You Snooze You Lose

I used to date someone who lied compulsively.
At first I thought I was crazy. In fact sometimes I think I was even made to believe I was crazy. Deceit runs deep.
Slowly and unfortunately too late I learned to read the signs.
At first it feels just like a feeling. Uncomfortable, like something you can't put your finger on. Like the hairs standing on the back of your neck, but this feeling is more like an anxiety, a sneaking, edgy nervousness. You have a pit in your stomach, your insides are twisting. You want to do something, but all it is right now is a suspicion, a feeling.
Then slowly other more tangible signs creep up.
There's a pregnant pause when you ask a question.
Crossing arms and/or shrugging shoulders.
Lack of denial.
No eye contact.
Suspicious activities that don't add up.
Lack of specificity about those activities.
But the last final piece is that everyone has their tell. Some behavior unique to them that gives them away.
I began to notice much too late the hard line his mouth would form when I confronted him. He didn't even have to admit it at that point, I learned. The proverbial jig was up once his lips grew taut and thin.
We have these feelings for a reason. I don't know where we got them from. The question is, will I learn to trust them?
You snooze you lose. But sometimes you still lose.