I turn to face Leo.
The boy I’ve loved since I was a child.
The boy who has tormented me, mocked me, pushed me away at every turn.
The boy who watched me break and did nothing.
“You,” I say, my voice shaking with rage and pain.
“You are the worst of all of them.” He doesn’t move.
He doesn’t speak.
He just stands there, his amber eyes fixed on me, his face unreadable.
“All these years,” I continue, my voice growing louder.
“All these years, you’ve tormented me.
You’ve mocked me.
You’ve called me names and pushed me around and made me feel like I was nothing.” I step closer to him, my fists clenched at my sides.
“And I hated you for it.
I hated you so much it consumed me.
But you know what?
I think I hated myself more.
Because despite everything you did to me, I still loved you.
I still wanted you to look at me.
I still wanted you to see me.” His jaw tightens.
His hands clench into fists at his sides.
“But you never did, did you?” I laugh, bitter and hollow.
“You never saw me.
You never cared.
You just stood there, watching me fall apart, and you said nothing.” I think about all the times he could have defended me.
The race, the accident, the countless moments when I needed someone to stand beside me.
“You always said nothing,” I whisper.
“When I needed you most, you said nothing.
When I was drowning, you said nothing.
When they were destroying me, you said nothing.” I look at him, my eyes burning with tears I refuse to shed.
“And that’s why you’re the worst of them all.
Because you knew.
You knew what they were doing, and you let it happen.
You let me burn.” He doesn’t speak.
He doesn’t move.
He just stares at me, his amber eyes filled with something I can’t read.
I turn away from him.
I can’t look at him anymore.
“And you,” I say, turning to Diego.
“You promised to protect me.
You promised to be my shield, my brother.
You swore that nothing would ever hurt me as long as you were around.” Diego’s face is pale, his eyes filled with guilt.
“Aitana, I—” “You chose her,” I cut him off.
“You chose her over me.
When I needed you, you weren’t there.
You were with her, laughing at me, mocking me, destroying everything I thought we had.” I turn to Sofia.
“And you.
You were my sister.
My confidante.
We shared everything.
We dreamed together.
We promised to always be there for each other.” Sofia’s eyes are filled with tears.
“Aitana, please.
I didn’t mean to hurt you.
I was just—” “Just what?” I demand.
“Just too weak to stand up for me?
Just too scared to say something?
Just too busy being her friend to remember that I existed?” She looks down at the floor, her shoulders shaking.
I turn to Carmen.
“And you.
You were the one I trusted most.
You were the one I shared my secret with.
The one thing I couldn’t tell anyone else.
The one thing that made me feel so small and stupid and vulnerable.” Carmen’s face is white as a sheet.
“Aitana, I never meant for—” “You never meant for what?” I scream.
“You never meant for them to find out?
You never meant for them to mock me?
You never meant for them to destroy me?” I laugh, and it’s cold and hollow and dead.
“But they did.
You did.
All of you.” The room is so quiet I can hear my own heartbeat.
“You want to know why I’ve been so withdrawn?” I ask, looking at all of them.
“You want to know why I’ve been hiding in the garage, fixing my bike, pretending the world doesn’t exist?” They don’t speak.
They can’t speak.
“Because I knew,” I say, my voice cracking.
“I knew you were slipping away from me.
I could feel it.
I could see it in the way you looked at her, the way you laughed with her, the way you chose her over me again and again.” I look at each of them.
“And I wanted to believe I was wrong.
I wanted to believe that you still cared.
I wanted to believe that the promises we made meant something.” I stop.
I take a deep breath.
“But they don’t, do they?
Those promises we made when we were children—’best friends forever,’ ‘never leave each other’s side,’ ‘always be there for each other’—they were nothing.
Just words.
Empty words that you threw away the moment she walked into the room.” I feel the tears fall, hot and fast and uncontrollable.
“You stand there blaming me,” I say, my voice shaking.
“Saying I never had time for you, I never listened to you, I never cared.
But look at you now.
Look at what you’ve done.” I gesture at Elena, who is watching everything with those innocent hazel eyes.
“She’s sweet.
She’s kind.
She always has time for you.
She always listens.” I laugh again, and it sounds broken.
“Of course she does.
Because she’s not real.
She’s not your friend.
She’s using you.
She’s manipulating you.
And you’re too blind to see it.” Diego steps forward.
“Aitana, that’s not fair.
Elena has been nothing but kind to us.
She’s been there for us.
She’s listened to us.
She’s—” “She’s what?” I cut him off.
“She’s everything I’m not?” Diego looks down.
He doesn’t answer.
I turn to Leo one last time.
“And you.
You’re still standing there, saying nothing.
Just like always.
You’ll never change, will you?
You’ll never stand up for anyone.
You’ll never fight for anyone.
You’ll just stand there, frozen, watching the world burn.” I look at all of them—the people I loved most in this world.
The people I trusted.
The people who promised to always be there for me.
“You were my everything,” I whisper.
“My friends.
My family.
My home.
And you threw me away like I was nothing.” I take a step back, my hands shaking.
“You chose her over me.
All of you.
You chose her.
And I hope you’re happy.
I hope she gives you everything you wanted.
I hope she’s worth it.” I look at them one last time.
“But don’t come crawling back to me.
Don’t pretend you care.
Don’t pretend you ever loved me.” I feel the tears streaming down my face, but I don’t wipe them away.
“You’re all dead to me.” And I turn and walk away.
The silence follows me like a ghost.