Sorry to hear about your mom and your niece. Prayers to you and your family.
"I know I come off as a complete jerk towards her, but I have found this to be my best personal defense."
That's the "worst" personal defense. Have you gone to C for your anger issues? If you're planning to date and want to end the M, why haven't you filed? You seem to rely everything on what other people do rather than doing it yourself.
Take the reins and control your future.
M-43 W-40 2D - 9 and 5
Emotion, yet peace. Ignorance, yet knowledge. Passion, yet serenity. Chaos, yet harmony. Death, yet a new life.