GM all. Something very unexpected happened last night. I ran into a friend I hadn't seen in over 2 years at a gas station. We talked for a bit and I found out he recently got divorced and he found out he has MS. He also mentioned depression without coming right out and saying he is depressed. I feel really bad for him, but I had distanced myself from this guy for a reason.

Back when we were friends he got caught cheating on his then gf. I have always really liked his gf, she's a good woman and her and I got along well. When the cheating was exposed I tried to get her to break up with him and may have made a bit of a pass at her, but she decided to forgive him. After that I started to distance myself and lost touch. They eventually got married and have two very young children together now.

I feel like a vulture, but the first thing I thought about after running into him was that I wanted to contact his ex. I have still thought about her occasionally even though I have had no contact with them all this time. I feel like after running into him and finding out he's in rough shape, going right to his ex to reconnect with her instead of him is a dick move. On the other hand he's a cheater and I lost a lot of respect for him after that.

I'm thinking I am going to contact her anyway and offer my support as a friend. I'm not responsible for him, and frankly I don't even know what I could do to help him. I don't really want to resume my friendship with him at all. Her on the other hand, I still care about.

I could use some reassurance that I am not a vulture and this is a socially acceptable thing to do. Anyone have any thoughts on the matter?