The afternoons after school had become an oasis of relative calm for Josephine. At Brianna's house, away from the tense atmosphere of her own home, she shared laughter and confidences with her two best friends. Louie, with his usual carefree charm, continued to shower her with soft kisses and innocent touches, gestures that used to fill her with simple joy, but now left a bitter taste in her mouth.
Although it was an open secret to almost the entire high school that Josephine and Louie had been in a relationship for some time, Josephine's strict parents remained in ignorance. Their prohibition against having a boyfriend, exacerbated by Louie's difference in social class, forced the couple to keep their romance clandestine.
In Louie's group of friends, conversations about girls were a recurring topic. Louie was often seen boasting with a smug grin.
"Last night I was with Vanessa, I bought her those earrings she wanted. She was fascinated."
"So what?" Carlos retorted with a mocking tone. "She just accepted the gifts, Louie. We all know you're playing the field, but your girlfriend is Josephine."
"The other girls are just distractions," Louie replied with an air of superiority. "Josephine is different. I love her, you understand?"
"Louie, Josephine is a lot of woman," Andrés interjected sincerely. "Anyone would want to have a girlfriend like her."
"True," Marcos added, with a slightly envious tone. "Besides being a millionaire and spoiling you with gifts, she has a beautiful and adorable personality."
"Not to mention how gorgeous she is, compared to the other girls in high school," David added observantly. "Plus, her body is changing beautifully."
Louie tensed, jealousy beginning to gnaw at him at the comments about his girlfriend. "Stop talking about my girlfriend!" he exclaimed, his tone annoyed. "You don't understand that we love each other and we're going to be together. We're going to keep building a future together."
"Louie just has his fingers crossed that Josephine doesn't find out about your little games," Carlos stated with a somber tone. "Because no matter how much she loves you, she can get tired and simply walk away. And she has more options than you to choose from, believe me."
Meanwhile, Josephine was beginning to connect the dots. The indirect comments from some classmates, the knowing glances between certain friends of Louie's, and her boyfriend's sudden absences were beginning to form a disturbing picture. The pang of pain intensified as she overheard snippets of conversations, where Louie's name was mentioned alongside other girls' names with a tone that suggested more than friendship. Incredulity and rage were beginning to boil inside her.
In her encounters with Louie, Josephine became increasingly distant and silent. He, in his adolescent egocentrism, attributed it to her usual shyness or the pressure from her parents. When he tried to hug or kiss her more intensely, Josephine pulled away with a coldness that slightly disconcerted him, though not enough to arouse his suspicions.
Brianna, observing the chasm that was opening between her friends, couldn't remain silent. In one of their afternoons together, while Louie was distracted with his phone.
Brianna took Josephine's hand firmly, her eyes full of concern. "Josie," she began seriously, "you have to open your eyes. You don't deserve this. He's... playing both sides, don't you see?"
Josephine nodded slowly, a deep sadness clouding her gaze. "I know, Bri," she replied in a thread of voice. "I've already realized." A trembling sigh escaped her lips. "I just... didn't want to believe it."
At that moment, Louie approached them, with a serious expression. "Josephine," he said in a tone of voice that denoted a mixture of worry and impatience, "we need to talk."
"I'll leave you two to talk," Brianna said softly before getting up from the sofa and heading towards the hallway, in the direction of her room.
"I don't think there's much to talk about, Louie." Her voice was cold, distant, very different from the sweet tone he knew.
Louie felt a chill run down his spine. He had never heard her speak to him like that. "What... what's wrong, Josie? You've been acting very strange with me lately."
She finally looked at him, and the coldness in her gaze disconcerted him even more. "Strange? Really, Louie? Can't you think of absolutely anything?"
He frowned, genuinely confused. "No... I don't understand. Did I do something?" His mind raced through his recent interactions, his carefully hidden outings with other girls, his small white lies. Could she know something? The thought made his stomach clench slightly.
Josephine let out a bitter laugh, devoid of any humor. "Yes, Louie. You did something. Several things, in fact." Her voice trembled slightly, but there was an underlying firmness that he had never heard before. "Your 'friendly' conversations with Melissa, your movie dates with Vanessa... and let's not forget your boasts to your friends about your 'options'."
Louie's face paled. How did she know? Who had told her? Surprise and fear paralyzed him for a moment. "I... Josie, it's not what it looks like," he stammered, desperately trying to find a credible explanation.
"Oh, isn't it?" Josephine retorted, with a look that pierced him. "Then what is it, Louie? Are the giggles with other girls, the secret gifts, the excuses not to see me all my imagination?" Her voice rose slightly with each question, frustration and pain beginning to surface.
Louie tried to approach her, extending a hand towards her, but Josephine took a step back, maintaining the distance. "Don't touch me," she said firmly. "Not after what I know."
Silence fell between them, heavy and accusatory. Louie could feel the truth of his actions hitting him like a blow. The certainty in Josephine's eyes told him that his denials would be useless. For the first time, he was facing the real consequences of his actions, and the fear of losing her began to outweigh his youthful arrogance.
Louie swallowed hard, his eyes darting nervously around Brianna's garden. He hadn't expected this confrontation, not so soon, and much less with Josephine so direct and sure of what she knew. His attempts at denial choked in his throat at the sight of the firmness in her gaze.
"I... Josie, it's not what it looks like," he began, his voice barely an insecure whisper. He tried to approach her, extending a hand, but Josephine remained still, maintaining the distance between them like an invisible barrier.
"Isn't it what it looks like?" Josephine repeated, her voice laced with disbelief. "Louie, I've heard the rumors. I've seen the looks. I've put the pieces together. Do you really expect me to believe it's all just a simple coincidence?" Her words were like daggers, each one sinking into the facade of nonchalance that Louie had always tried to maintain.
An uncomfortable silence stretched between them, broken only by the distant song of a bird. Louie felt cornered, with no escape from the truth that Josephine presented to him. His mind raced, searching for an excuse, a way to minimize his actions, but Josephine's piercing gaze seemed to read his every thought.
Finally, with defeat written on his face, Louie sighed. "Okay," he admitted softly, the arrogance that had always characterized him fading away. "Yes... I've talked to other girls. I've given them some things... but it didn't mean anything, Josie. They were just... distractions."
The word "distractions" echoed in the air, hurting Josephine more than he expected. Was that how he saw her? As a main option while he entertained himself with others?
"'Distractions'?" Josephine repeated, her voice now tinged with a deep sadness. "So all this time... while you were telling me you loved me... I was your main girlfriend while you 'distracted' yourself with others?" Incredulity and pain mixed in her words, revealing the fragility of the trust she had placed in him.
"Josephine, love... I love you," Louie said urgently, trying to take her hands. She flinched, avoiding his touch. "Please, you have to believe me. Those girls... they mean nothing. It was just... just foolishness, you know? Guys' stuff."
Josephine looked at him in disbelief. "'Guys' stuff'? Seriously, Louie? Is that how you justify flirting with others, going out with them? Is that what 'love' means to you?" Her voice trembled slightly, disappointment piercing like splinters in her heart.
"No, no, it's not like that," Louie hurried to say, desperate. "It's different with you, Josie. You're special. You're my girlfriend, the only one I truly want. The others... they were just to feel good, to... to prove myself, I guess." His explanation sounded hollow, even to his own ears.
"'Prove yourself'?" Josephine repeated, with a bitter laugh that held no joy. "At the expense of my feelings, Louie? At the expense of my trust?" She crossed her arms, protecting herself from the pain that threatened to overwhelm her. "And all this time, I... I trusted you. I believed what you told me."
"I'm sorry, Josie. I'm really sorry," Louie pleaded, taking a step towards her. "It was a mistake, a stupid thing. It won't happen again, I promise you. Please, forgive me. I don't want to lose you."
Josephine stared at him, evaluating the sincerity in his eyes. There was genuine desperation on his face, but also a lack of deep understanding of the damage he had caused. "How can I believe you, Louie? How can I trust your promises now?" Her voice was a whisper laden with pain and uncertainty. "Every time you kissed me, were you thinking of others? Every time you told me you loved me, was it true or just empty words?"
A heavy silence settled between them, charged with the tension of unspoken words and the painful truths that had just come to light. Josephine watched him intently, searching his eyes for any sign of genuine remorse, something that could rebuild the shattered trust. But she only found a selfish fear of losing her, not a deep understanding of the damage his actions had inflicted on her.
Finally, Josephine sighed, a weary sound that seemed to tear something from within her. Disappointment weighed heavier than anger now, leaving a cold emptiness in her chest.
"Louie," she said in a soft but firm voice, "I think this... isn't working anymore."
Louie's eyes widened in surprise, tinged with disbelief and panic. "What? No, Josie, don't say that. We can fix it. I promise I'll change. I'll do whatever it takes." He approached her, trying to take her hands again, but Josephine gently pulled away.
"It's not about you changing, Louie," she explained, her voice now laden with a resigned sadness. "It's about the fact that I trusted you, and you failed me. Several times. And I don't think I can keep going like this, doubting every word, every gesture."
Tears began to cloud her eyes, but Josephine held them back, refusing to give him the satisfaction of seeing her break down. "I deserve someone who truly values me, Louie. Someone for whom I'm not an 'option' or a 'distraction'. And I think you... you're not that person."
"But, Josie, I love you," Louie insisted, his voice cracking. "I really love you. You can't do this to me."
Josephine shook her head slowly, her gaze full of deep sorrow. "Maybe you think you love me, Louie. But your way of loving... hurts me. And I don't want to feel like this anymore."
She took a step back, marking a definitive distance between them. "I think the best thing... is for us to end things here." The phrase hung in the air, cold and final.
Louie's face crumpled, denial giving way to disbelief and then to despair. "No, Josie, please... don't leave me. I need you."
But Josephine had already turned, walking slowly towards the exit of Brianna's house. Each step felt heavy, as if she were leaving a part of herself behind.
Louie, desperate, ran after her and hugged her from behind, clinging to her with the same familiarity with which he had done so many times in other moments, in happier circumstances. His grip was strong, almost desperate.
"Josie, I really love you," he pleaded, his voice breaking with anguish. "We've been through so much together... so many years. I was an idiot, okay? A complete idiot. But I love you, Josie. I love you and I don't want to lose you... I don't want to lose our years-long relationship... I don't want to lose you."
Josephine remained still in his embrace, feeling the tremor of his body against hers. She closed her eyes, letting the tears she had been fighting to hold back slip down her cheeks.
"I love you too, Louie," she replied in a choked whisper, her voice laden with deep pain. "I love you immensely... but before loving you, I have to love myself more, and you... you broke my heart. You were unfaithful to me, and you did it almost under my nose. You boasted about it to your friends, as if it were an achievement, as if your ego demanded it." Her voice broke with the last phrase, the weight of the betrayal pressing down on her chest.
Louie's embrace tightened even more, as if he were trying to physically restrain her, clinging to a past that was fading away. "I didn't want to hurt you, Josie. I really didn't. It was a stupid thing, a need to feel... I don't know... important. But you're the important one, you always have been. Please, give me a chance to show you that I can change, that I can be the guy you deserve." His voice was a torrent of desperate pleas.
Josephine slowly turned within his embrace, until she was facing him. Her eyes were red and swollen from tears, but her gaze was firm, although laden with deep sadness.
"Louie," she said, her voice barely a whisper, "love doesn't hurt like this. Love doesn't make you feel insecure, insignificant. You sought validation in other people while I trusted you. And that betrayal... that lack of respect... hurts too much."
She tried to pull away from his grip, but he held her gently. "Don't go, Josie. Please. We can try again."
Josephine shook her head slowly, her tears now falling freely. "I don't know if I can anymore, Louie. I don't know if I trust you. And without trust... there's nothing. You didn't value our relationship, Louie. You didn't value the trust we had, the one we built so carefully, despite the lies that surrounded us because of my parents. You didn't value that we were advancing in our intimacy little by little, you didn't, Louie."
Louie looked at her, his eyes full of tears, "Josie, please... I was an idiot, I know, but..."
Josephine interrupted him and broke free from his grasp. "But nothing, you thought you could have it all, didn't you? Have me and others, without me realizing, without it mattering. But it does matter, Louie. It matters a lot. Every kiss from you now feels tainted, every 'I love you' sounds false in my head."
Her voice rose slightly, charged with painful frustration. "Didn't you think about how I would feel? About the humiliation, the betrayal? I trusted you, Louie. Despite everything, I trusted us. And you... you threw it all away for cheap egoism, for a pathetic need to feel important at the expense of my feelings."
Tears ran freely down her face now, leaving glistening trails on her skin. "I need to go, Louie. I need to be away from you so I can breathe, so I can remember who I was before you made me feel so... so insignificant." With a last look full of pain and disappointment, Josephine turned and entered the house, closing the door softly but with a firmness that resonated in Louie's shattered heart.
Just as Josephine turned completely to go out of the house, Louie, in a last desperate act, ran towards her and grabbed her arm, turning her sharply and pressing his lips against hers in a desperate and pleading kiss. It was an awkward kiss, full of anguish and the fear of losing her, without the tenderness or affection that usually characterized their encounters.
Josephine remained still for a moment, surprised by the sudden action. She felt the salty taste of her own tears mixing with Louie's desperate kiss. Before she could react, Brianna appeared in the hallway, her face hardened with anger and protection for her friend. "Let her go, Louie!" she exclaimed, approaching quickly.
Louie, ignoring Brianna, continued to cling to Josephine, pleading between the forced kiss. "Josie, please... don't go. I love you..."
Brianna grabbed his arm forcefully, pulling him away from Josephine. "Let her go, Louie! Don't you understand you messed up?" Her voice was firm and relentless.
Josephine wiped her lips with her hand, a look of disgust and pain on her face. She looked at Louie with deep sadness, without saying another word, before finally leaving the house, leaving Brianna as a protective shield between them.
Brianna stood planted on the threshold, her eyes fixed on Louie, her body tense and protective. Louie, his face distraught and his eyes bloodshot, looked at her with a mixture of pleading and frustrated rage.
"Brianna, please... let me talk to her," he pleaded, his voice hoarse from suppressed crying. "I need to explain... you don't understand what we had."
"What don't I understand, Louie?" Brianna retorted furiously, crossing her arms. "Have you forgotten that I've been with you two, living through the process of every single one of your encounters? Have you forgotten the nights you stayed up talking until dawn? Josephine's nerves before every secret date because of her parents? Don't come at me with that now."
"But... our connection was unique, you didn't see it from the inside... the feelings we shared were..." Louie tried to excuse himself, desperately searching for a crack in Brianna's defense.
"Of course I saw it from the inside, you idiot!" Brianna snapped, raising her voice. "I saw how your love grew day by day, how your touches became more frequent and your kisses more passionate. Or do you really think Josephine didn't tell me every detail of her moments with you?"
"But lately things had changed, there was pressure... comments from others..." Louie stammered, trying to justify his behavior.
"Oh yes, the pressure of your 'distractions'!" Brianna retorted sarcastically, her upper lip curling with disdain. "And what did you expect, Louie? That Josephine would sit idly by while you went from flower to flower because 'there was pressure'? She loved you, she gave you her trust, and you trampled on it."
"But I really love her, I don't want to lose her... I made a mistake, I know..." he pleaded, tears running down his face.
"You're my friend too, and have been long before Josephine was," Brianna continued, her tone now colder and more accusatory. "But we both know who screwed up here. You're the one who ruined your relationship, and you have to face the consequences of your actions. Did you think about the consequences when you were kissing others? Did you think about how she would feel?"
"It was a moment of weakness, it won't happen again..." Louie tried to justify himself, his voice trembling.
"I just hope Josephine doesn't leave high school because of you," Brianna stated, not letting him finish. "Because if that happens, Louie, you won't just have lost her, but me too. I'm not going to tolerate you ruining her life with your selfishness. Now go. Give her the space she needs. And think carefully before you approach her again. Because next time, I won't be so kind."
Louie looked at her, the realization of the weight of his actions finally sinking in. He nodded slowly, defeat etched in every line of his face. Without saying another word, he turned around and began to walk away.