The worth of friendship

DESPAIR

Three more days pass after the incident, which I spend crying and thinking desperate thoughts. Joe and Sophie try everything in their power to make me feel better. Unlike before, however, this time I leave my room. The three of us spend a lot of time in the garden, enjoying the sun. Most of the time we stay silent, but every now and then, I pour my heart out to the two of them. Last night we sat in the garden until late at night and watched the stars. So I slept a little longer than usual this morning. When I wake up, it is already noon. I stretch, straighten and yawn heartily. My stomach grumbles softly and I have to laugh. Boy, am I hungry. I slip my bare feet into my Birkenstocks and slowly make my way downstairs. In the process, I pass the home office. The door is pulled shut, but not closed. I can hear Joe talking.

"No dad I don't know where he is! ... Yes, I read the articles. You know how much is true about articles like that. Yeah, I'm sure there's some truth to it, but Nick is an adult and not stupid. I'm sure half of it are lies. Yes Dad!......Mhm....Yes!...Dad! I really don't know where Nick is. This morning Priyanka suddenly showed up at our door. Yes exactly. Yes Mum, Sophie and Danielle are downstairs with her.... Yes she is crying...I guess Nick broke up....no dad I don't know....Mum! Yes Lia is still asleep and that's a good thing! Yes mum..... Daaad!", Joe keeps getting louder and softer as he speaks. I peek through the gap and see him pacing nervously. My mind is going crazy. What was Nick doing? What does the articles say? What am I going to do about Priyanka? Is she mad at me? Quietly I sneak down the stairs and I can already hear Priyanka's loud sobs through the closed living room door. Quietly and carefully, I creep to the door to hear what the three of them are talking about.

"He cheated on me. He's been drunk for three days and tonight I confronted him about it," Pri sobs loudly. "I asked what was wrong with him and... and then he yelled at me, saying why everyone was asking him that. He was yelling at me, crying. He could barely stand up straight because he was so drunk. And then...," Pri whimpers and takes a loud, dramatic breath. "Then he said he was a cheater. He had feelings for Lia and he kissed her and he was sorry. But he can't do it anymore. He would have lost everything, family, Lia and me. And then he rushed out."

I hear Danielle breathe a loud gasp. Sophie also gasps.

"Pri, this is so awful. I don't even know what to say," I hear Dani say.

"Pri, I'm so sorry. I love you, you know that." I hear Sophie then say.

"I know. It just hurts so much. Why did it have to be Lia? He swore to me a thousand times, Lia is his best friend. The feelings for her have nothing to do with love. And in the end it was love after all." Whimpers Pri.

Shit! No matter how bad I got along with Priyanka, I never wanted to hurt her. Actually, I liked her. I wanted to like her. I wanted to get along with her well. For Nick. I never wanted to hurt her. I gather all my bravery and gently knock on the door to the living room.

"Yes?", I hear from inside and slowly open the door. Sitting on the sofa facing the door are Sophie, Pri and Dani. Pri is sitting between the other two. They have their arms around her lovingly and look at her compassionately. Priyanka has red, swollen eyes and a tear-stained face. A pack of tissues lies in her lap. As I enter the room, all three look up at me. I take a deep breath and then look directly at Priyanka. My look is fearful, almost intimidated, and my voice quivers as I speak, "I'm so sorry! I should never have let it come to this. I should have stopped him. I never meant to hurt you Pri!"

Sophie and Dani smile at me proudly. Even Pri gives me a short smile. "You couldn't have prevented it Lia! I'm grateful that you apologize to me, but you have to understand that I don't want to talk to you right now!", she chooses her words carefully and tries to stay calm.