Sacrifice

Chapter Nine

Crybaby was speechless for a few seconds as some tears fell from her eyes. "What's the big deal, Crybaby? One of your friends likes you- so, what? I think it's sweet," Celeste said as comfort. Crybaby sniffled, "It's not that simple. Put yourself in my shoes. I don't love Angelita that way. And then there's Ben. But she's my best friend and I don't want to hurt her. If this is true, what am I going to do?" Crybaby, emotional as ever, started crying even harder.

Celeste sighed, "What have you been doing?"

"Paying attention to Angelita so she doesn't get upset."

"And what about Ben?"

Crybaby exhaled sharply, "Nothing really, I've had to ignore him," she said, rubbing her face.

"What if you spend time with both of them together?"

"I just tried that today. It was like putting together a cat and a dog."

Celeste paused. "...You're in a really tough spot right now," she admitted.

"Yeah, I know," Crybaby said, distress in her voice. "Do you have any idea what I should do?" she asked.

"Well..." Celeste thought for a moment, "You want to know for sure that Angelita likes you, so you can figure out where to go from there. The best thing you can do now is put on a little bit of an act. Not to trick her, but just don't press her and make her feel more stressed about it. Keep calm and act like everything is okay until she's ready to confess. One time, I couldn't tell if this boy really liked me, so I did the same thing. Except, it was obvious that I wanted him. Eventually, he told me how he felt and asked me out. Then, of course, I had my answer." she explained.

"What happened when he asked you out?"

"Eh... Let's just say that was my first heartbreak."

"Aw," Crybaby sighed, "I don't want that to happen to her. How long did you have to wait for him to give you an answer?"

"Hmm... Maybe a month or two," Celeste responded.

"'A month or two?'" Crybaby stressed. Celeste sucked her teeth, "Yeah, we moved pretty slow."

"I can't live this mystery for that long. What about Ben?" Crybaby said, then stayed silent as she thought for a moment. "...I think I'll play along for now."

"What do you mean?" Celeste asked.

"I could act like I have feelings for her, too. She'll think I like her soon enough, and then she'll admit her feelings, if there are any. It probably won't so take long, either."

Celeste shook her head as she listened. "That's not what I meant. When I said 'act', I meant you should act like this whole thing isn't a big deal so that she feels comfortable around you and confesses on her own," she said.

"How come you did it, then?" Crybaby asked.

"Because when I did it, it was towards a boy I had just met, and I truly did like him. Angelita is your best friend who you have no romantic feelings for, and you're on the brink of being in a relationship with someone else. That's a risk, Crybaby."

"I think it'll be fine."

"So, how will you reverse it when the time comes? You'll have no choice but to tell her you lied or keep acting. You can get trapped in this."

Crybaby almost laughed, "I won't let it get that far. I'll get this all figured out and let you know how it goes."

"Just... Be careful. Please, Crybaby. Things can either go right or wrong. I don't want to see any of my friends get hurt."

"Okay. Thank you so much for the help," Crybaby said, nearly brushing off Celeste's warnings.

"No problem," Celeste put the phone down and ended the call. She exhaled sharply and shook her head, hoping Crybaby wouldn't be making a mistake.