Bound By Deceit; A Love Formed From The Ashes

"I'm sorry, but I can't continue this relationship anymore," Ethan said to Arianna, his face was void of any expression. They have been dating since she started college. They had met in a bar, when Ariana and her best friend went to the bar to chill and have fun. They became friends and after that, their friendship skyrocketed into a relationship and since then they have become inseparable. But now he was trying to end the relationship. Ariana couldn't believe her ears.

"What was going on?" She questioned as she stared at him, but he didn't answer.

"What's wrong, Ethan? Why are you calling our relationship off so soon? Did I do something wrong?" Ariana repeated. She was almost on the verge of crying, but he shook his head.

"No, Ana. I just realized that I don't love you anymore. I have fallen out of love and I'm sorry," He said to her, his face void of any expression and the next minute, she scoffed.

"Are you serious? You have fallen out of love? When did it happen? When did your feelings for me die?" She asked, clearly demanding answers.

"When I fell out of love with you is none of your business. Just know that we are done with this relationship," He said to her in a stern voice and Ariana just sighed.

'Why am I even trying to talk things out?' She thought to herself as she cleared her throat.

"Okay, Fine. Goodbye. Let's end this relationship. It's even suffocating," She hissed and with that, she turned around to leave the bar. This was the same bar they met at before they started dating and now he was calling their relationship off in this same bar. All good.

Ethan was shocked. He had expected Ariana to make a fuss as he told her that he wanted to end the relationship, but she didn't. Instead she just walked out of the bar like she didn't care about their relationship in the first place. She even said the relationship was suffocating!

He began to see reasons to believe her best friend, Marietta. Ariana took Marietta as her best friend, but little did she know that Marietta didn't like her that much. She was only coming close to her so that she would spoil Ariana's and Ethan's relationship, even though she was the one who had introduced them to each other. She was jealous of Ariana that she had someone like Ethan as her boyfriend, since he was an influential man.

Some weeks ago, Marietta had told Ethan that Ariana doesn't love him and that she was just staying with him because of his money and the fame she could get when she becomes his wife, and he had decided to do exactly what Marietta said to see if really Ariana would beg him when he tries to call their relationship off.

Marietta was the one that brought up the idea of Ethan telling Ariana that he wants to break up with her, so that they would see Ariana's reaction.

As soon as Ariana was out of sight, he took his phone and called Marietta. She picked up at the second ring and he wondered if she had been waiting for his call all day.

"Ethan," She spoke up.

"You are right, Marietta. I did as you told me. I told Ariana that I wanted to break up with her and she didn't even try to beg me," He said to her and she just exhaled.

"I told you. Ariana doesn't love you. She never did. She is just after your money," Marietta said. It was evident that she was trying to spoil Ariana's name before Ethan, but Ethan was too dumb to realize. He just believed her. He always believes everything that she says. He trusts her more than he trusts his girlfriend.

"I'm glad that I found out beforehand. Did you know that I was already about to propose to her today? I've ordered that the ring be delivered to me in two days" Ethan sounded sad.

Marietta smirked as she heard that. She was really happy with herself that she just spoiled her friend's relationship. She didn't want to see her friend happy. If there is anyone who deserves to be with Ethan, then it's her, not Ariana. After all, she was the one who introduced Ariana to Ethan. She had expected that Ethan would ask her out and she had always been waiting for the day, but instead he asked Ariana out and since then she had been mad and she harbored anger and jealousy against Ariana, that she had been looking for a way to break their relationship. When her mother brought up this idea, she didn't wait to carry it out and now she was glad that it worked. This calls for celebration. Indeed mother knows best.

"I'm really sorry, Ethan. I'm sorry that you fell in love with the wrong person, a gold digger," Marietta said. One would think that she was sympathizing with Ethan, but in the real sense, she wasn't. She was just glad that Ariana and Ethan won't be together anymore.

Ethan exhaled. "You are right, Marietta. I really fell in love with the wrong person. I'm glad that I have broken up with her. I have a feeling that I would have regretted my actions in the future if I had truly married her," He said to Marietta and she just smiled mentally.

"I'm glad that you have realized," She said to him in a soft voice, feigning concern for him.

"Where are you now? Let's meet up," She said to him and she really hoped that he wouldn't turn her down as he had always done.

"I'm at McDonald's," He replied.

"I will be there soon. You need someone to be with you at this point, to sympathize with you after this heartbreak, so I'm coming to meet you," She said to him.

"Okay". Ethan said before ending the call. He didn't try to turn down Marietta this time around and that was because he really needed someone to comfort him.

Marietta on her part jumped in excitement as she raced to her bathroom. She was really glad that Ethan didn't try to turn her down this time around. She has a perfect plan in mind. She has had this plan already all these while. She had a lot of things up her sleeves and now, she was going to take the bold step. She would confess her love to Ethan and tell him how much she has been secretly loving him since the first time they met.

Before going to meet Ethan, she dialed her mother's contact and her mother picked up at the third ring. "Hello mother?"

"You sound so excited. What's the secret?" Her mother's voice boomed from the background.

"Of course, I'm excited, mother. Our plan worked. Ethan have broken up with the bitch already,"

"That's good to know. Now you can weave your way into his life."

Marietta chuckled lightly. "Of course, mother. I'm even on my way to go meet him. I'll seduce him when I get there,"

"That's what I wanted to hear. Good luck,"

"Bye mommy. I'll call you later to tell you how it went," Marietta whispered as she ended the call.

She arrived at McDonald's, her mind racing with excitement. She spotted Ethan, his eyes red from drinking, and her heart skipped a beat. She had been waiting for this moment for so long.

"Ethan?" she called out, her voice soft and concerned.

He looked up, his eyes locking onto hers. "Marietta...I'm so glad you're here. Your presence means a lot to me"

Marietta's heart fluttered as she approached him. "Don't be silly, Ethan. I know you're hurting and right now you need someone to be here with you"

Ethan nodded, his eyes welling up with tears. "I feel so lost, Marietta. I thought Ariana was the one..."

Marietta's expression turned sympathetic. "You deserve so much better than someone who doesn't appreciate you, Ethan. You need someone who understands you, someone who can help you heal, someone who isn't a gold digger"

Ethan's eyes locked onto hers, and Marietta knew she had him. She reached out, her hand brushing against his.

"Let me be that person, Ethan. Let me help you through this difficult time."

Ethan's face contorted in a mix of sadness and longing. "I don't know, Marietta...I feel so vulnerable right now."

Marietta's voice turned soothing. "That's exactly why you need me, Ethan. I'll be your rock, your confidante. We'll get through this together."

Marietta expertly wove a web of emotional support and concern around Ethan. She pretended like she was listening attentively to his fears, his insecurities, but she wasn't. Her only aim was to do whatever brought her here. But somehow she knows that he was talking about Ariana. She offered words of encouragement and validation.

Ethan, desperate for comfort, clung to her words like a lifeline.

"It's not our fault that we keep falling for the wrong person. Our heart is fragile and we can't tell it who to fall for. I'm so sorry for what she did, okay?"

Without realizing it, Ethan found himself drawn to Marietta's charm and empathy. He began to see her as a source of solace, a beacon of hope in his darkest hour.

A smirk crept its way to Marietta's face. She had Ethan right where she wanted him – vulnerable, dependent, and completely under her spell. And now he wouldn't be able to leave easily.

Marietta's grip on Ethan's emotions tightened. She expertly manipulated his vulnerabilities, making him believe she was the only one who truly understood him.

"Ethan, you deserve so much better than Ariana," she whispered again, her voice laced with conviction. "She didn't appreciate you, but I do. I see the real you, the amazing person you are."

Ethan's eyes locked onto hers, his face a mix of sadness and longing. "Marietta, I feel so lost without her. But when I'm with you, I feel like I can be myself."

Marietta's smile was triumphant. "That's because we have a connection, Ethan. A deep, unbreakable bond. We're meant to be together. We have always been meant to be together, but she just came out of nowhere and destroyed everything"

The alcohol and emotions took hold of Ethan and his resistance crumbled. He leaned in, his lips meeting Marietta's in a passionate kiss.

Marietta's plan had worked. She had manipulated Ethan into a relationship, using his vulnerabilities to her advantage. But as they kissed, a hint of guilt crept into her mind. Has she gone too far?

Her mind raced with excitement as she kissed Ethan back. She didn't even feel any ounce of guilt for what she had done. She didn't care if she had just betrayed her best friend just because of her man. She knew she had manipulated Ethan, and used his vulnerability to her advantage, but she didn't care one bit.

As they broke apart for air, Marietta's hands trembled slightly, her fingers tracing the lines of Ethan's face with a hesitant touch. She couldn't shake off the feeling that she had taken advantage of him, that she had played on his emotions like a puppeteer.

Ethan's words of adoration and gratitude only made her feel worse, his sincerity a stark contrast to her own insincerity. Marietta's smile faltered for a moment, her eyes darting away from his, her voice barely above a whisper. "You're amazing, Ethan. You deserve so much better than Ariana."

The words felt hollow, even to her own ears. She knew she was just perpetuating the lie, keeping up the act to keep Ethan under her spell. But a part of her, a small, nagging voice, wondered if she had gone too far.

'You shouldn't start to feel guilty, Marie. This is what you have always wanted and now you have it. Don't feel guilty'.

As they continued their passionate encounter, Marietta's remorse simmered just below the surface, a constant reminder that her victory came at a cost.

"Let's go home," She suggested. She didn't like the fact that they were sitting out here in the open.

"Sure," Ethan answered as he took her hand and led her out of the bar.

He drove her to her place and that night, they made passionate love. Marietta felt fulfilled. This is what she had always wanted. For Ethan to be hers, especially as she was the one who met him first. This is a great victory. No room for guilt.

Just as she entered the room, she saw her phone ringing. She rolled her eyes when she checked the caller ID and saw that it was her so-called best friend.

'What does she want?' She asked no one in particular as she continued to stare at the caller ID, but nevertheless, she picked the call.

"Hello, Ana?" She called and the next thing that came to her eyes was the sound of someone sniffing. She smirked.

"What's wrong, Ana? Can you please tell me what's going on? Why on earth are you crying? Who dares to make you cry?" She asked, feigning ignorance as to the reason for her friend's cries.

"Ethan broke up with me," Ariana let out. She was still crying. It came out as a shock to her that she didn't stutter when she was talking to her friend.

"What?" Marietta yelled at the top of her voice. "He did what? He broke up with you? Is he crazy? Why would he do such a thing to you?" She yelled over the phone.

"I don't know, Marie. I don't know," Ariana said amidst her sniffles.

"He just called me to meet him at McDonald's and I went there. I wanted to hug him, but he refused. The next thing he said was that he wants to break up with me. I didn't do anything wrong. I didn't make him angry or do anything at all that would warrant him breaking up with me. I didn't speak out of turn, or say anything I wasn't supposed to say. I'm just so confused right now. I'm on the verge of going crazy right now" Ariana said through her sniffles.

Marietta sighed. "I will talk to him and give him a piece of my mind, okay? Don't stress yourself over him. He will come back to you as soon as I talk to him, okay?"

Ariana nodded her head as if her friend could see her. "Okay, Marie. Thank you very much. I will be waiting for you,"

With that, the call disconnected. As soon as the call disconnected, Marietta burst into laughter.

"Keep dreaming, my love. There is nothing to talk about," She said before walking out of the house. She had changed into her clothes already. She boarded a cab to McDonald's Lounge, to meet with Ethan.

In no distant time, she walked back into the room, and she quickly rushed inside to meet Ethan. She saw the countless numbers of bottles on the table. He had been drinking and it's all because of Ariana. She huffed in annoyance before walking towards his direction.

"Ethan?" She called him and he took his eyes up to meet hers.

"Yes, Marietta," He answered. Marietta was glad to know that despite the fact that he was drunk, he was able to recognize her. He wasn't a man with low patience for alcohol.

"Thank you for coming, Marietta. I am glad that you came here. I will take my leave now" He said to her as he tried to stand up from the chair, but immediately, Marietta rushed to his direction, and she held his hands. How could he want to leave just when she came here? She wouldn't let him leave. No matter what!

"No, Ethan. You can't go home in this state. You are drunk and you didn't come with your driver," Marietta tried to reason with him. She knows that he could hear her.

"I can drive, Marietta. I didn't drink too much. I only had six bottles of liquor. I am still very much sober," Ethan said to her. He freed himself from his grip as he tried to leave, but he staggered and he fell on the floor.

Marietta exhaled. She decided to get any of the security guards so that they would take Ethan to any of the vacant hotel rooms and they did.

As soon as she was alone with Ethan, she pulled down his clothes and she pulled hers too. She had a plan up her sleeves and that was what she wants to do now.

She made sure she placed her phone in the particular place that it could record everything that she did with Ethan. When she was satisfied, she walked back to the bed and laid with Ethan. He was drunk, so there was no way he could know what he was doing.

Ariana was sitting on her bed. She was bawling her eyes out. She still couldn't believe that Ethan could break her heart like this. She never expected it in any way. She had thought about ending her life because she couldn't bear the betrayal, but she decided against it. He had just broken up with her. He just called off her two year relationship with him. She was really hurt. This was not something that she was expecting in any way.

"Ethan is not worth it," She said to herself as she wiped her tears. She decided to sleep. That was always a getaway from all her problems, especially family related problems. Just as she laid on her bed to sleep, a notification came on her phone. She didn't bother to check it, since she felt that it was normal SMS messages, but the notification kept coming over and over again, that she lost count of it. She groaned loudly in annoyance as she reached for her phone on the bedside table. She saw that it was a snap message and she decided to check it out.

She gasped when she saw the messages. It was a video of her best friend and Ethan. They were engaged in a hot session of love making. Ariana couldn't believe her eyes. She almost thought that she was dreaming, therefore she closed her eyes, hoping that when she opened her eyes, the scene would have disappeared by now.

"Goodness!" She gasped again. Another message entered her phone and she saw that it was still from Marietta.

It was actually a video and in the caption, she wrote "Ethan is finally mine, bitch. Congratulations on your breakup with him. Do you know how much I have wanted Ethan for myself? Well, now he is mine," There was a laughing emoji at the end of the message which indicated that Marietta was happy with what she just did.

"Marietta!" Ariana gasped again. She couldn't believe her eyes. She couldn't believe the message that she just got. Her best friend and her boyfriend were making love to each other.

The tears that she had tried so hard to stop came back again.

She decided to act strong and pretend like nothing happened. She dialed Marietta's number and she picked up at the second ring and it got Ariana wondering if Marietta had been waiting for her call all these while.

"Hello Sweetie? Did you get my surprise? I guess you love it right?" Marietta asked, sarcasm dripping down her voice and that provoked Ariana. She just wished that she could teleport herself to wherever Marietta was and beat her to a pulp.

"How dare you? You promised to speak to him on my behalf" She asked calmly. It is surprising to know that she was still acting calm and collected in this case. Ariana has always been the calm type.

"Oh spare me that, Ariana. You and I both know that you have broken up with Ethan, so I have to shoot my shot. Besides, you might want to know this, I was the one who asked Ethan to break up with you. I lied to him that you only want him for his money and he believed it" Marietta said with a smirk on her face. She suddenly wished that her best friend was right in front of her. She would have enjoyed to see the look of disappointment and betrayal and hurt on her face.

"How long have you been dying to have Ethan as your man? How long have you been jealous of me because I'm with Ethan?" Ariana decided to ask. She wanted to know how long her best friend had had her eyes on her man who was now her ex boyfriend.

"Since the first time I met him. If I'm not mistaken, I met him before you. I have been friends with Ethan even before I met you. I had always wanted him to ask me out, but he didn't and that was because he saw you. If you didn't come into the picture, he would have been mine," Marietta said to Arianna. Ariana could tell that her friend was smirking at her already.

"Anyways, he has asked me out already and I am happy about it,". Marietta said, but Ariana just scoffed.

"I hope you two find happiness with each other and whatever relationship we have between us as best friends is over. I hope you rot in hell, bitch," Ariana said through gritted teeth before ending the call. She didn't want to hear anymore words from the bitch. She had never expected this kind of betrayal from anyone, let alone her best friend. She had only seen such scenarios in movies, where ones best friend would betray them by sleeping with their husband or boyfriend, but she never expected it to happen to her.

Well, she was no longer Ethan's girlfriend, but still the fact that he slept with her best friend was so sad.

"Marietta!!!" She yelled at the top of her voice as she threw the glass beside her across the room. The glass shattered all over.

"How could you do this to me?" She yelled again.

"I trusted you. I've always trusted you with all my life, yet you chose to betray me." The next minute she burst into tears. Even though Ethan was no longer her boyfriend, it hurts that he still slept with her best friend.

She decided to go out and have a good time. Maybe take a stroll around the city. She was sure that once she got back from the strolling, she would have become tired and she would just fall asleep on her couch as usual.