Living with your ex after a break-up – B1 English Listening Test

Test-English

2 Nov 202302:59

Summary

TLDRThe narrator recounts living in a shared apartment with her ex-boyfriend Adam and friends Sarah and Luke after a breakup. Unable to afford moving out, she relocates to a storage room, maintaining an uneasy truce with Adam. Despite an agreement not to date others, she develops feelings for a school acquaintance, leading to tension when Adam overhears her discussing him. This culminates in Adam bringing a girl home, further straining their relationship. The living situation becomes unbearable, affecting friendships, until the narrator finally moves out after six months, unable to reconcile with Adam or her friends.

Takeaways

🏡 The narrator lived in a shared apartment with her boyfriend Adam, and friends Sarah and Luke.
💔 The narrator decided to end her relationship with Adam, which he took badly.
📝 They had just signed a 6-month rental agreement, making it difficult for the narrator to move out.
🛌 The narrator moved into a small storage room, giving Adam the master bedroom.
👗 The narrator's clothes didn't fit in the storage room, requiring her to still enter Adam's room.
🤗 She turned to Adam for comfort after a rough day, which gave him false hopes.
🚫 They agreed not to date anyone else while living together, which the narrator initially respected.
💘 She developed an attraction to a guy at school and started a flirtatious relationship.
🗣️ Sarah, their roommate, was informed about the new guy, leading to gossip.
👀 Adam overheard the gossip, which led to awkwardness and a breach in their agreement.
🎉 Adam brought a girl home from a party, seemingly to show indifference.
🏠 The narrator and Adam avoided each other, making the apartment environment tense.
👥 The situation strained the friendships within the apartment.
📅 The narrator waited until the 6-month lease was up before moving out.
😔 The experience negatively impacted her friendships, particularly with Sarah.

Q & A

What was the initial living arrangement described in the script?
-The initial living arrangement was a shared apartment with the narrator, her boyfriend Adam, and another couple, Sarah and Luke, who were their friends.
Why did the narrator decide to end the relationship with Adam?
-The narrator decided to end the relationship with Adam because she couldn't see them staying together long term.
How did Adam react to the breakup?
-Adam took the breakup quite badly and hoped that they would get back together.
What was the narrator's solution to the problem of not being able to afford moving out after the breakup?
-The narrator moved into a small storage room in the apartment, giving Adam the master bedroom that they had shared before.
Why did the narrator sometimes go into Adam's room after the breakup?
-The narrator had to go into Adam's room occasionally because there wasn't enough space in the storage room for all her clothes.
How did the narrator's interaction with Adam after a rough day affect their situation?
-The narrator's interaction with Adam for comfort after a rough day gave him false hopes and made the situation tense for a while.
What agreement did the narrator and Adam make regarding dating other people while living together?
-They agreed that they wouldn't date anyone else while living in the same apartment.
How did the narrator's relationship with a guy from school complicate the situation?
-The narrator's relationship with a guy from school complicated the situation because Adam overheard her discussing him with Sarah, leading to awkwardness and tension.
What did Adam do in response to finding out about the narrator's interest in another man?
-In response, Adam went out partying and brought a girl home to show that he didn't care or was pretending to show it.
How did the living situation affect the friendship between the narrator, Adam, Sarah, and Luke?
-The living situation made the apartment very tense, and it affected their friendships, with the narrator being distant and polite, and the friends avoiding each other.
What was the final outcome for the narrator after the 6-month rental agreement?
-The final outcome for the narrator was that she moved out after the 6 months were up, which also affected her friendship with Sarah and Luke.

Outlines

00:00

💔 Post-Breakup Cohabitation Struggles

The narrator describes the aftermath of a breakup with her boyfriend, Adam, while still living together in an apartment shared with friends Sarah and Luke. Despite the breakup being her decision, Adam took it hard, and they agreed not to date others during the remaining six months of their rental agreement. The narrator moved into a small storage room to give Adam the master bedroom, but the living situation became awkward and tense. An incident where Adam overheard her discussing a new romantic interest led to further strain, with both eventually bringing someone home to make a point. The once close-knit group of friends became distant, and the living environment turned uncomfortable, with both the narrator and Adam trying to avoid each other as much as possible.

Mindmap

Keywords

💡Shared apartment

A shared apartment refers to a living space that is occupied by more than one person, often friends or partners, who share the costs and responsibilities of maintaining the space. In the video's theme, the shared apartment is central to the story as it is where the narrator, her boyfriend Adam, and friends Sarah and Luke live. It becomes a place of tension and discomfort after the breakup, highlighting the complexities of maintaining personal relationships in close quarters.

💡Breakup

A breakup is the end of a romantic relationship. In the script, the narrator decides to end her relationship with Adam, which sets the stage for the narrative's exploration of cohabitation post-breakup. The breakup is a pivotal moment that leads to emotional and logistical challenges, as they continue to live together and navigate their new dynamic.

💡Master bedroom

The master bedroom is typically the largest bedroom in a house or apartment and often includes a private bathroom. In the context of the video, the narrator moves into a storage room, giving Adam the master bedroom they previously shared. This change in living arrangements symbolizes the shift in their relationship and the attempt to create boundaries and personal space after the breakup.

💡False hopes

False hopes refer to expectations or beliefs that are not based on reality or are unlikely to be fulfilled. In the script, the narrator acknowledges that seeking comfort from Adam after a rough day gave him false hopes of a reconciliation. This concept is key to understanding the emotional turmoil and miscommunication that can occur in complex living situations post-breakup.

💡Agreement

An agreement in this context is a mutual understanding or arrangement between parties. The characters had agreed not to date anyone else while living together, which the narrator upholds. However, the agreement becomes complicated when she develops feelings for someone else, illustrating the difficulty of maintaining personal commitments in a strained living environment.

💡Attraction

Attraction is a feeling of being drawn towards someone or something, often romantically. The narrator experiences an instant attraction to a guy at school, which complicates her living situation and the agreement she made with Adam. This attraction is a catalyst for the tension that unfolds in the shared apartment, affecting both her personal life and her relationships with her housemates.

💡Flirting

Flirting is a playful and often subtle way of showing romantic interest in someone. The narrator and the guy from school engage in flirting, despite her initial honesty about her living situation with her ex. This behavior, while seemingly harmless, contributes to the emotional complexity and the eventual awkwardness when Adam overhears their conversation.

💡Tension

Tension refers to a state of strain or uncertainty, often resulting from conflicting emotions or situations. The video script describes the apartment becoming very tense after various incidents, such as Adam overhearing the narrator talking about her new interest and him bringing a girl home. Tension is a key element in the narrative, reflecting the emotional discomfort and the strain on relationships within the shared living space.

💡Avoidance

Avoidance is the act of keeping away from or not dealing with something. After the awkward incidents, both the narrator and Adam begin to avoid each other, trying to minimize contact while sharing the apartment. This avoidance is indicative of the breakdown in communication and the growing estrangement between the two, further emphasizing the challenges of their living situation.

💡Friendship

Friendship is a close and supportive relationship between equals. The narrator's friendship with Sarah and Luke is affected by the breakup and the subsequent tension in the apartment. The friendship deteriorates to the point where Sarah does not reach out to the narrator after she moves out, showing how the living situation impacted not only the romantic relationship but also the platonic ones.

💡Moving on

Moving on refers to the process of recovering and adjusting after a significant change or loss. The narrator and Adam struggle to move on while living together, which is a central theme in the video. Their inability to move forward is highlighted by their continued interactions and the emotional residue of their past relationship, demonstrating the difficulty of transitioning from intimacy to independence within the same living space.

Highlights

A breakup occurred in a shared apartment with a boyfriend named Adam and friends Sarah and Luke.

The decision to end the relationship was made by the narrator.

The narrator moved into a storage room to give Adam space after the breakup.

The narrator's clothes did not fit in the storage room, requiring access to Adam's room.

The narrator and Adam agreed not to date anyone else while living together.

The narrator developed an attraction to a guy at school despite living with her ex.

Sarah, the roommate, was aware of the narrator's attraction to the guy at school.

Adam overheard the narrator discussing her attraction to another guy.

Adam reacted to the situation by bringing a girl home from a party.

The apartment atmosphere became very tense after the incident with Adam and the girl.

The narrator and Adam avoided each other as much as possible within the apartment.

The situation strained the friendships within the apartment.

The narrator stayed in the apartment for the full 6 months before moving out.

The breakup and living situation negatively impacted the narrator's friendship with Sarah.

Adam was likely relieved when the narrator moved out.

The narrator reflects on the difficulty of moving on while still living with an ex-partner.