Kkasxo:

I think I know the answer to your question. I was asking the same question myself regarding my ex when in a relationship and certainly after it ended. I don’t think he was wearing a mask either. I think it was a combination of both: you being very much in love and high on this love blinding you (or making you judge in his favour when in doubt) AND, since it was earlier in the relationship, he was also very much in love doing his best and putting his best foot forward.

When I get to interact with my ex (very, very seldom now), I also can’t help feeling that he is a different person. But then I remember how he was acting when he fell in love with my successor – it was EXACTLY how he was behaving when he was in love with me, up to calling her the same pet names. And then I remember how he had been behaving towards my predecessor – and now I was in her shoes, to the minute detail. It kind of hit home.