Woman who continued texting boyfriend after he died reveals she was blocked by new owner of number
‘How could someone see these messages coming through and block the number’
Your support helps us to tell the story
This election is still a dead heat, according to most polls. In a fight with such wafer-thin margins, we need reporters on the ground talking to the people Trump and Harris are courting. Your support allows us to keep sending journalists to the story.
The Independent is trusted by 27 million Americans from across the entire political spectrum every month. Unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock you out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. But quality journalism must still be paid for.
Help us keep bring these critical stories to light. Your support makes all the difference.
A woman who continued to text her boyfriend of four years after his death has revealed that she was recently blocked by the new owner of his phone number.
When the messages were no longer sending, she took to TikTok to share her grief with the rest of the world.
Samantha Rhodes posted a video about the heartbreaking incident to TikTok on 3 April, where it has gained more than 15m views. In the viral video, Rhodes scrolled through unanswered messages she’d sent to her late boyfriend Austyn - who died this past January - including pictures of her dog, photos of his grave, and long text messages saying “I miss you”.
Rhodes stopped scrolling through the text chain once the messages - which were previously the colour blue - appeared green, meaning that they were not delivered. This was followed by an automated text that read: “You have been blocked from originating messages to [the number]”.
“Biggest heartbreak,” she captioned the TikTok video.
Selena Gomez calls out body shamers’ comments about her weight: ‘I am perfect the way I am’ 
Soon-to-be father criticised for celebrating with baseball teammates instead of girlfriend after gender reveal
Man reveals he learned he was denied job after he was accidentally CC’d in HR email: ‘So let’s reject him’
Social media users liked Rhodes’ TikTok more than 2m times, and offered their condolences in the comments section.
“I’m so sorry for your loss,” wrote one person. “I can’t even imagine how you must feel. This made me tear up a little bit.”
“My heart is breaking for you, I am so sorry for your loss baby,” said someone else. “You will always be his forever love.”
Even Austyn’s mother commented on the TikTok video, sharing her praise for Rhodes during such a difficult time.
“My son loved you more than anything,” she said. “He would be so proud of you and [the] strength that you have shown through this. We love you.” In response to the message, Rhodes replied: “I love you guys so much. I miss him more than anything. He looked up to you.”
Others criticised the owner of the new phone number for blocking Rhodes, rather than muting the conversation.
“How could someone see these messages coming through and block the number,” asked one TikTok user. “I’d just mute the thread and let them keep messaging”.
“No, why would they block you?” wrote another user. “They can just mute the messages”.
Rhodes’ vulnerable video also allowed other TikTok users to share their own experiences with loss.
“I did this and one guy called me back and talked to me for three hours and let me cry it out,” shared one person. “He was so kind.”
“My husband died three years ago,” commented someone else. “I still pay for his phone service so everyone can text his phone still.”
“I did the same with my grandpa,” another person wrote. “Then someone got his number and told me to never text again.”
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments