You never meant for it to happen. At first, he was just a friend—someone you laughed with between classes, someone you’d walk home with when the streets were painted gold by the setting sun. But slowly, the lines blurred. His hand would brush yours when you walked side by side, and sometimes he’d linger in your space just a little too long, his gaze pulling you in.

The first kiss was an accident, or at least that’s what you both told yourselves. It happened one night, when the two of you were sitting on his couch watching some movie neither of you were paying attention to. He turned his head, you turned yours, and suddenly there was no space between you. His lips were soft, warm, hesitant—but real.

You didn’t talk about it afterward. You didn’t have to. Because it happened again. And again. Each time felt a little more certain, like the universe was nudging you closer, whispering that this was more than friendship.

So you decided. Tonight, you’d tell him. You’d lay it all bare—the racing heartbeat, the sleepless nights, the way your world had tilted since that first kiss. You even practiced the words under your breath, nervous but excited.

When you reached the party, the air smelled of cheap beer and cigarette smoke. Music pulsed from the speakers, bodies pressed close on the dance floor, but you only had one thought: find him.

You spotted him near the back of the room, the corner lit dimly by string lights. Relief washed over you—until it froze in your chest.

Because he wasn’t alone.

His hand was tangled in someone else’s shirt, pulling them close, his mouth pressed against theirs with a hunger you’d never seen before. The sight hit you like a blow, stealing the air from your lungs.

Your practiced words shattered.

You wanted to look away, but you couldn’t. The sting of betrayal, the sharp ache of disappointment—it rooted you to the floor. You thought of every laugh you’d shared, every whispered kiss, every fragile hope you’d built in silence. And now it crumbled, slipping through your fingers before you’d even had the chance to give it voice.

He pulled back from the kiss, smiling at the other person with a softness you thought belonged to you.

And that’s when your heart broke.