Velvet Chains - Bonus Prologue - Faye Pierce

Velvet Chains – Bonus Prologue

Isabelle

Shock and confusion battled within me as I sat on a bench outside the library. I had promised myself that I wouldn’t ever be one of those girls crying in public over a man, and yet, here I was.

My vision blurred as hot tears filled my eyes. I still hadn’t made sense of the text I had just received from my now-ex boyfriend, Mark.

I knew I couldn’t keep sitting there so, I decided to make my way to my dorm.

I trudged across campus, my eyes fixed on the pavement, trying to process the sting of Mark’s text message.

It’s over, the text simply read. Two words that had shattered my world. They were followed by his claims that we had grown apart. We had been together for two years, and I thought our love was unbreakable. I didn’t think we had grown apart, but it was clear he didn’t feel the same.

As I tried to walk, my legs felt shaky. Before I could get far, someone enveloped me in a warm hug. It was my best friend, Sarah. I was slightly confused to see her as she didn’t attend UCLA, but I guessed she was on her way to the gym, which was near my campus.

“What’s the matter?” She asked, and without saying a single word, I handed her my phone. I didn’t talk because I was afraid that I would dissolve into a sobbing mess.

“I’m so sorry, Izzy,” she whispered. “What a jerk! And to leave you with a text… a coward too!”

I collapsed onto the bench Sarah had led me to, tears streaming down my face. She handed me a tissue and sat beside me.

“We’re going to get through this together,” she promised. “And then, we’re going to confront Mark. He can’t just break up with you over text!”

I felt a wave of panic wash over me at her words. Maybe it was cowardly, but I didn’t have the strength to face him. I wanted to keep my last bit of pride intact by not crying in front of him and begging him to come back to me.

“I can’t… I don’t want to see him!” I said, and she paused at my words.

“Okay, you don’t have to. We’ll just take it one step at a time. You’re too good for him anyway.” She declared.

I nodded. Sarah was right; I deserved better.

With Sarah’s support, I began to heal. We spent hours talking, laughing, and crying together. She spent the next few weeks coming over to my campus to be with me, she was my rock.

After a while, although I didn’t feel completely healed, the wound from the break-up began to feel less painful. I knew that with time, I would get over him.

However, one evening, several months after the breakup, I met up with Sarah and she seemed strange. She had been fidgeting and it was obvious that she was nervous.

“What’s the matter? You keep fidgeting,” I finally said. She sighed heavily, and her reaction made me sit up.

“Izzy, I’ve been meaning to ask you… how would you feel if I went out with Mark?” Her words hit me like a hard knock. I stared at her in disbelief.

At first, I thought I’d misheard her. “What? You and Mark?” I tried to sound casual, but my mind was racing.

Sarah nodded, her eyes searching mine for a reaction. “I know it’s weird, but we bumped into each other the other night and we started for hours and I think really like him, Izzy. But I value our friendship too much to lie to you or hurt you. I wanted to be upfront with you.”

I felt a sting of hurt and confusion, but I pushed it aside. I didn’t want to lose my best friend over this. “It’s okay, Sarah. Really. I’m over him. You two would be great together.”

Sarah’s face lit up with a smile. “Thanks, Izzy. That means a lot to me.”

But as we hugged and chatted, I couldn’t shake off the feeling of betrayal. How had that happened? She, of all people, knew how much Mark had hurt me.

I concealed my true feelings, not wanting to ruin our friendship, but I couldn’t help but feel sadness. However, she was my best friend, and I believed our friendship was stronger than this. It had to be.

I wanted her to be happy, and if she thought that she would be happy with Mark, then I knew I would have to accept it.

We sat side by side sipping coffee and gossiping, we were about to graduate soon and we were all looking forward to the future.