Chapter Two
928 Words
The Only Friend Left
The moment Mira heard Elena crying on the phone, she grabbed her car keys.
Twenty minutes later, she was standing outside the Hart mansion.
She didn't bother hiding her irritation when a servant opened the door.
"Where is she?"
The servant immediately knew who Mira meant.
"Mrs. Hart is in her room."
Mira marched upstairs without waiting for permission.
She had been coming to this house for years.
Not because she liked it.
She hated it.
To Mira, the mansion was nothing more than a beautiful cage.
And Elena was the bird trapped inside it.
When she reached Elena's bedroom, she found her sitting on the edge of the bed, hugging a pillow to her chest.
Her eyes were swollen from crying.
Mira's heart broke.
It always broke.
No matter how many times she saw Elena like this, she never got used to it.
Without saying a word, Mira crossed the room and wrapped her arms around her best friend.
Elena immediately buried her face in her shoulder.
"I'm sorry," Elena whispered.
Mira frowned.
"Why are you apologizing?"
"I keep bothering you."
Mira pulled away and stared at her.
"Bothering me?"
Her voice rose slightly.
"Elena, you've been my best friend since we were eight years old."
A small smile touched Elena's lips.
Eight years old.
The orphanage.
The beginning of everything.
Mira sat beside her.
"Do you remember the first day we met?"
Elena nodded.
For the first time that night, something other than sadness appeared in her eyes.
A memory.
A happy one.
"I was hiding under a table."
Mira laughed.
"You bit another girl."
"She stole my bread."
"You nearly took her finger off."
Both women laughed softly.
The sound felt strange inside the gloomy room.
Years ago, they had been two lonely orphan girls trying to survive.
Neither of them had parents.
Neither of them had family.
But somehow they had found each other.
And from that day forward, they had never truly been alone.
"We made a promise," Mira said quietly.
Elena's smile faded.
She remembered.
Of course she remembered.
The Promise.
Two little girls sitting beneath a broken tree behind the orphanage.
Two girls who had nothing except each other.
"One day," Mira had said, "we'll be happy."
"Both of us?"
"Both of us."
"And if someone hurts us?"
"We'll protect each other."
"Always?"
"Always."
The memory brought tears back to Elena's eyes.
Mira reached over and squeezed her hand.
"You broke that promise."
Elena blinked.
"What?"
"You promised we'd protect each other."
Mira's voice trembled with emotion.
"But you've spent six years protecting the man who's destroying you."
Silence filled the room.
Elena stared at the floor.
Because Mira wasn't wrong.
Every bruise.
Every insult.
Every humiliation.
She had hidden them.
Defended them.
Excused them.
Not because Adrian deserved it.
But because she loved him.
Or at least she thought she did.
"I don't know how to leave," Elena admitted.
Mira's eyes softened.
That confession hurt more than any argument.
Because it was honest.
"I know."
Elena wiped her tears.
"I keep hoping he'll change."
Mira looked away.
She had heard those words hundreds of times.
Every year.
Every month.
Every week.
Every heartbreak.
"He won't."
Elena flinched.
The words felt harsh.
But they felt true.
"He doesn't love me," Elena whispered.
The sentence sounded different when spoken aloud.
Like a wound finally exposed.
Mira nodded sadly.
"No."
The answer was immediate.
Certain.
Painful.
Elena looked out the bedroom window.
Far below, the city lights glittered like stars.
For a moment she wondered what freedom felt like.
What it would be like to wake up without fear.
To laugh without permission.
To breathe without worrying about making someone angry.
She had forgotten.
Or maybe she had never known.
"Do you think something is wrong with me?" Elena asked quietly.
Mira looked horrified.
"What?"
"If Adrian can't love me..."
"No."
Mira grabbed her shoulders.
"No, Elena."
Her voice shook with anger.
"Listen to me very carefully."
Elena met her eyes.
"There is nothing wrong with you."
The words hung in the air.
Firm.
Certain.
True.
Mira continued.
"You are kind."
A tear slipped down Elena's cheek.
"You are loyal."
Another tear followed.
"You are brave."
Elena laughed bitterly.
"Brave?"
"Yes."
Mira squeezed her hands tighter.
"Because despite everything, you're still here. You're still standing."
For a moment, neither woman spoke.
Then Mira sighed.
"You know what your problem is?"
Elena sniffled.
"What?"
"You love everyone except yourself."
The words hit like lightning.
Because deep down...
Elena knew they were true.
A loud sound suddenly echoed through the hallway.
A door slamming.
Both women froze.
Adrian.
He was home.
Mira immediately rolled her eyes.
"Perfect."
Heavy footsteps moved through the house.
Getting closer.
Closer.
Then the bedroom door opened.
Adrian stood there.
His expression darkened immediately when he saw Mira.
"You're here again."
Mira crossed her arms.
"And you're still awful."
Elena groaned softly.
Not again.
Every meeting between these two ended the same way.
Adrian stepped into the room.
"This is my house."
"And she's my friend."
Adrian's jaw tightened.
Mira's glare sharpened.
The temperature in the room seemed to drop instantly.
Elena already knew what was coming.
Another battle.
Another argument.
Another night where she would have to stand between the only person who truly loved her and the man she couldn't stop loving.
What she didn't know was that this argument would become the first crack in the life she had built around her suffering.
And once a crack appears...
Even the strongest walls eventually fall.
- Writer
