Angie's Breaking Point

CHAPTER 5:

ANGIE’S POV

When I returned home, my mother was overflowing with worry. Any mother would react this way seeing her daughter—who had left the house perfectly fine—returning in such a battered state.

"Goodness, Angeline! What happened to you? Who did this? And wait, where is your boyfriend? Why didn't he drive you home?" My mother’s questions came in a rapid-fire barrage, nearly covering every "who, what, and where" possible.

"Ma, calm down... I’m perfectly fine. This was just due to my own carelessness, so I deserve what happened. Don't worry about me anymore. I just need some rest to get my strength back," I explained, trying to answer her concerns. However, I couldn't bring myself to tell her the truth about Mark.

She was very fond of Mark, and the two of them were quite close. I couldn't find the words to tell her about his betrayal. Beyond that, it was too painful to reveal who the "other woman" was, knowing her own niece was the one who had destroyed our relationship.

"And what about Mark? Where is he? Why didn't he bring you back?" she persisted, still asking about him.

"I didn't tell him what happened, Ma, because I knew he’d worry just as much as you. So if possible, I don't want him to know about my accident today," I said, avoiding her gaze as the lie left my lips.

I hated lying to her, but I didn't want her to be hurt by the reality of what Mark had done to me.

"Anyway, Ma, I’m going to rest inside. Well, look at us—now we’re both in wheelchairs," I joked weakly, gesturing to the fact that we were both seated in our respective chairs just to move around.

"You’re really making a joke out of your injuries? You’re such a brat, Angie... Alright then, go to sleep so you can recover," she said, so I headed to my room.

Once inside, I rummaged through my bag to check my phone. When the screen lit up, Mark’s name was the first thing I saw. He had bombarded me with missed calls, and there was one unread message.

"Are you free tonight, love? Let's talk." That was the message. I already knew what that talk would be about. I was certain he wanted to break up with me now that Andrea was in his life.

But instead of replying, I simply turned off my phone. I didn't want to talk to him while I was in this state. If we were to have a conversation, I wanted it to be when I was ready to accept our end. Until a formal breakup happened, we were still technically together—and I wasn't about to give him what he wanted just yet. Letting him go easily would be giving Andrea exactly what she wanted. I refused to be the loser in this.

I chose to sleep rather than give Mark’s message another second of my time. Let him deal with it. He doesn't get to call the shots all the time.

After a long, deep sleep, I regained enough strength to stand on my own, even without the support of the wheelchair. However, I was startled to hear noise coming from outside my room. My mother sounded delighted, as if she were talking to someone. I opened the door to see who it was.

"Happy first anniversary, my love," Mark said tenderly the moment our eyes met. Yes, he was here. He had actually come to our house. He wasn't just carrying one bouquet of flowers, but two.

"I couldn't get ahold of you last night, so I came here to give these to you, love. And to greet you, of course... I bought two bouquets because I wanted to give one to your mom, too," he said, sounding like a saint who had never committed a sin in his life.

I didn't know how to feel about his sudden visit, but one thing was for sure: his hypocrisy made me feel nauseous. After cheating on me, did he really think flowers would erase what he did?

"It’s your anniversary today, Angie! — Oh, Mark is so sweet to you. He really didn't forget the day you two became a couple," Ma said, clearly charmed by my boyfriend’s stunt. But instead of listening to her, I fixed my gaze on Mark. My eyes were full of seriousness and cold fury. My eyes were still puffy from crying over him yesterday, and here he was, acting as if nothing was wrong.

"I greeted you with a happy anniversary, love. Aren't you going to give me a kiss?" he asked, waiting for me to hug and kiss him.

I stared at him for a moment. I refused to be weak. I forced myself not to be swayed by his words.

"Go home, Mark. I don't have time to talk to you," I said coldly, not even using our pet name.

"Wait, Angie, what’s wrong? What’s the problem, love? Why are you being so moody? Is it that time of the month?" he asked, genuinely assuming I was just being grumpy because of my period.

"Stop this nonsense acting, Mark," I snapped, turning my back on him and returning to my room. I didn't expect him to follow me inside.

"Angie, let's talk..." he said, his expression finally shifting to something more serious.

I knew it! The sweet persona was just an act for my mother’s benefit. He knew how much my mother liked him, and he didn't want to upset her or change her opinion of him.

"We definitely need to talk, Mark... and I want an honest, straight answer from you," I said firmly, ready to confront him about his relationship with my cousin. I took a deep breath before speaking.

"Are you having an affair with Andrea?" I asked boldly, even though I already knew the answer.

"Angie..."

"Just answer the question, Mark. It's a simple yes or no," I demanded angrily.

A few seconds passed before he finally gave an answer—a single, slow nod of his head.

"Since when? How long have you been lying to me, Mark?" I asked, struggling to keep my hands from slapping the look off his face.

"I don't know how to answer that, Angie. I don't know exactly when it all started. All I know is that I made a mistake, and I got her pregnant," he said softly, admitting his betrayal.

"S-something happened between you and my cousin while we were still together? And Andrea is pregnant now?" I whispered, my vision blurring as tears welled up again.

Hearing him confess his "mistake" only deepened the hatred blooming in my chest.

"That’s why I wanted to talk, Angie. I knew if I didn't tell you, you’d eventually hear it from someone else... But please believe me, I truly loved you. If it were up to me, I wouldn't break up with you. I don't want to leave you because you’re the one I want to spend my life with. But it’s not that easy to turn my back on my responsibility to the baby Andrea is carrying. I have to stand by them," he said, clearly ready to end our relationship.

There were so many things I wanted to say to Mark. I wanted to hit him. I wanted to kick him, scream at him, and slap him. But I chose to restrain my violence because I didn't want my mother to hear.

"Just leave, Mark. Leave and never come back to this house again," I said, my voice thick with rage.

"Angie..."

"What part of that wasn't clear, Mark?! Don't you understand?! Get out of my sight!" I yelled.

That was the last thing I said to get him out of the house. Once he left the room, I collapsed onto the bed, my knees feeling weak once again. The tears I had been holding back finally broke free. At that moment, I found myself sobbing uncontrollably from the pain.

It was one thing to suspect it, but hearing the confirmation of his betrayal from his own lips was devastating. And it wasn't just a simple affa

ir—there was a baby involved. The pain I felt was tripled because Andrea now held the ultimate trump card to take Mark away from me forever.