Chapter 3

“Natalie, where are you?”

“Girl I beat the shit out of that jerk.”

“Please do tell me you went home already”

“Don’t you dare do something stupid just because of that guy”

“Natalie, I‘m sorry”

                Natalie’s cellular phone were bombarded by hundreds of calls and messages by her best friend and her ex-boyfriend. She looked at the messages but didn’t even bothered to reply at all as she was tired with everything. She left them on read as she drop the phone along with her body on the bed. Her eyes were already red as she was crying the entire walk into her apartment. She picks her phone once again and reads her ex-boyfriend’s messages.

“Natalie please forgive me, I didn’t know what’s gotten into me” she then decides to give him a call which he quickly answered.

“Natalie, tha—“

“How long?”

“Huh?”

“How long have you been cheating on me Russell?”

                There was a long pause of silence in the other line making Natalie’s emotions get more unstable in process. Anger and disappointment were seeping through inside her as she couldn’t help but to scream out loud into the phone.

“Freaking tell me Russell or I swear to God”

“For almost six months,” Russell finally answer with a sigh her making her world crumpled and fall into pieces. She quickly hanged up on him and starts to cry once again until she feel numb and falls into a deep slumber.

                Morning came and Natalie woke up and sat up on her bed, looking at the mirror. She groans as she saw her eyes were puffy and red.

“Gosh darn it’” she groans once again as she stood up and headed to the bathroom to fix herself up and proceed with her daily routine for her daily life.

                As she went out her apartment and headed to the parking lot, she saw her best friend leaning on the side of the car. Stella dashes towards her with a worried look on her face.

“Natalie! Thank goodness you’re okay, I thought you do something with yourself. You just left me on read and didn’t even bother to answer my calls” she said as she whines like a kid.

                Natalie looks at her and smiles weakly as she just hugged her friend tightly. She starts to shiver and cries as she couldn’t keep her emotions anymore. Stella just went silent and holds her dear friend and lets her cry into her shoulder.

“Come”

                Stella gently dragged Natalie into her car and make her sit beside her as she were still crying in agony at the truth with her boyfriend having a third party and it has going for months at the top of that. She then told everything to her best friend. Stella took pity on her and gives her a hug.

“Let’s go and drink for you to forget that guy”

                Russell on the other hand was trying to call Natalie, as he was desperate to apologize to her. When Natalie didn’t answer all of his calls and messages, he then start to call her circle of friends first asking if they see her today. Her friends, clueless on what happened yesterday asked him, he just went silent for a while before telling them what happen. Guilt starts to eat him up on process as he was telling them the truth.

“How dare you to throw the five years relationship with Natalie?” Hannah, one of their close friends scold him over the phone.

As she starts to lecture him, Russell just listened as she was right all along, how dare he ruined her five year relationship with Natalie. Throughout the relationship, she was the one who always give and he was the one who always take and take her for granted for most of the time. He then apologized and turned the call off.

“I need to make this right”

He then drives to Natalie’s family home in hopes she is the residence to apologized and make up things with her.

“Isn’t it too early to drink?” Natalie asked her best friend.

                Stella had driven themselves in a club she owned even though it was early hours. She looked at her with a grin and pats her back and drags her once again inside. They headed towards the bar and make her seat on the chair.

“Well we can drink later, you can just relax and clear your mind for now” Stella said as she lets Natalie sits on a chair. She then get asked by Natalie if she could let her borrow her laptop first as she wanted to past time by writing up her novel.

"Sure thing, let me just get it for you" Stella said as she stood up and went inside the employee lodge to get her spare laptop for Natalie. She handles it to her and watches her friend start writing.

                Russell arrived at Natalie’s family home as he was been spotted by her mother as she was tending her red roses in her garden. With a smile as hurriedly walks towards him and opens the gate.

“Russell, what brings you here? Is Natalie with you?”

                Russell frowns a bit as his girlfriend’s mother blinks. Natalie wasn’t there at all and now he also need to explain with her mother.

“Ah Ms. Smith actually I—“

                His words being cut off as a punch where landed straight into his face. He falls back and looks up to see Natalie’s brother, Ivan who was fuming.

‘I guess he already knew’ he thought as he wipes his lips that split

“Ivan why did you do that?”

“Mom he cheated on Natalie, Hannah just told me on the phone”

                Her mom then looked at Russell making him looked away because of the shame he were feeling right now. Natalie’s mom then frowns and gets mad at her in process.

“How dare you Russell?”

“I’m so sorry”

                Natalie and Stella stay in the club and as the night comes,  goes into drinking galore as they didn't open it for a night and occupy it by themselves. They drowned themselves with booze making Natalie drunk out her mind. Natalie took another bottle but her best friend quickly stopped her.

“I think you had enough”

"You know what if he could cheat so can I" Natalie drunkenly said as she stood up, Stella following her quickly as she was worried she might do something too stupid for her own good. They quickly walks out of the club, with Natalie looking and stumbling around as he tries to look for guys. Stella, being the more level headed one tries to stop her as Natalie continues to walk and heads towards the pedestrian lane.

"Natalie Stop!"

                Stella quickly rushed to her but then she got caught in the crowd, making her hard to follow her. As she continues, she just suddenly head a loud crash and screams afterwards.

"Somebody got hit by a truck!" A woman screamed on the background, making Stella's eyes widen and dash towards the place. As she reaches there, her legs grew jelly on the site.

"Natalie.."