I, Ariel Johnson, was heartbroken to know that my childhood friends, Morgan Hawkins and Nate Andrews, would choose my cousin, Demi Johnson, over me after the years that we had spent together. Their betrayal truly hurt me.
After all, how could they decide to trust Demi, whom they only known for a year, instead of me who had been with them for fifteen years? It really broke my heart.
Just when I thought the world was over to me, my mother came to save me. She had been urging me to consider an arranged marriage with Luke Steel, a man from a prominent family in another city. My mother told me that he wanted to marry me.
Initially, I never thought of considering it until that very day. The moment my friends betrayed me by choosing Demi, I only saw it as my only path forward. So, I made a decision by choosing to accept my mother’s urging to marry Luke who turned out to be caring, considerate, and thoughtful.
Just when I thought that I would have my happy ending, Morgan and Nate tried to ruin my happiness with Luke as they stalked me as my engagement party was being planned. It was then they confessed their regret of not choosing me. However, it was too late.
I coldly told them, “It’s too late, Morgan, Nate. I no longer care about you guys.”
***
I, Ariel Johnson, was still in disbelief. After all, my father had passed away a year ago. However, I would never expect what happened before me.
As I was about to prepare myself to go to my father’s grave to do a memorial for him, I was met with the sight of that person at my mansion instead. That person was my cousin, Demi Johnson. When I saw her smirk, I knew that she was up to no good.
“Ariel, can’t you just skip your father’s memorial? My birthday is in two days! We can always have a funeral after my birthday party, don’t you think? I’m still alive, unlike your father. So, I want it to be perfect and I want it to be planned as early as possible,” my cousin said in a very arrogant tone.
Frankly, I almost lost my temper when I heard how she talked about my late father. Besides, how could she talk like that when my father had sacrificed everything to get her here. If only my father knew that Demi was like this, would he still help her?
I firmly told Demi, “Listen, Demi. Let me tell you today-”
“I don’t care what day today is, Ariel! The party must be perfect! I want it planned as early as possible,” my cousin boldly cut me off as she stood arrogantly with her arms crossed and glared at me.
Despite being two years younger than me, she never even showed me any respect. Instead, she acted like she owned this house. However, that wasn’t what made me mad.
It was the fact that she considered my father’s passing as nothing to her that made me really mad. After all, my father truly sacrificed everything for her. Yet, she dared to ask me to throw her a lavish birthday party while I was still grieving? Unbelievable!
In an instant, I could feel that grief and anger surged within me as my memories of my father came back to me. The man had been my rock and my protector. He was the one who had loved me unconditionally. How could Demi not care that this day marked his loss?
“Demi, are you losing your mind?” I asked her, trying to keep my voice steady even as anger surged within me.
After that, I continued, “Don’t you remember how tragically my father lost his life, for you?”
“Oh, grow up, Ariel!” Demi shouted angrily, rolling her eyes as if I were being unreasonable.
The young woman then angrily talked, “Why can’t you just let it go? He’s gone, but at least you’re still here. You’re the one making this into such a big deal.”
“Demi, you’re unbelievable!” I eventually shouted with my voice raw with emotion.
Before she could talk again, I asked her even, “Do you honestly think you can make me forget what day today is? Or pretend my father’s sacrifice did not happen?”
Yet, she folded her arms defiantly as if she dared me to continue. Seeing it made me could not stand her behavior even more.
“I’m done listening to you!” I angrily shouted at her.
The moment I tried to push past her to go downstairs, Demi blocked my way. In fact, my cousin even grabbed my arm as she tried to stop me from leaving. That really surprised me because I didn’t expect her to do this.
“Where do you think you’re going?” she asked me in a demanding tone while digging her nails into my wrist.
Instinctively, I pulled my arm free. However, it made Demi lose her balance. Her eyes widened in surprise as she tumbled backward, falling from the second-floor landing down to the first floor as she screamed.
My heart froze. For a moment, I could not breathe when I saw her lying there as she groaned in pain at the bottom of the stairs. Then, something even more shocking happened.
Just as I was about to rush down, the front door opened. My childhood friends, Morgan Andrews and Nate Hawkins, walked in. When they saw Demi groaning in pain, I knew they thought that I really tried to harm her.
“Morgan, Nate, this isn’t what it looks like! She fell, but I swear I did not push her!” I told them as I rushed downstairs.
No matter how desperate I was, both of my childhood friends refused to listen to me. Morgan just looked at me with disappointment as he walked past me to Demi. That really hurt me.
“Demi, are you okay?” he asked softly, pulling her into a hug to comfort her.
Meanwhile, Nate, who was training to be a doctor, dialed for an ambulance and knelt down to check for injuries. After that, he looked at me as coldly as Morgan looked at me. Immediately, I knew what they thought of me. They chose her, not me.
“Ariel, I thought I knew you. I never thought you would hurt her,” he said quietly.
What Nate said really broke me even more than I knew. After all, both Morgan and Nate had been my friends for over fifteen years. They were the ones who stood up for me when others had mocked me for my mother’s absence. They were my greatest supporters.
Yet, it felt as if they were turning their backs on me. Both of them dismissed all the years of loyalty and laughter as if it meant nothing. It was all because of Demi whom they had known for barely a year.
“Ariel, why did you change so drastically since your father passed away? What makes you become this mean?” Morgan angrily asked me without even looking at me as he only focused on patting Demi’s back to calm her.
Like Morgan, Nate only focused on Demi’s condition.
As the young man checked Demi who still groaned in pain, he shouted at me angrily, “You should’ve been grateful that Demi was by your side after your father died, Ariel! She just wanted to accompany you, but you always brushed her off! You even tried to hurt her!”
From that very moment, I immediately understood that everything had changed.
No one cared about me. My father was gone, and my closest friends, the people whom my father had trusted to look after me after my mother left, were gone too. Somehow, Demi managed to get to spell over all of them, making them forget about me.
Soon enough, the paramedics arrived and took Demi away. Both Morgan and Nate followed her quickly. It was clear that their worry for her made them refuse to listen to my reasoning. Thus, I was left alone in my home as I stood in silence when the realization finally sunk.
It made me realize that there was no one left who truly cared about me. The only thing I could do was to take one last look at the house I had once called home before I left as I eventually made my way to my father’s grave.
As I was standing by my late father’s grave, my phone rang. It managed to interrupt my thoughts, though. When I saw it, I couldn’t help but be surprised when I saw my mother’s name on the screen.
My mother, Cecile Burton, was actually alive. She divorced my father fifteen years ago. Despite being separated from her ex-husband for almost two decades, my mother had chosen not to remarry and chose to focus on her career. Eventually, she became a famous businessman in Warlington.
Every month, my mother would never forget to give me my monthly allowance. Although I never really got to know her since she and my father got divorced when I was little, I knew that she was kind enough for me. Still, I had no idea who she really was as we only video-called several times.
Although I had my doubts, I decided to take her call.
So, I took a deep breath before I answered, “Hello, Mom?”
“Oh, Ariel! I was worried that you wouldn’t answer my call. I know that today is your father’s one-year anniversary of his passing. So, I thought you might be … well, still grieving. So, are you alright, sweetheart?” my mother asked me in her gentle voice.
Yet, her question really struck me in the chord.
For the first time on that day, someone had asked how I was doing and had shown concern.
“Yes, Mom. Everything is fine here. How about you?” I answered her question, trying to hold back my tears.
However, I noticed that there was a pause on her end before she sighed.
My mother then responded, “Oh, dear, I wish I could be there with you today. Unfortunately, I recently got hospitalized.”
The moment I heard that my mother was also sick, my tears eventually fell.
“What? What happened? Why? Are you okay?” I asked, bombarding my mother with questions.
Immediately, she said, trying to reassure me, “Oh, it’s nothing too serious, sweetheart. I guess I’m just getting older.”
Before I could respond to her, my mother spoke, “But, Ariel, I would love it if you could come to visit soon. We could celebrate your graduation together and I hope that I may get to see you walk down the aisle before I pass.”
Although my mother said calmly, it struck a nerve in me again. I had to admit that this whole year was the loneliest I ever felt in my life. In fact, it was even lonelier than when my parents divorced.
The reason was that I had been dealing with Demi’s arrogance and my friends who sided with her instead of me. What happened earlier might be the final push because I could no longer hold back. So, I couldn’t help but feel moved when I heard that my mother wanted me by her side.
That made me feel needed.
“Sure, Mom. I will come as soon as I can. But I’m not sure about marriage, though,” I told her as I let out a smile and wiped away my tears.
My mother chuckled softly before she said, “No need to worry about the marriage. I actually am thinking of arranging a blind date for you with my friend’s son. If you like him, you can date him and we’ll see if it ends with marriage or not.”
“After all, I think you need to enjoy your youth! You deserve it,” she said.
When I heard it, I couldn’t help but chuckle. But it really made me feel lighter. At that moment, it felt that it was a good idea. In fact, it seemed like a chance to start new life there.
Warlington, the city where my mother had been living, was far from Stanmore, the city where I lived, and the latter’s haunting memories. Why wouldn’t I go to Warlington to enjoy my youth there? Who knew that I might find my own happiness? It sounded tempting, I had to admit.
“Fine, Mom. I’ll tell you once I’ve sorted everything out,” I told her with a more relaxed tone as I could feel the burden on my shoulders had eased off.
After that, we talked for several minutes before I told her to take care of her health. Then, I ended the call. This time, I didn’t feel very lonely like I would feel for more than a year.
It made me realize that I had to make a decision. Actually, it was clear enough. The decision that I would take was leaving Stanmore and the people who abandoned me when I needed them the most.
‘Goodbye, Stanmore. Goodbye, Father,’ I thought to myself as I kissed my father’s gravestone.
I already made my decision. No matter what, I would leave Stanmore. This place only hurt me. So, it was time for me to live my life.
