Chapter 2
Blake left with Avril.
But I sank powerlessly into the abyss of my memories.
Avril and I had been best friends since childhood.
When she was seventeen, her family went through a tragedy. Her father passed away, and her mother remarried, taking her with her.
But Avril grew increasingly unhappy, crying to me that her stepfather’s son, Johnny, treated her terribly.
I felt sorry for her plight, living under someone else's roof, and often went to keep her company.
Until her birthday.
I used the money I’d saved for a long time to buy her a dress she’d wanted. But when I arrived at her house, after drinking a glass of juice, I lost consciousness.
When I opened my eyes again, all I felt was an unbearable pain.
Johnny had violated me.
And Avril was crying, holding me, her harsh words fiercely scolding Johnny, ringing in my ears.
Fate wouldn’t let me go. Just as I thought about giving up and dying, I found out I was pregnant.
My parents took me to get an abortion and moved to another city, but the pain didn't fade with time.
When I met Blake, my depression hadn't healed, and I was consumed by insecurity.
He always looked at me with tender eyes, then smiled and pinched my cheek.
“Why are you always so sad?”
I looked at his bright eyes, afraid to easily accept him.
But he would stay by my side, holding my hand and saying, “It’s okay, it wasn't your fault.”
He was like a light, healing me, helping me let down my guard.
The day we made our relationship official, he reassured me, promising to protect me forever.
From dating to marriage, Blake was consistently good, bringing everything wonderful for me to choose from.
But now...
Tears streamed down my face.
I thought my life had started anew.
Yet the two people I loved most had conspired to tear open my old, deep wounds, and then rubbed salt in them.
The heartbreaking pain jolted me awake.
I cried until I choked, feeling numb.
When my eyes were so swollen I could only open them a slit, my phone rang.
It was messages from Blake and Avril.
[Lester, go to the hospital and get some miscarriage prevention medication.]
[We played a bit too rough, and it scared Avril's baby.]
Avril, meanwhile, only sent a intimate photo of her and Blake.
I stared at the photo, my breathing shaky.
My phone rang loudly in the silent room.
Blake’s satisfied voice pierced my eardrums.
“Lester, did you see the message?”
I squeezed out a sound from my throat, every word ending with a trembling tremor.
“Blake, how can you be so disgusting?”
“Aren't you afraid I'll go crazy and kill both of you?”
There was a moment of silence on the other end.
Then Avril’s light laugh came through.
“Lester, you’re so weak. Even a loud voice makes you burst into tears. How could you ever have the guts to kill anyone?”
“It's not like you haven't killed before; you killed Johnny's baby.”
“But you’d never hurt your husband’s baby, would you?”
She urged me to hurry with the medication, then hung up.
Listening to her confident tone, I suddenly laughed.
The reason I was afraid of loud noises was because of Johnny’s wild laughter on the day he assaulted me.
It was a traumatic stress response.
But I wasn't even afraid of death anymore. I wouldn't let them off easy.
I went to them. Pushing open the door, I saw clothes scattered all over the floor.
The two of them sat on the sofa, kissing passionately.
The wet, smacking sounds of their kissing constantly pricked my eardrums.
I gripped my phone tightly, slowly walking closer.
Avril saw me and provocatively increased her panting.
Perhaps seeking more thrills, she brought up what happened years ago.
“Blake, when I found out Lester seduced Johnny…”
“They were lying in my bed, kissing just like this.”
Listening to her shameless slander, my hand trembled.
Hatred surged, and rage burned away the last remnants of my sanity.
I held up my phone, pointing the camera at their flushed, dazed faces.
I held back my tears, pulled my lips into a smile, and spoke coldly into the camera.
“This is a live stream of catching my husband and my best friend cheating.”
“You two, feel free to perform.”