Deceived Me

Chapter 21:

Stella reached the elevator and pressed the button. It took a fee seconds for the elevator to reach down. The doors opened with a ding. They stood in silence all the while. Finally, Stella took a deep breath and walked inside. She just took a step when she heard her voice.

" What if you really do stop loving me? Then what? What will I do? How will I leave?" Alice asked in a very desolate tone. Stella froze in her steps. She turned around and slowly stepped outside. The doors soon closed.

Stella looked at Alice's back as she stood on the same spot. She took a step forward but then stopped. After a moment of silence, Stella looked up again and told her in all seriousness.

" Alice, if I stop loving you, that would mean I died inside. If while still breathing I stopped loving you, then I have to be dead inside."

Alice didn't turn around and say anything. Her tears slowly slide out of her eyes. There was a tense and sad atmosphere. Stella looked seriously at her back and finally said after a while.

" ...Alice, I've been thinking a lot these days. Since meeting you. Your words keep repeating in my eyes. I don't know why but it seems like you think I'll leave you one day. That I'll stop loving you. I am still very confused to be honest. I don't know why you think that and how I should make you believe I won't. I said a lot of things from my heart but even then, it seems like you don't believe me. I even kept recalling the events of past when we were together. I kept thinking if I made a mistake or did something wrong. But nothing come to my mind. So I thought about all the possible situations when I could leave you. I know I can't stop loving you. I bet my life on it but I can leave you even if I love you. After a lot of thinking, I came to a conclusion.

Alice, if one day, despite loving you more than my life, if I still leaves you, then I know why."

Alice stiffed. She slowly turned around and looked at stella with red eyes. She seemed really nervous to her her answer.

Stella looked her in the eyes and said.

" When leaving you would benefit you, when leaving you would be the only way to make you happy, then I will leave you. If the day comes when our love becomes a source of pain for you, then I'll leave without batting an eye."

Stella's words made her startled. Suddenly, her words reminded her of something that was the most horrible thing she went through. She remembered seeing a diary in Stella's room. She didn't pay attention to it as she was too broken at that time. She found breathing the hardest thing to do. But she remembered the title of that diary. On the cover, there was one line.

" Always Be Happy."

On the corner of that cover, something was written in very small writing. It was in English. But now she suddenly recalled. It looked like English but it was Portuguese. It was Alice's mother tongue.

' Yes. She remembered now. It was her name... It was her name written in Portuguese?'

Alice was stunned. Her mind froze and her hands trembled. That diary was a new one. It definitely didn't exist until they broke up. That means it was written after they broke up. She stopped loving her long before they broke up. So why would she... Why would she write about her? Could it be... No! She wouldn't do that! But what if she...

Alice was losing her mind as she quickly recalled the memories of their past life. She recalled how Stella acted before their breakup. She recalled how Stella's mother acted when she saw her. She recalled all those little moments and she was too scared to realise what it meant.

She took a step forward but stopped. She understood what happened but her heart was unable to accept or digest the news.

Her eyes instantly welled up and tears fell like a dam broke. But her expression didn't change.

Stella looked back at her with tears.

" Alice, I was actually avoiding you so you could think what's better for you and decide on something. But I think it's better to let you go. I am not prepared for this but as I said, I'll do anything to you to be happy. Even if it means breaking my heart."

Stella turned around and opened the elevator. She was about to step inside but yet again, She stopped. A hand strongly held her wrist. Alice stopped her.

" Wait!" Stella turned around.

Alice was in a messy state but couldn't care about that. She looked at her in desperation and asked her.