He went straight to play video games after work, so she cooked a special meal. One question about mustard ended their 5-year engagement
Zaniya felt like she had to do everything all by herself while her fiancé sat in the game room
Healthy relationships are not always about grand gestures or expensive gifts. Couples who focus on quality time and mutual effort tend to thrive more. Zaniya, who goes by @zaniya.g on TikTok, unfortunately learned it the hard way. On July 18, 2026, she recalled how she ended her five-year relationship with her fiancé over something as minor as mustard. It all started when Zaniya prepared turkey burgers to impress her partner. But instead of appreciating her efforts, the man kept ignoring her until a simple request to pass the mustard sauce exposed the cracks in their relationship. Zaniya's video has received 840,900 views online.
@zaniya.g first of all, no shade to my kids dad, he’s a great dad but TRUST, we’re better off. i genuinely couldn’t tell him the truth out of fear of his responses and that’s NEVER okay. this was the straw that broke the camels back among other things but i want to make it so clear that we were both KIDS and didn’t know the slightest bit of what commitment and responsibility looked like until we had to figure it out together which was beyond difficult coming from 2 different backgrounds. overall, im much better for that relationship bc it forced me to understand the importance of SELF AWARENESS. to stop lying to myself and to others in order to fit the description or keep an image that nobody expects of me!! nothing good ever came from lying but we were both bad at it 😂i think it makes me appreciate him more in our grown age lol
♬ original sound - zan 💌
A new start
Zaniya revealed that the lease on their shared apartment ended when their daughter was only 4 months old. So, to save money, they moved into her fiancé's mom's apartment and stayed there for 6 months. However, throughout their stay, the couple felt a desperate need to have their own space. Frustrated, they moved into an expensive two-bedroom apartment and started their new life together. Since it was summer, Zaniya, a substitute teacher, was out of work — so her fiancé covered most of the bills. Zaniya and her fiancé hoped to get back to their old life in the new apartment, but that was not the case.
It all boiled down to mustard
Whenever Zaniya's partner returned from work, she said he would spend most of his time in the game room, while she had to manage everything alone. Frustrated, when she confronted her partner, he also shared his expectations of her, such as having home-cooked meals. Following his wish, the next day, Zaniya made some turkey burgers. But instead of eating and appreciating her, the man was busy playing games. By the time he stopped playing, Zaniya had finished her meal. Right before he ate, he asked her if the mustard was good on the sandwich. Zaniya said yes, but when her fiancé tried to open the bottle, he realized it was still sealed. The man immediately flipped. "Why did you just lie to me about the mustard? If you could lie to me about something so small like that, then what else are you lying about?" he accused her. It was a small incident, but Zaniya had been asking God for a sign, and when she saw her partner walk out of the apartment, she knew he wasn't the man for her.
Holding on too long
People break up and divorce their partners for several reasons. A national survey conducted by Wilkinson & Finkbeiner in 2024 found that 45% of couples filed for divorce because of unrealistic expectations. Both Zaniya and her partner had really high expectations when they moved into their new place. He expected her to have home-cooked food on the table every night, while she expected him to help her manage the house. But despite Zaniya's attempt to cook for him, her ex-partner did not even appreciate it. On the other hand, a Freely (as cited in The Sun) spokesperson said, "Breaking up is never easy... Many of us stick with things longer than we should, whether out of habit or fear of change. But sometimes the best thing we can do is be honest with ourselves and take that step — especially when it’s no longer giving us what we need." Zaniya was also guilty of sticking around. She waited for a sign when she had been contemplating breaking up with her fiancé.
'Not meant for each other'
Meanwhile, not everyone in the comments was on Zaniya's side. Some people said that her fiancé was only human and needed to rest too, while others said he was just looking for a way out of the relationship. @talishataylore wrote, "It sounds like he was overwhelmed with carrying the relationship. It sounds like you don’t want to do housewife obligations. I don’t think either of you were wrong, just not meant for each other." @mamakaiiskai added, "'What else are you lying about?' just tells me he's been doing something he wasn’t supposed to be doing."
You can follow Zaniya (@zaniya.g) on TikTok for more lifestyle content.
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