IT'S ALWAYS THE SHY ONES

July 2018

Kelly was in a hurry to get to the only store in the neighbourhood that was open on a Sunday evening. She had just got off the plane after a long week spent as a camp instructor on a faraway mountain, so cold in July that the kids and the staff got bronchitis (and plenty of nosebleeds).

She only wanted to do a bit of grocery shopping, go back home, unpack, turn on the washing machine, take a shower and a long, long breath of relief.

She rushed into the store, picked up a few things and went to the checkout desk. She had known the woman since forever. One of her closest friends, Tina, and the woman were from the same town in some European country.

While the woman was packing her things, they chatted about Kell’s trip. As Kelly was about to leave the store, the woman asked: „Hey, how’s Tina?“

Kelly stopped to answer. She was juggling two jobs, in two different cities, flying in and out every other day, and her social circle had been reduced to her work friends and her fiancé but even he got the backseat at times. Kevin was fine with that since he also juggled two jobs, the kids from his previous marriage and his mother. Since she got that other job the previous year, she was always on the move, so much so that she ended up in hospital that January due to exhaustion.

„I honestly have no idea“, Kelly said, taking the grocery bag, „I just got off the plane and I’ve been meaning to call her but every time I’m free, it’s actually past midnight. I'll get round to it this week, got myself a little break“, she chuckled.

The woman looked at her, a frown between her eyebrows.

„Well“, she said, „I always knew it was never going to last“, she added, brushing off invisible crumbs from the counter.

Kelly was puzzled and added hastily:“ No, no, you got me wrong! Everything is fine, I’ve just had very little free time this past year!“

The woman looked at her with pity.

„But I don’t think I got her wrong”, and when she saw Kelly’s face, she added: “Oh, dear, you have always been too different! Tina is shy and so nice and you are…“

Kelly froze, waiting for the woman to continue.

„Well, you are nice and polite but you are, how shall I put it….too sparkly…too much! Tina herself told me you were no longer friends a couple of weeks ago when I asked about you“, the woman sighed and patted Kelly’s arm.

„It’s fine, people drift apart, nobody’s fault!“

If Kelly had known anything, it was that Tina was definitely not shy, not to mention nice. Nice she was when things went her way and she was in the limelight. She was a great friend when her late husband Ben was still alive. However, Kelly, a true cheerleader, had always been there for her ever since they met 17 years ago. Kelly was loyal to the fault and once she befriended Tina, she stuck by her at all times, especially when Ben died at 33, heart attack.

„Well, I think you may have got it wrong, Mrs. Kalach, I assure you we're still friends, the only problem is being at the same place at the same time!“

She smiled and left. The moment she left the store, her smile vanished, her thoughts drifted to 17 years ago….

2001 - 2004

„…and can you imagine, turns out he has had a girlfriend all this time, he just didn’t want anyone to know. They met when he was in Europe handling the UK branch and he’s been stringing along that poor gal…“

Kelly was going through some fashion magazine while listening to her friends discussing the upcoming nuptials of the most eligible CEO bachelor in town. What they didn't know was that she had actually met the guy when he rescued her from an unpleasant run-in with an ex. He escorted her home which was across the street and told her he had just moved there from Europe, had a long-term girlfriend but broke up because he realized they were too young to „get hitched and stitched“. Kelly made it very clear she was not interested in him and he gave her a charming smile and said: „Well, methinks my lady may change her mind once she gets to know me!“

„Methinks the foolish youth may have to accept the facts“, Kelly laughed back and they parted ways.

That was two years ago. In the meantime, she heard „the foolish youth“ got married and she was glad. She liked it when people actually got „hitched and stitched“.

Her whole group of friends were getting ready for a spa weekend 6 hours away from their town. Kelly’s roommate got sick and gave up trying to get better at the last minute. There was an unknown woman at the back of the bus, sitting alone, but Kelly paid her no heed, she was tired and just wanted to see the bed. Sure, she was sorry her roommate had to cancel but she was looking forward to spending the weekend alone in the room which hadn't happened since forever.

However, when they got to their spa resort in the mountains, turned out the lone woman was the bride they were discussing two years prior and that her roommate had cancelled as well. Kelly and Tina were paired up. Tina was quiet, loved hiking instead of hitting the spa so they spent the whole weekend exploring the trails, enjoying the cool weather and the breathtaking views from the sightseeing platforms.

The friendship was struck. They started spending a lot of time together and at one point, Tina was briefly transferred to Kelly’s office. What Kelly learned was the following:

Tina’s husband WAS telling the truth about being single when Kelly met him. A mousy Tina often told the story how she had proposed instead of him but the truth was different: she confided that he had broken up with her after five years and left, but her family could not simply let it go so they packed up, took the plane and wouldn't leave his house until he’d set the date. Kelly often wondered whether it was courageous or brazen and decided she would be mortified to do something like that. Staying with someone knowing he didn’t love you anymore….

She imagined herself in that scenario and knew she would be too proud to pull something like that.

Tina was hiding so many dark truths about her marriage. They had chased her husband down the highway twice when he called to say he had been in a meeting in another city. They never discussed it later.

Tina’s mother-in-law abhorred and resented her and never refrained from nasty comments in front of others. The fact that her handsome son, the youngest CEO in town, was forced to marry a mousy anonymous from some Eastern European country who couldn't even get pregnant, made her bitterness stronger.

Tina put up with all that, for Ben’s sake – her love for him was borderline obsessive. Then she got pregnant via IVF and gave birth to a beautiful girl. Kelly was there for her every step of the way.

Five days later, the tragedy struck. Ben died of a heart attack.

Kelly took some days off and was there for her and the baby all the time. At one point, Tina and the kid had moved in with Kelly. The friendship was growing as strong and beautiful as their little girl…

However, as Tina’s family bought her a condo and a car and provided the help, Tina’s confidence started growing so much that eventually turned into arrogance. Many times, Kelly asked her how she could be so nice to people she had actually despised and Tina’s answer was simple – “My mom has taught me to smile and agree and I always get my way!”

Kelly felt uneasy – she was the opposite. When she didn’t like someone, she was polite but distant.

2007

Tina got transferred to another company but they still saw a lot of each other. One of her colleagues was a guy Kelly had rejected several times. Tina was clearly uncomfortable when they got together on Saturday after work.

“Listen, I have to tell you something”, she cleared her throat. “Ivan was telling people you used to hook up for years but then he dumped you because you wanted to get married.”

Kelly laughed – it was Ivan alright, a guy she used to describe as “my best gossip girl” but who cared?

What she wanted to know was what Tina had said.

“Well, I kept quiet.”

Kelly almost choked.

“But you know that's not true! How could you not stand up for me?” If it had been the other way around, Kelly would have cut his tongue and served it fried.

“You’ve betrayed me! You knew the truth and you let him lie about me!”, she almost yelled.

“People know we are friends. If you have kept quiet, they will think it’s true! My God, that’s why Jordan accused me of cheating!”

Kelly was beyond upset – she got up and left.

2015-2018

Enter Kevin. Two years of playing the seduction and friendship dance. Finally, Kelly gave in. When he proposed, she was surprised since he had said he was never going to marry again but they were a good fit. There was love and depth between them, and so much more. She called Tina to relay the happy news but got her voicemail. All in all, 26 unreturned calls and texts.

July 2018

Kelly walked home fast, dumped the groceries and dialled Tina. The latter answered immediately.

„Hey, stranger, when did you arrive?“, she asked, smile in her voice.

„Cut the crap“, Kelly was furious, „When did we stop being friends?“

Tina gave a throaty laugh. The laugh was a dead giveaway. That was the laugh when she was caught in a lie or deception.

„No idea what you’re talking about“, she said, feigning disinterest.

Kelly had it.

„Cut the BS! I know you think I don’t notice things because I’ve been too busy but I do, I just don’t have as much time as you to drag them around the neighbourhood with your chatty chums!“

She took a deep breath.

„Do you think I haven’t noticed you stopped talking to me for almost a year when you thought Ben was cheating on you with me? And when you found out who it was, you didn’t even think of apologizing!?“

Tina’s voice was cool and resentful.

„I never apologize“, she said.

„And when Kevin and I started seeing each other, don’t you think I didn’t remember you were asking about single guys on my block and described Kevin?“

Kelly was on the roll, no stopping her now.

Tina simply said: „ I told you I had him confused for someone else“, but her tone was not so confident anymore. It was threatening.

„Really? Is that why you’re stalking him with your tongue hanging? Is that why you’re hanging around the café near his office building all day long? You keep going there twice a day knowing you would see him! And it eats you up he doesn’t like you!“

Tina started yelling.

„Listen, it’s always you! Wherever we go, men look at you! Even men whom I try to date ask about you!“

„Have I ever tried anything? I’ve always been supportive and kept my distance!“

„It doesn’t matter!“, Tina screamed and slammed the phone.

Kelly scrolled through her texts. Tina and Kelly were supposed to go out since she promised to introduce her to some of Kevin’s friends. Instead of ringing the bell, Tina stood outside, called a few times and left. A minute later, Kelly saw the missed calls but Tina accused her of purposefully avoiding her. She wanted a written note in which Kelly would admit she was "irresponsible, immature and a terrible friend.” Kelly fired back with some tricky stuff she knew about Tina’s marriage. Silence ensued.

Kelly had a surgery in 2014. Tina lied she was too sick to even see her in hospital but she went twice a day to the café near Kevin’s office.

When Kelly got sick in January 2018, Tina treated her as a leper. When her parents died, Tina didn’t come, she was “on vacation”.

Kelly realized that whenever people asked how she felt, Tina would swoop in with “I’m a poor helpless widow” story.

Her widow status made her feel powerful – everybody would defend “that poor dear, she’d lost her husband, she must be such a good person!“

Compared to the “poor widow” who had been feeding off her status, Kelly would always be “the bad one” despite her being a true and honest friend. Tina got such a huge compensation from Ben’s company that she didn’t even have to work anymore, and they even paid for her daughter’s schooling.

On Kevin’s birthday, Tina came to Kelly’s apartment unannounced, cocktail dress and full make-up, and said she was going out with them to “check out the new guy”.

Kelly was stunned but kept her cool and sent her home.

When Kelly complained that their sex life was suffering from their mismatched schedules, Tina simply said, without skipping the beat: “He can’t get it up anyway!“

Kelly was dumbfounded and Tina added, as an afterthought: “Sorry, I meant to say he's too small to do it!“

All the time, Kevin remained distant. He openly disliked Tina – it turned out the only times he spoke to her was when he rejected her advances. But who would blame the poor widow? It must that Kelly girl, she had always been too much!

When Tina finally confessed her feelings to Kevin, he said:

"You are Kelly's friend," he said coolly. "And I love her."

I love her.

Every step was the echo of those words.

For most people, rejection would have hurt.

For Tina, it became a wound that festered.

Jealousy transformed into resentment.

Resentment transformed into obsession.

Kelly noticed changes but explained them away.

Tina became colder, aggressive, harsh.

Small comments slipped into conversations.

"I saw Kevin with some woman."

"Are you sure he's being honest with you?"

“You seem to have gained a lot of weight lately.”

“You look tired and old, is everything OK?”

The remarks were tiny drops of poison. Easy to dismiss individually. Dangerous when repeated often enough.

Then came the rumors.

A colleague casually asked Kelly whether she and Kevin were separating.

A mutual friend wondered why Kevin was supposedly meeting another woman.

A business partner suddenly withdrew from a joint project after hearing concerns about Kelly's reliability.

Kelly was even dragged into an infidelity thing related to the guy she had despised.

The strange thing was that every trail led nowhere.

No evidence.

No source.

Like smoke without fire.

Months later, Kelly discovered the truth by accident.

A former coworker forwarded her screenshots.

A private group chat.

Tina was the admin, along with several people Kelly knew.

As she scrolled through the messages, her hands trembled.

There were lies about her relationship. Her work. Her character.

Suggestions that she was unstable, irresponsible, a cheat and a liar.

Manipulative.

Dishonest.

Each one carefully planted.

Each story designed to damage a different part of her life.

The betrayal hurt more because it was intentional.

Tina knew exactly where to strike.

What she didn’t know was that Kelly's insecurities vanished every time her integrity was attacked. Yes, she knew which relationships mattered most, she knew which words would cause the deepest wounds.

Kelly chose grace and dignity, and left Tina behind her.

November 2018

They met for their final coffee.

For a moment, they simply sat across from one another in a quiet café.

"Why?" Kelly finally asked.

Tina stared into her coffee.

"You got everything."

Kelly laughed bitterly.

"Everything?"

"Everything."

The answer fell between them.

Tina's eyes became misty.

"I loved him."

"No," Kelly said softly. "You loved the idea of winning. Just like you did with Ben, forcing him to marry you. Sometimes I think death was the only escape for him. "

Tina flinched. The truth hurt.

Love doesn't try to destroy innocent people.

Love doesn't smile at someone's happiness while secretly wishing for their collapse.

It was envy wearing love's face.

People eventually learned the truth.

Rumors have a strange habit of returning to their creator.

The trust she had broken could not be repaired.

The friendships she had manipulated disappeared.

The reputation she had tried to build became her own loss.

As for Kelly, healing took less time than she expected.

She didn’t miss who Tina had become but the one from before.

One evening, Kelly sat on a balcony with Kevin, watching the city lights flicker below.

“I heard Tina’s mom is unwell”, he said.

She looked toward the dark horizon.

“Well, what can you do? We’ve been through worse than that. Besides, she has people to help her.”

Kevin looked at her. Kelly snuggled closer.

"Some betrayals teach you more than loyalty ever could."

Kevin squeezed her hand.

"What did this one teach you?"

Kelly watched the first stars appear.

"That enemies can only hurt what they can reach and sometimes the people closest to you are the ones standing nearest to the knife."

The wind carried the silence away.

Behind her lay the wreckage of a friendship.

Ahead of her lay something far more valuable.

The certainty that she had survived the betrayal without becoming bitter.