalization and punctuation), not to mention slightly nonsensical. It was unclear if he was asking for my company in an activity we both participated in or if he was interested in getting to me. However, I do know he was not chasing after me or knocking down my door to speak with me. Part of me wants to respond, but another part knows I would be flirting with danger. I would love to get the chance to let him know he can disrespect me no longer and what a good thing he lost. Is my silence enough?

– Speechless in Boston