@crazychica Said
Not sure if I should have put this in here but it seems right.
Well a few of you know the story of my first love. Basically thanks to the Christian cult his parents were members of (who have a nice, often quoted song about what happens to non-members) we could never go out. So for years I never told him who I felt about him, but anyone who saw us together immediately assumed we were going out. So about 2 years ago, just after we finished high school, his parents (who controlled almost every detail of his life) decreed that he couldn't hang out with any non-believers any more. He called us all his "sacrifice to Jesus" which stung even more than when he had an online "girlfriend" (a safe bet since he'd never actually meet her in person).
After a few months, I emailed him telling him that if he ever needed to talk about anything, he had my address. We emailed back and forth for a while, then the emails suddenly stopped. I won't lie, I hated him for a while because he was putting me through so much. I still don't think I'm really over him.
We had no contact until a few weeks ago, he sent me a joke. I read it and deleted it. But I keep thinking, should I have replied. Should I have emailed him?
Sounds to me like you're actually angry at his parents and also at him for allowing them to control him, not the Christian religion unless you're stereotyping. I don't see the harm in replying to see how he is and if he's still letting mommy and daddy control him.