Chapter 4 The Breakup

Ana's crying had not ceased since Clara left the room. The tears fell like torrents, without respite or comfort. Her face was red, her eyes swollen, but none of that could ease the pain in her chest. Nothing could. Clara was no longer there, but the shadow of her friend's betrayal lingered, floating in every corner of her mind. However, there was something even more painful than Clara's betrayal, something that tore at her even more: Javier's betrayal.

Javier, the man who had been her companion, her confidant, the one who had promised her eternal love. It was him who, now, tried to explain himself, over and over again, as if everything could be solved simply, as if words could restore what had been shattered. But Ana could no longer listen. She had heard enough lies in her life to recognize them when she heard them. And now, Javier's words were nothing more than an empty echo, something distant that couldn't reach her broken heart.

- How could you? - Ana repeated, almost like a mantra, as her hands clenched into fists. Her throat was closed, choked with pain, but the question kept coming out, as if it were the only thing she could articulate. How could he? How could he let it all come to this?

Javier, standing in front of her, seemed like a shadow of himself. He was pale, his eyes shining with a mixture of regret and desperation. But what Ana saw in him was no longer the person she knew, the one who had made her feel safe, the one who had made her dream of a future together. At that moment, what she saw in front of her was a stranger. A man who had betrayed her in the cruelest way possible. And that was what hurt the most: the inability to recognize the person she had once loved.

- Ana, please... - Javier extended his arms as if expecting her to fall into them, seeking comfort, looking for a way to make up for what had no solution. But Ana, with the rage still pulsing through her veins, immediately pulled away. She didn't want his comfort, she didn't want his empty words, she didn't want him to touch a single corner of her life.

- Don't touch me. - Ana's voice sounded cold, hard, like ice. It was an order, a boundary that Javier could no longer cross. She didn't want anything more from him, not his explanations, his empty promises, or his regret. Not anymore.

Javier looked around the room, searching for the right words, but Ana no longer heard him. She didn't care what he said. It didn't matter if he tried to explain, if he sought justifications, none of that could return what she had lost. The promises, the kisses, the shared laughter, all of it had disappeared as quickly as he had betrayed her trust.

- Ana, I... - Javier tried again, his voice cracking, seeking to penetrate the wall of silence that had risen between them.

But she interrupted him with a cold, almost painful gaze.

- I don't want to know anything. - Ana's voice sounded distant, empty, as if she were speaking to someone else, someone foreign to her, someone who didn't deserve a bit of her attention.

The air in the room became dense, as if the space between them was charged with static electricity. Javier took another step toward her, but Ana backed away, as if his closeness burned her. She couldn't stand his presence, his nearness. The relationship they shared no longer existed, there was nothing left between them. Only the echo of what once was.

- Please, let me explain. - Javier begged, his face marked by regret but also by frustration. He didn't want to lose her, he didn't want it all to end. But Ana had already made a decision, one she couldn't change, no matter how hard he tried.

- I don't want you to explain anything, Javier! - Ana shouted, this time with all the fury and pain that had been compressed in her chest. She was tired of hearing lies. She was tired of seeing how he tried to manipulate the situation, how he tried to make her believe that everything could be resolved with words. It couldn't be that simple.

She looked into his eyes, searching for something that wasn't there anymore, something that had once made her feel safe, loved. But all she saw was a man who had lied, who had broken her trust. All she saw was the cruel, heartbreaking reality of what had really happened. And, seeing him like this, she realized there was no longer anything left of the person she had loved.

- This is over. - The words came from her lips with relentless clarity. There was no doubt in her voice, no hesitation. She was filled with an inner strength she didn't even fully understand, but that was pushing her forward, toward the hardest decision of her life.

Javier, upon hearing those words, seemed to crumble. His body tensed, his eyes filled with anguish and despair. He wanted to approach, he wanted to stop her, but Ana no longer looked at him the same way. She no longer saw the man she had loved. All she saw was the traitor who had destroyed everything they had shared. And that was what hurt her the most. But despite all the love she had given, all that she had shared, Javier's betrayal was too deep to fix.

At that moment, Ana knew she couldn't stay with him. Despite all the love they had shared, all the pain she felt, she had to say goodbye. Love wasn't enough when trust had been irreparably broken. She couldn't continue living a lie, she couldn't keep ignoring reality. The relationship they had built no longer existed. And she knew it. Her heart beat strongly, as if, in some way, it was emptying itself, shedding everything that had been, everything she had believed would be her future.

- Let me go, Javier. - Ana whispered, more to herself than to him. The decision had already been made. There was nothing left to say, nothing left to do. She had to move on, even if the pain of the breakup crushed her from within. She had to do it for herself, for her own healing, even if it meant letting go of someone she had loved deeply.

Javier stood in silence, watching her, not knowing what to say, not knowing how to stop what was already irreversible. The room filled with a heavy emptiness, and Ana knew that, no matter how hard he tried, she couldn't return to what had once been. There was no turning back.

With one last glance at the man who had once been her partner, Ana turned and left the room. Each step she took was like a small act of liberation, but at the same time, the pain pierced her like a sharp needle. The breakup had already happened. And although the road to healing would be long and painful, Ana knew that, in the end, she would be stronger for having faced it.