My girlfriend admitted she cheated. «I needed a real man,» She smirked. My friends took her side. I just smiled, took my keys—and left. This morning, my phone blew up with 32 missed calls…

And she couldn’t reach. I met Emma three years ago at a coffee shop near campus. She was reading the bell jar, wearing black nail polish and a chipped ring on her thumb.

I asked about the book. She looked up and said, Only depressed people read this in public. Then smiled.

That was it. We clicked. Fast.

Deep. Late night drives. Dumb inside jokes.

Falling asleep with her head on my chest like it was the safest place on earth. She used to tell me, You’re my peace. I believed her.

The good days. She used to bring me lunch when I worked late. Used to call me her anchor.

The one who kept her from spinning out when life got overwhelming. When I fixed up that rusted out 92 Civic in the garage, she’d sit with me, pass me tools, play music. We weren’t rich.

We weren’t flashy. But we were solid. Or so I thought.

The drift. The change was slow. She started going out more.

Girls’ nights turned into don’t-wait-up texts. She stopped coming to the garage. Started rolling her eyes when I talked about building my own IT consulting business.

You’re always chasing things that take too long, she said once. I didn’t fight her on it. I thought she was just stressed.

Burned out. But the truth? She was already looking for someone faster. Louder.

Flashier. And that someone turned out to be Caleb. A bartender with a six-pack and the personality of a wet sponge.

The friends shifted. Two Ben started hanging out with her more than with me. Chris didn’t want to take sides.

Even Maya, who once cried on my shoulder over her breakup, ghosted me. I didn’t lose a girlfriend that night at the bar. I lost a circle.

And yet, something in me clicked into place. Not rage. Not depression.

Clarity. They didn’t betray me because I was weak. They betrayed me because I was quiet.

And they thought that meant I wouldn’t respond. They were wrong. The first night after the breakup, I didn’t sleep…