Like an age-old mystery finally dragged into the light, Bonnie felt the disorienting rush of stepping out of complete darkness and into the blinding sun.
What had truly destroyed her was the belief that Lawrence had emotionally betrayed her.
It had essentially rewritten her entire perception of love. That shattered belief system was the very prison she had been trapped in for years.
She could have accepted a million reasons for a breakup. Incompatible personalities, mismatched social standings, parental interference, diverging career goals.
Even if he had just gotten bored, lost the spark, felt suffocated, or simply fallen out of love—she could have accepted it all.
The one thing she absolutely could not stomach was the man she loved falling out of love with her, or cheating on her.
Because the intimacy Bonnie craved was fiercely exclusive. She had a tiny secret she'd buried deep in her heart for years, one she hadn't even shared with Lawrence.
When Lawrence was pursuing her, he had been incredibly direct, claiming it was love at first sight. He swore he fell for her the second she played the violin at the freshman orientation.
Bonnie hadn't said anything back then, but her heart had flooded with a secret, sugary warmth.
Because she had felt the exact same way about him—just a few days later. Standing on the sidelines of the basketball court, their eyes had unexpectedly locked. That carefree, striking boy dominating the court had been the moment her heart first skipped a beat.
So, for the year and a half they were together, she firmly believed their love was pure, beautiful, and absolutely flawless. They had their families' blessings, and to their friends, they were the ultimate golden couple.
Bonnie had never once entertained the thought of losing him.
When the brutal end came, her vibrant, overflowing love was vacuum-sealed and crushed in an instant. The emotional devastation had been apocalyptic.
Even though they had been giving each other the silent treatment for a month, in her mind, it was just a typical lover's spat. Their feelings for each other were still at an absolute peak.
That cliff-drop of a breakup had offered zero buffer. She hadn't even gotten a proper goodbye.
Alongside the excruciating pain was a suffocating confusion, a desperate need for answers she never got.
Her worldview had shattered. She fell into a dark, endless loop, convinced that if even Lawrence could betray her, she could never trust another man as long as she lived.
Because no romance would ever rival the sheer intensity of her first love.


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