Fallen To The Knees

Sidelines And Past Memories

Anastasia

It had been an hour since Ana, Mia, and the others had joined the dance floor. They were dancing, laughing, and having the time of their lives. Ana had grown tired—not just from dancing non-stop for an hour, but because she had woken up at four in the morning to ensure everything was set up at work so she could be fully present tonight. She excused herself to the bar, grabbed some water, a mocktail, and food, then sat down at their reserved table, needing to replenish her energy since she hadn’t eaten anything after the brunch she had with Claire earlier that day.

As Ana sat down, watching the girls laughing and dancing, her mind drifted to senior homecoming. The music had been just as loud, and everyone was on the dance floor—except her. She had spent that night frantically calling Josh, her boyfriend at the time, but he never answered. He was the one who had asked her to be his girlfriend and asked to take her to homecoming but then he had disappeared to an after-party with another girl without letting her know he was leaving. He was her ride home. He had abandoned her.

Now, once again, Ana found herself sitting on the sidelines, watching others dance. But this time, it wasn’t because she was heartbroken or waiting for someone who didn’t care. She had chosen to sit back, content in her own company. She had learned how to be at peace with herself, but the memories of that painful night returned uninvited.

Hours after that high school dance, after she had begged carol and Claire for a ride home. she had received a video just as she reached home, it was in the class group chat, a video at the after party of Josh dancing and kissing another girl from the school. Humiliated and heartbroken Ana left the group chat and was furious at Josh. Ana went to Josh’s friend Alex’s house the next day, as Alex had texted Ana that Josh had crashed at his house because he was too drunk to drive home. She confronted him, but instead of apologizing, Josh had turned it around on her, making her feel like it was her fault, never owning up to his betrayal. So Ana forgave him took him back. This was just the first of countless betrayal from Josh.

Sitting here in the bar, the memory resurfaced, but this time it didn’t hurt in the same way. She wasn’t that girl anymore—waiting for someone who didn’t value her. She was a strong, independent woman who had started her own marketing firm after college and made it successful through resilience, assertiveness, grace, kindness, and most importantly, empathy—something she had rarely received in her own life.

That flashback of senior homecoming pushed Ana down a spiral of bad memories, but one betrayal stood out among the others as Josh wasn’t the only one who betrayed her. This one had cut Anastasia much deeper.

Ana had stayed with Josh for seven years, starting when they began dating in senior year of high school just two months before he cheated on her the first time. She loved him deeply, even though he was toxic—his drinking, his chauvinism, his constant cheating. Every time he hurt her, Ana fought to keep him, convinced she could fix him. She supported him emotionally and financially while juggling college classes and working as a waitress at the Corner Table, a high-end restaurant where she saved money to make ends meet. She also managed her internship at Pearson Marketing, believing her love could change him.

Josh had dropped out of school and refused to get a job, leading to a falling out with his dad and stepmom. They kicked him out, tired of his excuses. His mom offered to take him in on the condition that he find work and enroll in a skilled labor course to get a diploma. Josh refused. And so, Ana opened her home to him. She took on the financial burden, convinced that he just needed time to figure things out.

That night, the night it all ended, Ana had traded her shift at the Corner Table as second cut so she could come home early and surprise Josh. She had worked hard to create space for them as a family, hoping it would make a difference. But what she found when she got home shattered everything she had believed in.

When she walked into her apartment and saw Josh in bed with Carol. Anastasia’s world collapsed.

Carol was Ana’s childhood best friend, she was her next door neighbour when they were. Carol and Anastasia became friends when they were 2 years old and Carol had just moved into the neighbourhood. They were practically sisters.

Ana stood in the doorway, her breath catching but her voice steady. The betrayal was suffocating, but she kept her tone calm, almost unnervingly so. “Josh, you need to pack your things and leave tonight.”

Josh, lying lazily in the bed, barely acknowledged her. He didn’t seem fazed at all. His voice was dismissive. “Chill out, Ana. It’s not what it looks like.”

Ana’s pulse raced, but she didn’t react to his indifference. She repeated herself, steady and firm. “You need to go. Tonight.”

Josh finally sat up, looking at her with annoyance rather than guilt. “Where am I supposed to go? I don’t have anywhere else.”

Ana’s calm remained unnerving, even to herself. She didn’t shout, didn’t cry. She just wanted them gone—out of her sanctuary, her home. “That’s not my problem anymore. You need to go.”

Josh threw his hands up in frustration, muttering under his breath. “This is so typical of you. Freaking out over nothing.”

As he pulled on his clothes, as Carol sat up on the bed holding the blanket over her body and said to Josh, “I guess I’ll just get a motel for you. It’s just something temporary. My dad will pay for it until you find something else.”

Josh smirked

Ana didn’t react to her words, maintaining her composure. She stood her ground, her heart racing but her resolve unshaken. “You both need to leave. Now”

When Josh finished packing, he shot one last look at Ana. “You’ll regret this, you know.”

But Ana didn’t respond. She turned away and walked out of the apartment, leaving him and the betrayal behind. Moments later, the door slam as Josh and Carol casually walked out after they packed all of Josh’s stuff in garbage bags.

Later that night, Ana found herself sitting in the bar alone, her heart racing with a mix of anger and determination. Gathering her courage, she pulled out her phone and texted Carol, “We need to talk,” and asking her to meet at the bar.

When Carol arrived, the tension was palpable. Ana led her to a quieter corner of the bar, where the noise was muffled but still lively.

Ana confronted Carol in that quiet corner, her heart racing as she braced herself for the truth.

“Why, Carol?” Ana asked, her voice calm and steady. “After everything we’ve been through, how could you do this to me?”

Carol crossed her arms, her expression unreadable. “Ana, you have to understand. You weren’t good enough for him,” she said, her tone almost dismissive. “You were always busy with school and work, and he needed someone who could give him more attention.”

In that moment, something inside Ana’s mind and heart had snapped back in the right place. For the first time in her life, she knew that wasn’t true. She realized she was more than enough—strong, capable, and deserving of love. “So you thought it was okay to betray me? You knew how much I loved him!”

Carol shrugged, the indifference in her eyes cutting deeper than any knife. “I know Josh better than you ever did. He needs someone who can keep up with him just like the way I do, and you just can’t.”

The words stung, leaving Ana speechless. She had thought their bond was unbreakable, that Carol understood the depth of her love for Josh. But in that moment, it became painfully clear that their friendship had been built on shifting sands.

“Is that really all it was to you?” Ana managed to say, her voice barely above a whisper. “You would choose him over me?”

Carol's expression softened for just a moment, but it quickly hardened again. “I’m not trying to hurt you, Ana. I just saw an opportunity, and I took it. You can’t blame me for that. It’s not my fault you were too wrapped up in your own world to see it coming. Honestly, practically gave him to me. You chose money and I, I chose Josh”

With tears in her eyes, Ana turned away, feeling as if the ground had shifted beneath her. In that very moment She walked away, Ana decided to cut ties with both of them, leaving Josh and Carol to their own mess.

Though she had chosen herself, the betrayal from both of them left deep scars. The emotional abuse, constant pain, and loss of trust were why she had stayed single ever since. Trusting anyone romantically again felt like an impossible risk.