**That So-Called Friend**
“Why did you tell me all this?” asked Emily, her voice quiet and strange.
“I don’t know myself,” replied Charlotte, just as hollowly.
She seemed about to say more but caught Emily’s gaze—sharp, guarded, piercing. The kind of look you give someone you no longer trust.
That Friday, like always after work, Emily and Charlotte stopped by their usual café. It had been their ritual for years: a glass of wine, warm chatter, laughter, occasional tears. Just two women, weary of life, family, the daily grind. Here, at their table by the window, they could be themselves.
But that evening, everything went wrong.
Emily suddenly jumped up, beaming, threw out a quick, “Sorry, just a minute!” and dashed outside. Charlotte, raising a surprised brow, watched her go.
Through the glass, she saw Emily hugging another woman—slim, polished, with a gentle smile. Charlotte froze.
A second passed. Then another. The woman’s face clicked in her memory, and cold dread gripped Charlotte.
She knew her.
When Emily returned, everything had already changed. Charlotte forced a tight smile.
“Who was that?”
“Oh, just Victoria. My cousin. Why?”
“Just… thought I recognised her.”
“You know each other? Want me to introduce you properly? She’s lovely!”
“No!” Charlotte blurted, too loud, too sharp. A few heads turned. “Sorry… it’s nothing.”
Emily frowned.
“What’s going on?”
Charlotte lowered her eyes, clenching her hands under the table.
“Em… Victoria was married. To David, right?”
“Yes. And?”
“It was me. I’m the one who ruined their marriage.”
Everything Emily knew about Victoria’s divorce came from her cousin’s lips. Infidelity. Heartbreak. A quiet, resigned split. Pain, unbearable and unspoken.
And now—this confession from Charlotte. Her friend. The woman she’d trusted.
Charlotte spoke as if unravelling a knot that had festered for years.
“Victoria and I grew up together. Same street, same school, same uni. Then she met David. At first, I was happy for her. But then… I lost my head. His smile, his voice… he held me once at their wedding, during a dance. I didn’t understand how it happened. I just knew—I wanted him. I stopped being Victoria’s friend. I wanted to be her rival.”
First, it was glances. Then touches. Then late-night walks. Then—the night Victoria was in hospital. I went to help. Left as her husband’s mistress.
He came to me. I thought it was a new beginning. Instead, it was hell.
David compared me. Judged me. Said how perfect Victoria was, how I fell short. On their anniversary, he’d drink and weep. Always weep.
I lived in a delusion. Until I realised—he never loved me. I was just a place to hide. Never to stay.
Emily listened, lips pressed tight. She trembled. Years of friendship with Charlotte. Advice, late-night talks, support. All with the woman who’d torn apart her family. Destroyed her cousin’s heart.
“Did you know Victoria was my cousin?” Emily asked, voice thick.
Charlotte shook her head.
“No. Not until now. And whatever you say next—I’ll take it. I was wrong. I’ve known it for years.”
Emily stood.
“Then we’re done. Goodbye, Charlotte. Good luck.”
Charlotte went home. Clothes strewn, wine on the table, dirty plates. David had been there. And not alone.
In the bedroom—a girl. Young, asleep.
Charlotte turned and walked silently to the kitchen. David appeared in the doorway soon after. In her robe. Drunk.
“Go on. Scream, cry, blame me. I don’t care. I’m leaving. For good.”
“Pack your things. And get out.”
He hadn’t expected that. He’d wanted a scene. Resistance. Tears—hers, not his.
But she didn’t cry. Her tears had dried long ago. Inside, only emptiness throbbed.
Emily told Victoria everything. Her cousin listened in silence. Then, finally:
“Charlotte died to me years ago. So did David. I forgave them. But I’ll never let them back in. Forgiveness is easy. Trusting again? Impossible.”
*Lesson learned: Some betrayals cut too deep for second chances. And sometimes, the person you think you know is a stranger wearing a familiar face.*
