August 26, 2026 • 6 mins
Is wanting a few days completely to yourself enough reason to lie to the person you love?
This week's Dirty Little Secret comes from a woman who's been keeping the same surprise from her boyfriend for two years. Every year, she tells him she's heading out on a girls' trip with friends from college. The truth? There is no girls' trip.
Instead, she quietly returns to her hometown alone for a few days of total freedom. No schedules, no obligations, no constant check-ins. Just coffee, shopping, takeout, bad TV, and some much-needed time to recharge away from her clingy boyfriend.
But just when Billy the Kidd, Candice Lopez, and Producer Pooh start to understand her need for space, she drops a bombshell that changes everything: every year during her secret getaway, she also meets up with her ex for lunch.
Before you assume the worst, there's a twist. Her ex has since come out and no longer dates women. Still, she refuses to tell her boyfriend about the annual meetup, convinced his insecurities would send the relationship into complete meltdown mode.
The crew debates whether she's simply protecting her peace, hiding something harmless, or crossing a line by keeping such a big secret from her partner.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
This is Dirty Little Secrets. Okay, you got a secret.
It's time to confess. It's Bailey the Kid, Candace Lopez,
producer Pooh. Just do it. Just tell us what's going on.
It could be a big secret, a little secret, whatever
is happening in your life. Or maybe it happened five
years ago.
Speaker 2 (00:17):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (00:17):
Or ten years ago. It doesn't have to be recent.
Just confess, and you got one. What's up?
Speaker 3 (00:21):
Yeah, so, okay, I'm hiding something from my boyfriend, and
this is actually the second year in a row that
I've done it. Every year, I tell them I'm going
on my annual girls trip, except there's no girls trip.
Speaker 2 (00:36):
Oh, really?
Speaker 4 (00:37):
What?
Speaker 1 (00:38):
You tell them you're going on a girls trip. There's
no girls trip. Where are you going?
Speaker 3 (00:44):
I go back to my hometown for a few days
completely by myself.
Speaker 1 (00:48):
Oh, wow.
Speaker 3 (00:49):
I love my boyfriend very, very much. We've been together
almost three years. I've never cheated on him, and I
never would. I just desperately need a break.
Speaker 1 (01:00):
And I think that's reasonable, but why not just be
honest about it? Tell him.
Speaker 3 (01:04):
Well, my boyfriend is extremely clingy. He wants to do
everything together. If I'm watching TV, he wants to watch
with me. If I'm running errands, he wants to come.
If I have plans, yeah, he wants to know what
I'm doing, what we're doing afterward. It's actually gotten worse
the longer we've been together.
Speaker 1 (01:20):
Wow.
Speaker 4 (01:21):
He's codependent.
Speaker 1 (01:22):
Yeah, he's codependent. But I mean, like maybe if anything
in relationships, I've had a problem in the past because
I'm too independent. Yeah. And I like I like my time.
So I get this, but it just looks shady.
Speaker 3 (01:34):
Yeah, I need alone time to function. You know, like
I just can't deal with someone by my side all
the time. So once a year I tell him I'm
meeting up with girls and that I went to college
with pack my bags and I disappear for a few days.
Speaker 1 (01:49):
And he's just like, cool, have a good time. And
you're just doing your own thing. You're just I mean,
are you doing things there that he wouldn't want to
know about? And I know you said no cheating, but
is it? Anything that might be weird or bizarre?
Speaker 3 (02:00):
Well, you know, I don't lie about where I'm going.
I really do go back home. I might see one
or two friends while I'm there, but that's mostly about it. Like,
I sleep in, I get coffee by myself, go shopping,
I eat wherever I want, and I watch terrible TV
in my hotel room. I don't answer to anybody.
Speaker 1 (02:19):
Okay. Yeah. I'm not mad at that. You refresh. You
just kind of like a little reset and you need that. No,
I do get that.
Speaker 4 (02:26):
I think everyone needs a reset. It doesn't have to
be from your boyfriend or your partner, but from your work.
I mean, just from the change of pace, you know,
you need a change of scenery.
Speaker 1 (02:35):
Yeah. But I don't like the fact that you say
he's clingy. That, to me, is a little red flag,
but whatever.
Speaker 3 (02:41):
It is.
Speaker 1 (02:42):
It is for me, too. Why are you in a
relationship with him if he's that clingy? Well, you can
love someone and they're not perfect. It's just, you know,
I've dealt with that before.
Speaker 4 (02:50):
Yeah, but if it's getting worse over time, you would
think it would be less clingy over time.
Speaker 3 (02:55):
But now there is, like, one other detail that's probably
going to make this sound approximately 500 times shadier. Okay.
Speaker 1 (03:02):
Why? Why?
Speaker 3 (03:05):
Well, when I'm back home, I usually have lunch with
my ex.
Speaker 1 (03:10):
There we go. There it is. Come on, girl. I
was on your side.
Speaker 2 (03:14):
There it is.
Speaker 1 (03:15):
Oh, man. There it is right there. Wait. Wait. Wait. Wait, what?
Speaker 4 (03:22):
500 times shadier.
Speaker 3 (03:23):
Listen, he came out of the closet years ago. He
doesn't even date women anymore.
Speaker 1 (03:27):
What? Oh. Yes.
Speaker 3 (03:30):
We dated forever ago and stayed friends. And once a year,
we grab lunch and catch up. There's absolutely nothing romantic happening.
Speaker 1 (03:38):
So he doesn't... Okay, so now he's... He doesn't even
like women.
Speaker 4 (03:44):
OK, does your boyfriend know, like even this generic situation
that this is his, you know.
Speaker 1 (03:50):
That really happens where you date someone. All of a
sudden it's like they come out of the closet and
then sorry. Yeah, I was never that that would mess
with my head.
Speaker 4 (03:58):
Yeah, it does mess with people.
Speaker 1 (03:59):
It would happen to me. I dated a girl named Tori. Wait,
you did? Yeah, I dated a girl. You remember Tori
from from Denton? Yeah, she has a she has a
wife now.
Speaker 2 (04:10):
Really yeah after poo she was like forget this all
right yeah so you don't want to tell your boyfriend
that though yeah my.
Speaker 3 (04:21):
Boyfriend is absolutely not no because this man would spontaneously
combust like he's already insecure.
Speaker 1 (04:29):
Even if he knows that you're the guy's not even
into women anymore or he would probably think you're just
saying that maybe to make him feel better yeah that's Yeah.
Speaker 3 (04:37):
It doesn't matter. He's already insecure. So if I told
him I went on vacation alone, he'd already asked 5
billion questions like, where are you going? Who are you seeing?
Speaker 1 (04:46):
Why don't you want me there?
Speaker 3 (04:47):
Why can't I come? And then if I throw in, oh,
and I'm having lunch with my ex, I might as
well just light my whole relationship on fire.
Speaker 1 (04:55):
Yeah, I see that. If he's already kind of like that.
But in his defense, though, I swear I've been in
relationships where every they have a bunch of guy friends
and according to them, they're all, they're all gay. Yeah,
that's true. Oh no, he's, he's gay. And then I
meet him. I'm like, this dude's not gay. Ain't no way.
Speaker 3 (05:17):
Well, yeah, like he's definitely gay, but I, I am
definitely lying and I know that's probably not healthy, but
I'm not cheating. I'm not partying with random guys. Um,
I'm literally just hiding from the world, ordering takeout and
enjoying the fact that nobody needs anything for me.
Speaker 1 (05:32):
There's nothing wrong with that. So if he finds out,
just be prepared for the wrath of it being shady
because then no matter what you say, he's going to
be like, you are a liar.
Speaker 4 (05:41):
If he's already clingy and insecure, that's a recipe for disaster.
Speaker 1 (05:45):
You might have to get back with your ex. No.
Speaker 3 (05:48):
No.
Speaker 1 (05:49):
If he'll have you.
Speaker 4 (05:50):
Oh, no.
Speaker 1 (05:51):
Yeah, you never know. They never say never. People go
back and forth sometimes.
Speaker 4 (05:55):
That's true.
Speaker 1 (05:55):
I know people who do that.
Speaker 4 (05:57):
I do, too.
Speaker 2 (05:58):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (05:58):
If they just find happiness, that's all I care about.
Speaker 1 (06:00):
Yeah, whatever makes you happy. I'm not judging. If one
week you like guys, next week you like girls, listen, Pooh,
we're going to embrace you. Oh, no, you didn't. Love
is love. Thank you so much. And let us know
what happens, okay?
Speaker 3 (06:13):
Yeah, for sure, guys. Thank you.
Speaker 1 (06:14):
I totally forgot you dated that girl, to be honest. Yeah. Totally.
I don't remember her. You don't remember her? No. We
should rank our ex-girlfriends one day. Oh, Lord. Or at
least poos. Okay. You know? Sounds fun. Just rank them
from five to one. Who is the best? You know
I love a good list. Yeah. I can line them
up for you. Mine or yours? Mine. So could we.
(06:37):
So could we.
This is Dirty Little Secrets. Okay, you got a secret.
It's time to confess. It's Bailey the Kid, Candace Lopez,
producer Pooh. Just do it. Just tell us what's going on.
It could be a big secret, a little secret, whatever
is happening in your life. Or maybe it happened five
years ago.
Speaker 2 (00:17):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (00:17):
Or ten years ago. It doesn't have to be recent.
Just confess, and you got one. What's up?
Speaker 3 (00:21):
Yeah, so, okay, I'm hiding something from my boyfriend, and
this is actually the second year in a row that
I've done it. Every year, I tell them I'm going
on my annual girls trip, except there's no girls trip.
Speaker 2 (00:36):
Oh, really?
Speaker 4 (00:37):
What?
Speaker 1 (00:38):
You tell them you're going on a girls trip. There's
no girls trip. Where are you going?
Speaker 3 (00:44):
I go back to my hometown for a few days
completely by myself.
Speaker 1 (00:48):
Oh, wow.
Speaker 3 (00:49):
I love my boyfriend very, very much. We've been together
almost three years. I've never cheated on him, and I
never would. I just desperately need a break.
Speaker 1 (01:00):
And I think that's reasonable, but why not just be
honest about it? Tell him.
Speaker 3 (01:04):
Well, my boyfriend is extremely clingy. He wants to do
everything together. If I'm watching TV, he wants to watch
with me. If I'm running errands, he wants to come.
If I have plans, yeah, he wants to know what
I'm doing, what we're doing afterward. It's actually gotten worse
the longer we've been together.
Speaker 1 (01:20):
Wow.
Speaker 4 (01:21):
He's codependent.
Speaker 1 (01:22):
Yeah, he's codependent. But I mean, like maybe if anything
in relationships, I've had a problem in the past because
I'm too independent. Yeah. And I like I like my time.
So I get this, but it just looks shady.
Speaker 3 (01:34):
Yeah, I need alone time to function. You know, like
I just can't deal with someone by my side all
the time. So once a year I tell him I'm
meeting up with girls and that I went to college
with pack my bags and I disappear for a few days.
Speaker 1 (01:49):
And he's just like, cool, have a good time. And
you're just doing your own thing. You're just I mean,
are you doing things there that he wouldn't want to
know about? And I know you said no cheating, but
is it? Anything that might be weird or bizarre?
Speaker 3 (02:00):
Well, you know, I don't lie about where I'm going.
I really do go back home. I might see one
or two friends while I'm there, but that's mostly about it. Like,
I sleep in, I get coffee by myself, go shopping,
I eat wherever I want, and I watch terrible TV
in my hotel room. I don't answer to anybody.
Speaker 1 (02:19):
Okay. Yeah. I'm not mad at that. You refresh. You
just kind of like a little reset and you need that. No,
I do get that.
Speaker 4 (02:26):
I think everyone needs a reset. It doesn't have to
be from your boyfriend or your partner, but from your work.
I mean, just from the change of pace, you know,
you need a change of scenery.
Speaker 1 (02:35):
Yeah. But I don't like the fact that you say
he's clingy. That, to me, is a little red flag,
but whatever.
Speaker 3 (02:41):
It is.
Speaker 1 (02:42):
It is for me, too. Why are you in a
relationship with him if he's that clingy? Well, you can
love someone and they're not perfect. It's just, you know,
I've dealt with that before.
Speaker 4 (02:50):
Yeah, but if it's getting worse over time, you would
think it would be less clingy over time.
Speaker 3 (02:55):
But now there is, like, one other detail that's probably
going to make this sound approximately 500 times shadier. Okay.
Speaker 1 (03:02):
Why? Why?
Speaker 3 (03:05):
Well, when I'm back home, I usually have lunch with
my ex.
Speaker 1 (03:10):
There we go. There it is. Come on, girl. I
was on your side.
Speaker 2 (03:14):
There it is.
Speaker 1 (03:15):
Oh, man. There it is right there. Wait. Wait. Wait. Wait, what?
Speaker 4 (03:22):
500 times shadier.
Speaker 3 (03:23):
Listen, he came out of the closet years ago. He
doesn't even date women anymore.
Speaker 1 (03:27):
What? Oh. Yes.
Speaker 3 (03:30):
We dated forever ago and stayed friends. And once a year,
we grab lunch and catch up. There's absolutely nothing romantic happening.
Speaker 1 (03:38):
So he doesn't... Okay, so now he's... He doesn't even
like women.
Speaker 4 (03:44):
OK, does your boyfriend know, like even this generic situation
that this is his, you know.
Speaker 1 (03:50):
That really happens where you date someone. All of a
sudden it's like they come out of the closet and
then sorry. Yeah, I was never that that would mess
with my head.
Speaker 4 (03:58):
Yeah, it does mess with people.
Speaker 1 (03:59):
It would happen to me. I dated a girl named Tori. Wait,
you did? Yeah, I dated a girl. You remember Tori
from from Denton? Yeah, she has a she has a
wife now.
Speaker 2 (04:10):
Really yeah after poo she was like forget this all
right yeah so you don't want to tell your boyfriend
that though yeah my.
Speaker 3 (04:21):
Boyfriend is absolutely not no because this man would spontaneously
combust like he's already insecure.
Speaker 1 (04:29):
Even if he knows that you're the guy's not even
into women anymore or he would probably think you're just
saying that maybe to make him feel better yeah that's Yeah.
Speaker 3 (04:37):
It doesn't matter. He's already insecure. So if I told
him I went on vacation alone, he'd already asked 5
billion questions like, where are you going? Who are you seeing?
Speaker 1 (04:46):
Why don't you want me there?
Speaker 3 (04:47):
Why can't I come? And then if I throw in, oh,
and I'm having lunch with my ex, I might as
well just light my whole relationship on fire.
Speaker 1 (04:55):
Yeah, I see that. If he's already kind of like that.
But in his defense, though, I swear I've been in
relationships where every they have a bunch of guy friends
and according to them, they're all, they're all gay. Yeah,
that's true. Oh no, he's, he's gay. And then I
meet him. I'm like, this dude's not gay. Ain't no way.
Speaker 3 (05:17):
Well, yeah, like he's definitely gay, but I, I am
definitely lying and I know that's probably not healthy, but
I'm not cheating. I'm not partying with random guys. Um,
I'm literally just hiding from the world, ordering takeout and
enjoying the fact that nobody needs anything for me.
Speaker 1 (05:32):
There's nothing wrong with that. So if he finds out,
just be prepared for the wrath of it being shady
because then no matter what you say, he's going to
be like, you are a liar.
Speaker 4 (05:41):
If he's already clingy and insecure, that's a recipe for disaster.
Speaker 1 (05:45):
You might have to get back with your ex. No.
Speaker 3 (05:48):
No.
Speaker 1 (05:49):
If he'll have you.
Speaker 4 (05:50):
Oh, no.
Speaker 1 (05:51):
Yeah, you never know. They never say never. People go
back and forth sometimes.
Speaker 4 (05:55):
That's true.
Speaker 1 (05:55):
I know people who do that.
Speaker 4 (05:57):
I do, too.
Speaker 2 (05:58):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (05:58):
If they just find happiness, that's all I care about.
Speaker 1 (06:00):
Yeah, whatever makes you happy. I'm not judging. If one
week you like guys, next week you like girls, listen, Pooh,
we're going to embrace you. Oh, no, you didn't. Love
is love. Thank you so much. And let us know
what happens, okay?
Speaker 3 (06:13):
Yeah, for sure, guys. Thank you.
Speaker 1 (06:14):
I totally forgot you dated that girl, to be honest. Yeah. Totally.
I don't remember her. You don't remember her? No. We
should rank our ex-girlfriends one day. Oh, Lord. Or at
least poos. Okay. You know? Sounds fun. Just rank them
from five to one. Who is the best? You know
I love a good list. Yeah. I can line them
up for you. Mine or yours? Mine. So could we.
(06:37):
So could we.
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