Chapter 1 Betrayed

Karen

Fatigue enveloped me completely after long hours on duty at the hospital. The smell of clean corridors, permeated by the antiseptic odor, became suffocating. My head throbbed, and a growing sense of malaise began to overwhelm me. Ignoring the signs wasn't an option, so finally, I succumbed to weakness and sought help in the same place where I used to offer it: the hospital.

The doctor, solemn and thoughtful, explained the stress overload and the need for immediate rest. I understood the gravity of the situation, but my mind insisted on focusing on another concern. Max, my fiancé, wasn't answering my calls. Where could he be? Why wasn't he answering just when I needed him the most?

I decided to go straight to Max's apartment, ignoring the advice to rest, longing for the comforting embrace of my fiancé. Upon arriving at the apartment and turning the key in the lock, the scene before my eyes was confusing. Clothes scattered on the floor, and a heavy silence hung in the air, despite my heart pounding in my ears.

I didn't need to go to the bedroom to understand what was happening. On the couch, Max seemed to be resting, embraced by a long-haired blonde whose tresses cascaded disorderly over his bare chest. The shock froze even my soul.

The couple, naked and completely asleep, was an image I never imagined witnessing. A scream of horror escaped my lips, breaking the silence. The sound of the scream echoed in the apartment, and the beautiful couple seemed to awaken. I didn't look once at the woman. My eyes were fixed on Max. Max's bewildered eyes met mine, and for a moment, he seemed unable to process the reality of what was happening at that exact moment.

Max, with a dexterity that revolted me, grabbed a pair of shorts from the nearby armchair and put them on with disconcerting speed. A cynical mask covered his face as if he were about to greet me after an ordinary day.

"You're home early, love?" His question sounded like an insult.

My eyes narrowed in disbelief at the audacity of the traitor. The indignation boiling inside me finally exploded, and I lunged towards Max, determined to make him feel, even for a moment, the pain he had caused me. My hands rose, ready to strike his face, as furious words escaped my lips.

"You bastard! How dare you?" I cursed him with a torrent of obscenities, my voice choked by a mix of fury and pain.

Yet, before my hands could find their deserved target, I was restrained by him, his firm hands gripping mine, preventing any gesture of despair as I struggled against him.

As I struggled against Max, the woman with him seemed to react, getting up. I was so stunned that I hadn't even glanced in the direction of Max's lover. When I realized that the woman with Max was Lilian, an old friend of mine, I felt my world collapse even further. Lilian is someone I hadn't kept in touch with, precisely because Max had managed to convince me that Lilian wasn't a good friend. And now, there was Lilian, with Max. He was right after all. But of course, he knew she wasn't a good friend! He was having an affair with her.

"Lilian!?" The new shock made me stop struggling.

Lilian, now standing, stared at me with a mixture of guilt and surprise, but her expression soon turned into a mask of indifference, as if the lost friendship didn't affect her anymore. Max, in turn, released my hands, taking a step back.

"Karen, I can explain..." Max tried to start, but he was interrupted by the sharp, pain-laden look I shot his way.

Amidst my pain, addressing Max:

"Listen to me very carefully, Max," I declared firmly and clearly, pointing my finger at him. "Never again, do you hear me? Never again do I want to look at your face!"

Without waiting for the explanation he could offer, I turned my back on the man who had betrayed my trust. But it wouldn't be that easy, it seemed. Max ran after me, declaring desperately:

"Karen, I love you. She's not important like you are to me," Max tried to justify himself.

"It's over, Max. There's no forgiveness for what you two did!"

"Karen, please, listen to me," Max held onto my arm, seeking a connection that seemed impossible at that moment. "You were always busy, working so much. You never had time for us. I was feeling lonely. This with Lilian was a mistake, just a distraction, you understand? It has nothing to do with what we have."

I wanted to speak, to explain how much it hurt, but the pain choked my words. However, before I could respond, Lilian, enraged, interrupted Max's attempt to explain himself.

"Just a distraction, is that it?" she snapped, her eyes flashing with indignation. "I'm not just an object, Max! How dare you reduce me to that?"

The argument between the two quickly escalated, while my heart ached. I wanted to scream, but the words stubbornly refused to come out. Max's painful accusations pierced my chest, and I knew that, partly, he was right. I worked too much, I was always busy, and maybe I hadn't reserved enough time for us to have fun together. However, I was only trying to build a solid financial foundation for our future, for our marriage.

The tears I held back threatened to overflow. Yet, Lilian was furious at being labeled merely as an object of desire, and the argument between the two escalated, leaving no room for me to express what I wished.

With nothing else to do in that apartment, I decided to leave at once. My faltering steps led me out of the apartment, and tears began to stream down my face as I distanced myself. I wondered how I could overcome the pain of such betrayal. Max was too busy arguing with Lilian to pay attention to my departure, and that was painful too. What remained of our three-year love story was crumbling before my eyes, and I felt powerless in the face of it.