Colleen Le doesn't regret helping him. "Saving someone's life, I could never regret that. It still feels good."
When people genuinely love someone, they give selflessly. Sometimes, people don't prioritize themselves to make sure that the needs of their partner are met. They are willing to go through every kind of hardship to ensure that the person they love stays well.
Colleen Le was no different. When she met her boyfriend for the first time in 2015, she knew he was suffering from chronic kidney disease. So she decided to donate one of her kidneys and give him the gift of a healthier life. She got tested towards the end of 2015 and once it was confirmed that she is a match for him, she underwent surgery in May 2016.
Despite being nervous and never having a bigger surgery than getting her "wisdom teeth out" earlier, she went through the procedure. "I didn't know what to expect, but I knew it would change his life for the better," Le, 30, told PEOPLE of the procedure.
But things messed up when Le's boyfriend turned out to be ungrateful and broke her trust. "I trusted him completely," said the California woman. But he cheated on her after the procedure was over and he had her kidney. "I didn't think that he would do anything to betray me like that. It really threw me off guard," Le shared on TikTok.
@colleeeniie Everything happens for a reason 😬 #fyp #foryoupage #foryourpage #fypシ #kidneydonation #kidneydonor #relationshipgoals #relationships ♬ original sound - boiwhatdahelllboi1
Just seven months after the surgery, Le's ex-boyfriend returned from a friend's bachelor celebration in Las Vegas and admitted to Le about being unfaithful to her. Le used to work at Disneyland— "a place where dreams come true"—and she went to work the night her ex-boyfriend had broken the news to her. Disneyland is a place where "you always have to be happy. They sent me home right after," said Le.
But despite this, she didn't end the relationship. "I don't know why I wanted to make it work, but I did," she shared.
However, three months later, things got worse after they got into an argument over the phone. "He kind of said, 'You know what, if God wants us back together, he'll bring us back together in the end,'" she said.
Le recalled, "[He] broke it off, hung up, blocked me and stopped answering my calls and texts — just cut ties with me immediately."
She has now over the difficulty and she says that she's "made peace" with it and is ready to "laugh about it now."
She has no regrets about the decision she had taken seven years ago. "Saving someone's life, I could never regret that. It still feels good," said Le. Though at one point, she "wanted to burn" the transplant certificate she received but is now glad that she hung onto it.
@colleeeniie it’s ok to laugh at yourself sometimes 😅 #cheater #relationships #watchmojo #top10stupidestpeople #onelesskidneygirl #fyp ♬ original sound - cottonmouth
"I'm still proud of myself for giving someone a second chance at life," she said.
As for her ex, he is now thriving and has reportedly moved on. "He's never reached out. I don't know if the story got to him," she said. "I just know from a little bird that he's not in California anymore and he's married, so that's the only information I have."
Knowing "how crazy the internet can get," Le has decided to never reveal her ex's identity.
References:
https://www.tiktok.com/@colleeeniie
Cover Image Source: TikTok | Colleen Le
