Broken Until Him

Chapter 12 ~ Betrayal

'Betrayal is a harsh word. The kind of word you use when your pride and ego are hurt.

The kind of word that is painful to say, because it means that the confidence you once gave to somebody has been ruined.

The kind of word that you hope you'll never think of, because it would mean that this is the end of a friendship.

Betrayal is something nobody wants to live, but unfortunately, it is something unavoidable. Because no matter how hard you'll try to stay out of trouble, trouble will come back to you.

And most of the time, the betrayal will come from someone you would have never suspected. This is the worst kind of betrayal : the betrayal that will wreck you.'

I can't even make a move, his fierce eyes are freezing me. I can almost feel holes burning in my body as I see him glaring at me. I'm paralyzed, scared of all the things that are going to happen.

"What the hell is wrong with you!? I already have to endure your presence at school and now you're also showing up here! And of course, you had to spill coffee on me!" Aaron shouts, making everyone in the coffee shop turn towards us.

My cheeks are burning from the embarrassment. If I could just vanish in the air, I would. The humiliation is too hard to bear and all I want to do is to run away from him. But I gather the little of strength and pride I have left. I look up to meet his cold eyes and straighten myself.

"I... I just-" I start, stammering.

Why can't I be strong for once in my life? Why do I always have to be weak?

"Please Aaron, leave her alone. She didn't do it on purpose so drop it," Nina says, standing beside me.

Her voice is steady and clear. She didn't stammer like I did, because unlike me, she is strong and knows how to stand up for herself.

Aaron takes a step back, like if she had hit him. Disbelief is clear in his eyes as he looks at his sister.

"Nina, stay out of this. For once in your life, mind your own business," Aaron replies, bitterness filling his voice.

"Whoa... You're not the lovely and attentive brother I grew up with. If you still were, you would have never talked to me like that," Nina says, disappointment filling her eyes.

I can say she's surprised by her brother's behavior. Like Nathan told me, something must have happened to Aaron.

I'm standing in the middle of this war zone, without any defenses.
I can't even utter a word, too afraid of his reaction.

But my fear becomes even more important when I see Nathan rising from his seat and walking towards us. He must not interfere in this, it will create even more problems. I look into his eyes so he can see my distress and understand what I'm silently pleading him : to leave.
But Nathan walks with a firm step, his eyes never leaving mine.

"Leave, please," I mouth, making sure Aaron is not looking at me.

I don't want to cause any more trouble, what is happening between Aaron and I must not hurt any more people.

Nathan shakes his head, a strand of hair falling on his forehead. He is now standing behind Aaron. They are about the same height, Aaron being just a few inches taller.

Nathan takes a deep breath before opening his mouth to speak.

"Aaron, calm down. Let's just talk calmly so we don't scare the customers even more," he says with a controlled tone.

As soon as those words fill the silence, Aaron becomes a whole new person. His face, up to then twisted with anger and indignation, is now reflecting pain and vulnerability. But it just lasts a second before his anger resurfaces. And during that second, I glimpse of the Aaron Nathan told me about.

Nathan takes a few step so he is now standing next to me, too close.
"No... I trusted you, Nathan! How can you do this to me after all those years of friendship ?!" He spits, his words full of venom.

"Come on Aaron, don't be that stubborn! You don't even know her, how can you decide, with just a look, that you hate her? She's the nicest person I've ever met, I can't figure out why you can't stand her. You always told me that I was the best to understand people's intentions. Well, guess what! Hers are better than yours," Nathan replies with rage, taking a step forward.

Instinctively, I place my hand on his forearm to hold him back. Nathan glances at my hand before turning back to Aaron, who's now glaring at me. I quickly remove my hands like if the contact with Nathan's skin had burned me.

"You know what? I don't even recognize you anymore. If you were still my best friend, you would be by my side and not here, flirting with her! I feel like I'm standing in front of a stranger right now," Aaron says more calmly, but the intensity of his anger hasn't faded.

With those last words, he leaves the coffee shop and slams the door without a look back. The customers are still staring at us, curiosity eating them alive.

I grab Nathan's hand and pull him towards the door. We both exit the room, the cold wind hitting us as we step outside. I let go of his hand and tighten my arms around myself. The thin pullover I'm wearing is not warm enough to prevent the cold from sending shivers in my body.

I shift uncontrollably, the words that I'm about to pronounce are hurting me more than I thought it would.

"Nathan, we can't be friends. Everything is my fault, I'm the one who's breaking your friendship with Aaron. And I can't bear the weight of this, the guilt of having separated two friends. Your friendship with Aaron is only possible if we don't spend time together, so I'll leave you. I'm sorry," I deliver, looking away from his pained expression.

Saying those words opened a second wrench inside of me, though not as significant as the first one. But I know that it is just the begging, the second wrench will grow so the pain will be killing me little by little.

The wind blows, making my curls flit in the air. Nathan might be the only friend I have here, but I won't be the cause of his pain. As much as it hurts to let him go, I have to do what's good for him, which is going back to my boring and friendless life.

"Jade..." he whispers, his hand skimming my cheek as he puts a strand of her behind my ear.

My body instantly reacts to his gentle gesture, the skin his fingers has brushed becoming warmer in the cold November.

"I know Aaron better than anyone, and I know one thing for sure : you are not the reason of his reaction. I can see he is hiding something and he doesn't want me to find out so he pushes me away. You are the perfect excuse. So don't be sorry for something you're not responsible for," Nathan says, trying to reassure me.

He takes a step towards me and before I understand what is happening, I find myself circled by his arms, my head resting in the crook of his neck and our body fitting together perfectly.

My body tenses against my will, not used to so much affection. But what could've repulsed Nathan just have the opposite effect. He tightens his grip around my waist, deepening the hug. And little by little, my body relaxes until I give in to his strong arms, wrapping mine around his neck.

"Now that I had the chance to get to know you better, I mean the real you, your friendship matters as much as his. The only thing that could hurt me even more would be you running away from me," he whispers, his soft lips brushing against my ear.

As soon as those words escape his lips, an unknown yet pleasant feeling takes control of my thoughts, allowing me to catch sight of a dim light in the darkness that is surrounding my mind.

~

A/N

Hi guys!

Who else is fangirling over Jade and Nathan?
They are so cute!

Thank you to KindHeartBrokenMind and TaraKrajinovic for being so kind and supportive of my story!

Please vote, comment and share!

XXX
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