On 31 July, TikTok user Brittany Bowen, who goes by the handle @brittanyybowen, told her viewers a story about how she saw two men chat with other women while sitting next to girls they were dating. But commenters were divided over whether her story reflects growing suspicion in modern dating or a genuine rise in fidelity issues.
The creator, however, mentioned what she saw at a Texas Rangers game and a visit to Sonic and how that had only made her believe it was best to stay single. As of publication, her video had around 477,800 likes.
"Let me tell y’all why I’m single," Bowen says.
She then described two separate occasions when men had been talking to other women while on a date. Bowen said she was at a Rangers game and was sitting behind what seemed to be a couple when she saw a man tilt his phone away from the woman sitting next to him. Since the text size was large, the creator could read his texts to someone named Erica, who asked the man if he was with another woman.
He replied, "No, why would I be with [someone else]?" and put his phone away. Yet he shared food with the woman with him.
@brittanyybowen I’m sorry but that shit don’t fly this way #cheating #men #mencheat #hottake #storytime
♬ original sound - Brittanyy
The creator said she wanted to warn Erica that she may have been messaging a man who was on a date with someone else.
The next day, the creator said she was waiting for her food at a Sonic drive-in. That's when she saw a man in a pickup truck with a woman in the passenger seat, yet he was sending Snapchats to a number of women while keeping his phone tilted away from the woman he was with. "I've had enough," Bowen says. "Everyone's getting cheated on."
In the comments, viewers also shared experiences of being cheated on by ex-partners. Some spoke of hidden phones, privacy screen protectors, Snapchat, and other social media apps as possible red flags.
However, a few of the commenters believed that cheating is not something only men do and that not all relationships involve dishonesty. One person like that commented, "Not all men cheat", while another added that "Mind you, [women] do it too". Others doubted that just an app or a privacy screen would be meaningful evidence by itself.
But expectations in a relationship differ too. Some couples are monogamous, whereas others have openly agreed to nonmonogamous arrangements. It's also worth noting that making accusations based on limited observation can be damaging to someone who has no chance to address or explain the situation.
