The Damage That Never Could Be Undone...

Previous: Retribution.

Stella folded her arms, silently watched as Marie disappeared through the crowd, her face written with obvious annoyance and disappointment. To her, it was simple. Since Marie had made the first move in burning their friendship, there was no point in talking more than necessary with her.
    The painful reality of life.
    “Casey, where on earth did you presume that we are dating?” she broke the silence. “For all I know, we are just the best of friends.”
    “I’m sorry, Stella.” Casey patted her shoulder. “It’s just a spontaneous idea that came to me. I hope you’re not offended”
    “I’m not offended. But will it make matters worse between you and her?”
    “I’m not sure. What matters is that she fell for the lie.”
    The only answer he received was a mere nod.

Back in the privacy of her own pad, Marie went to the balcony and leaned against the steel railing. She couldn’t bring herself to the conclusion that Casey and Stella had grown in love with each other. She had known her former fiancé for a whole decade as friends before the wedding engagement; there was no way in the world that he would throw himself into a rebound relationship with Stella.
    It just didn’t make any sense.
    She reached out for her S3. She wanted to text him, asked him if it was all true. Those words that he uttered when they ran into each other outside the café earlier; about him not wanting to see her; about her moving on with Stella and loving her more even more than her, the now former fiancée. But she stopped midway. Would he even be willing to communicate with her after what she had served him?
    Even if he did, will there ever be forgiveness between them?
    But the most important was, would they ever be able to return to the happy past?
    She sighed, sat on the hanging rattan egg chair instead. It was her fault anyway. She should have realized that Casey himself was a double-edged sword. When played with the right card, he was nice, the nicest person in town but if betrayed, he was the meanest.
    And felt that she should never have fielded off Stella’s messages or avoided her even after things had turned sour between her and him. She should have known that Stella was someone who cared not about the personal business of others and that she was an innocent bystander, she just happened to be a mutual friend, in the middle of it all.
    But now, Stella had pulled the carpet from under her.
    She took a deep breath, fully knowing that it was beyond the point of no return. Her relationship with Case, they could never be friends again. Her friendship with Stella, gone with the wind and it felt like they were the most familiar strangers.
    "Where did I go wrong?"
    Whatever decisions and sacrifices that she had made, she decided, she had to live with the consequences if it meant that her emotions were affected.
    There was no way around it. Never.

Next: Reminiscence.