The second entry of my first love

1. love

'In life, we already have so many people—parents, annoying siblings, stupid friends, and a life full of trouble. Isn’t that enough? Why do we even need love? How can we possibly love someone we just met? And why do people still believe in love, even after heartbreaks?'

'I think only dumb and foolish people fall in love—or at least, they think they do. Because love doesn’t actually exist. And I’m a smart girl with a brain—how could I ever fall for something so stupid?'

'I know I may sound rude and cruel, but isn’t this the reality? I’m not heartless, though. Even if I don’t believe in this so-called love, I still watch romantic movies, dramas, and read love stories. It’s fun, isn’t it? Seeing two people meet by chance, fall for each other, give their all, and yearn for a lost love. I even find myself praying that every character gets their happy ending, just like everyone else does.'

'It’s all just fantasy, right?'

'And I know the difference between fantasy and reality. I know there’s no prince or perfect man out there who actually gives a damn about your life. Everyone in this world only cares about themselves. Some want beauty, some want money, some want fame, and some just want to satisfy their desires. But in the end, they call it love to hide their selfishness.'

'This isn’t just my assumption—I’ve seen the world.'

'There are moments when I doubt my beliefs, thinking maybe, just maybe, not everyone is the same. But it’s not my fault. The people around me crush that little hope and prove my doubts right.'

'All my friends have fallen into this so-called love—except me. I was the only single one in my friend group. At first, they were all so happy. But within a year, half of them were heartbroken. The rest broke up the following year. Some lost interest, some faced family rejection, and others struggled with relationship problems.'

'Whatever the reason, they all ended up in pain.'

'Except for one—my best friend. Her relationship is about to reach seven years. They’ve fought countless times over serious matters, and every time, I thought they would break up. But somehow, they always pulled through and stayed together.'

'Okay, fine. I admit, that once, I was one of those foolish people who believed in love. I was just a kid back then. But I learned my lesson—through pain and tears. Now, I see things clearly.'

I was lost in my thoughts when I heard a familiar voice call my name.

"Thea..."

I snapped back to reality and turned around. Standing inside a watch store was a beautiful girl with shoulder-length brown hair and transparent glasses—Natalia.

She waved at me, and I ran toward her with a smile.

"Which one do you like better? This one or this one?" she asked, holding up two men’s watches.

"Since when do you like men’s watches? By the way, it suits you," I teased.

"Stop joking around. You know I’m buying it for Samuel. Today is our seventh anniversary," she said with a sweet smile.

"Anniversary gift, monthly anniversary gift, birthday gift... Even on your birthday, you buy something for him." I rolled my eyes. "You’re always buying things for him. I’m starting to think he’s a gold digger."

"Okay, shut up. I’ve had enough of your bickering," she said, ignoring me as she picked a watch and paid for it.

We left the store and walked down the road when she suddenly asked, "Why do you hate love?"

The question wiped the smile off my face in an instant. But I quickly put it back before she could notice.

"It’s not that I hate it," I replied. "How can I hate something that doesn’t even exist?"

"It does exist. You just don’t want to accept it," she said firmly.

"Okay, okay, enough of this nonsense. I can’t believe a smart girl like me has a stupid friend like you. Has my influence had no effect on you at all? You actually fell in love?" I said, exasperated.

"What’s wrong with falling in love?" she asked.

"It’s not about falling in love. It’s about who you fell for," I retorted. "Of all the people in the world, why him? You’ve let that monkey-faced guy cling to you for seven years."

"Oh, come on, Thea. He’s not that bad," she defended him.

"Yeah, you’re right. He’s not that bad..." I paused before grinning. "Actually, he’s very bad."

I burst into laughter while she simply sighed, shaking her head. She knew arguing with me was pointless.

"I love him just the way he is," she said calmly. "You don’t understand how beautiful love can be."

"And you don’t understand how painful love can be," I muttered under my breath, the smile slipping from my face.

"Hmm? Did you say something?" she asked, confused. I quickly plastered a bright smile back on my face and shook my head. "No, nothing."

As we walked, we finally reached our destination. I spotted a guy waiting for us—not particularly handsome, but not bad-looking either. Just... average.He waved at us with both hands.

"Look, there’s your monkey," I said.

Natalia beamed and rushed toward him, wrapping her arms around him tightly.

"Happy seventh anniversary, baby," she said sweetly.

"It’s just our seventh anniversary," he replied, kissing her forehead. "I want to spend the rest of my life with you, my love."

I groaned. "Can you please stop throwing cheesy lines? I’m getting goosebumps all over."

Samuel turned to me with a surprised expression. "Oh, you’re here too? Sorry, I didn’t see you." He grinned.

I knew he was teasing me—he had definitely seen me.

"You—! You monkey-faced guy! Why are you with my Natalia if you can’t even see properly?" I snapped.
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A/n: Thank you so much all the readers who takes out your time to read my work. This is my first published work and I'd like it if you would support me. It is actually not my first work There are a lot of things left on that. So, i had published my short story. I am still unskilled so if you see a mistake or want to share your suggestion or review feel free to comment. Thank you so much once again.