Chapter 2:A Life Full Of Loss

I tried putting everything that happened today behind my back. I told myself to stop thinking about it, to forget the images, the voices, the betrayal.

But it was just as if my mind refused to obey me.

No matter how hard I tried, I kept seeing Gabriel on top of Tessa. I kept hearing her moans. I kept seeing the way he looked at me—like I didn’t matter at all.

The pain was still stuck inside my chest.

It felt like a heavy stone pressing against my heart, making it hard to breathe.

I sat quietly on the pavement Infront of our house, staring at the empty wall. My eyes were swollen from crying, but the tears refused to stop.

How did my life become like this?

I had already suffered so much. Haven’t I lost enough?

My story didn’t begin with happiness.

My mother was a very beautiful woman. Everyone said she was the most beautiful girl in the whole town. But beauty didn’t protect her from being deceived.

She fell in love with a man who promised to marry her. He told her sweet words, made her believe she was the only one in his life, and then… he got her pregnant.

The moment her pregnancy was discovered, everything changed.

My grandfather, my grandmother, and even her own mother turned their backs on her.

They called her a disgrace.

They said she had brought shame to the family.

They told her to abort the baby.

But she refused.

She protected me even before I was born. Even when she was alone, even when everyone insulted her, she still chose to keep me.

When the time came for her to give birth, the doctors said she needed a caesarian section. It was risky, but there was no other option.

That day, she died on the operating table.

And I survived.

People said I was unlucky. They said I brought death with me.

My grandmother died one year later.

Then my grandfather had a terrible accident. Within that same year, almost all my family members were gone.

I was only four years old.

I didn’t even understand what death meant. All I knew was that everyone I loved kept disappearing.

I ended up on the streets, dirty, hungry, and alone.

That was when Mrs. Harrison found me.Tessa’s Mom .

She said she couldn’t leave a little girl to die on the roadside. She took me home, fed me, and gave me a place to sleep.

At that time, Tessa was only two months younger than me.

We grew up together. We went to the same schools, ate at the same table, and slept in the same room when we were little.

To the outside world, we looked like real sisters.

And for a long time, I believed we were.

But Mrs. Harrison always reminded me of one thing.

“You can never be the same as my daughter,” she would say coldly. “No matter what, you are just someone I picked from the street.”

Sometimes she would compare us.

“Why are you smarter than Tessa?”

“Why are you more beautiful than her?”

“Don’t think you can replace my daughter in this house.”

Her words always made Tessa jealous.

At first, she would just ignore me. Then she started giving me cold looks. Sometimes she would hide my things or spread rumors about me at school.

But later, she would come back, hug me, and act like nothing happened.

I thought it was just childish behavior. I thought she loved me.

For twenty-four years of my life, I never met Tessa’s father. I only heard stories about him.

Mrs. Harrison said he divorced her after a serious argument. After that, he left the country and never came back.

To me, he was just a name.

A stranger.

And now, the girl I called my sister had betrayed me.

She stabbed me right in the heart.

“I don’t deserve this,” I whispered to myself.

Why was I always the unfortunate one?

Why did the people I loved always hurt me?

I thought Gabriel loved me.

We started dating in college. He used to bring me lunch, help me with assignments, and walk me home at night.

He told me I was the only woman he would ever marry.

And Tessa… she always acted like the perfect best friend. She helped me pick dresses, braided my hair, and told me all her secrets.

Or at least, I thought they were secrets.

But now I knew the truth.

They had both fooled me.

They played with my feelings like it meant nothing to them.

Tears rolled down my cheeks again.

“They fucking played with my feelings,” I muttered bitterly.

I slowly stepped into the house.

The moment I entered, Mrs. Harrison’s sharp voice cut through the air.

“Where have you been, Emily? I have been calling your phone, and you couldn’t even take your calls!”

Her tone was full of irritation, not concern.

I was too angry and tired to answer her properly.

“I went for a meeting at the office,” I said flatly. “I need to rest.”

Without waiting for her reply, I walked past her and went straight to my room.

The moment I opened the door, the tears I had been holding back flooded out again.

The room felt suffocating.

Every corner reminded me of the years I spent in this house. The memories. The lies. The fake smiles.

My phone suddenly started ringing.

Then it rang again.

And again.

Mia, my coworker, was busy killing my battery with nonstop calls. I knew she was probably calling about work, but I didn’t have the strength to talk to anyone.

Not today.

Not after what happened.

I threw the phone on the bed and buried my face in my hands.

The silence in the room felt heavy.

My chest tightened, and my breathing became uneven.

“I can’t take this,” I whispered.

I couldn’t stay in that house. Not with all those memories suffocating me.

Not knowing Tessa was probably in her room, laughing and texting Gabriel.

I stood up suddenly, grabbed my purse, and walked out again before anyone could stop me.

Outside, the night air was cold, but it felt better than the tension inside the house.

I stopped a cab.

“Take me to the nearest café and bar,” I told the driver.

He nodded and started the engine.

As the car moved, the city lights blurred past the window. My reflection stared back at me—red eyes, pale face, trembling lips.

I didn’t even recognize myself.

When we arrived, I paid the driver and stepped out. The café bar was warm and filled with soft music. People were laughing, drinking, and enjoying themselves.

It felt like a different world.

A world where hearts didn’t break.

I walked straight to the counter.

“One strong drink,” I said.

The bartender raised an eyebrow but handed me a glass.

I took a big gulp.

The burning liquid slid down my throat, but it didn’t hurt as much as my heart did.

So I drank again.

And again.

Until the pain inside me slowly started to blur.

Tonight, I didn’t want to remember anything.

I just wanted to drink myself into numbness.