An Unbreakable Curse

Wes’s love confession struck Mia like lightning to her heart.

'Eeeekkk!!!'

She combusted on the spot, bright crimson blooming across her cheeks. He grinned then chuckled out loud, amused and satisfied by her reaction.

There were other people around, she knew, but she was too astonished by the revelation to mind. Her senses had long zeroed in on the person in front of her—the only sound being her rapid heartbeat, the only sight being his smiling face. He was still holding the hand he'd kissed, as though it was the most precious thing in the universe, and she couldn't resist glancing down at it repeatedly.

Her lips quivered. Her knees wobbled.

It was too much, too good, too impossible to be true.

She never dared imagine this outcome, not when they’d gone shopping in preparation for this day, nor when they'd discussed outfit and hairstyle choices, nor when they'd bickered over who would pay. She believed she was just a helper and a friend borrowing time with a man meant for someone else, and she had been fine with that, or so she thought.

“You may think that I’m fickle-hearted,” Wes continued when Mia still gave no response, his tone grave and gaze earnest, his fingers tightening around her with just enough pressure to ground her. “But that’s not it at all. I’m serious about you. Whether you trust me or not, I still like you. I really do, Mia.”

The dam inside her broke.

She burst into tears before she could stop herself. They felt hot, spilling down her cheeks and forcing her to squeeze her eyes shut. She was not even sure why she was crying.

‘Disbelief? Happiness? Gratitude?’ She couldn't quite tell, so maybe all at once. ‘And fickle-hearted? Right, Jenny also said that once. But you're not that kind of person, Wes. I would know.’

He was kind and sincere, and it showed as she felt him reach out to her to gently wipe away her tears. She opened her eyes in time with him cupping her face, the gesture filled with so much delicate care it's as if he was holding a fragile piece of glass. His thumb caressed her skin lightly, easing her nerves and making her blush harder.

“Woah! That's so romantic!”

From behind Wes, the audience clamored. Cheers and applause filled the place like a standing ovation at the end of a romcom film. Only then did Mia snap out of it, reminded of who they were with.

“Hey!” someone shushed the clapping onlookers in reprimand, giving way to a faint sobbing that cut through the subsequent silence.

It turned out somebody else had been crying. She took a peek over his shoulder and discovered that it was Alice, who had crumpled to the floor and buried her tear-stricken face in her hands. The others kneeled beside her to comfort her, but to no avail.

Guilt twisted her stomach in knots, but at the same time, she found herself bewildered. ‘She recognized Wes and knew she'd already rejected him, didn't she? Could her feelings have changed?'

“Mia, don't,” Wes whispered, his deep and husky voice sending tingles throughout her body. “Don't look at anyone else. I’m here, and I choose you. There's nothing for you to feel bad about.”

‘Ah… He noticed…’

It appeared he had read her mind, which was seconds away from drawing comparisons between herself and Alice. After all, she was the most obvious target in this type of scenario—the most fitting object of admiration. But the fact that Wes was right before her, not over there, convinced her of reality.

And what a reality it was.

“Wes, I…” she spoke in a timid and hesitant tone, uncertain how to put these all-consuming emotions into words. ‘No, I have to get a grip. Wes went through all this trouble for me, and the least I can do is respond to his feelings properly. It’s still hard to believe that it's mutual, but… If it is me he really wants, then I…’

Her thoughts trailed off as she lifted her eyes once more. She was ready to answer, but then two figures caught her attention—Gwen and Lucy. They came rushing inside and pushing through the crowd to reach their friend.

“A-Ahh…”

It slipped her mind completely that Alice had mentioned they would join them later, and here they were. She wanted to hit herself for forgetting. But then again, whenever Wes was nearby, everything always faded from existence in her head.

How Mia wished it would stay that way.

“Waaahhh!!!” Alice began wailing loudly.

“Hey, it's okay. What happened? Tell us.” Gwen stroked her back while coaxing her to talk until Lucy tapped her shoulder and pointed in their direction. “Huh? Who are those people?”

“Well, you see, these girls said…”

“Nghhh…” Mia whimpered and blanched as they shifted their attention to her and Wes, the tears slowly returning but for an entirely different reason. ‘They’d figure it's me, won't they? They are going to hate this. They hate me enough already. They'd make my life more miserable from now on.’

Her mind played all sorts of possibilities—each one more vivid, more fractured, more real than the last.

They'd corner her in the corridor, the locker room, or the stairwell where no one's around. Maybe they’d snatch her sketchbook and make fun of her drawings again, or maybe they'd go straight for the kill and do the unthinkable, like dragging her down the hallway to parade her around to the whole school. She could already imagine the painful words, the ringing laughter, the forming bruises, and the phone cameras flashing.

They had done it before. They could very well do it once more.

Her thoughts spun faster and faster, tripping over each other. She could imagine it, could feel it before any of it even happened.

Her throat dried and constricted. Her limbs shuddered. Her heart thudded against her ribs like a terrified creature trapped in a cage.

‘Will they finally snap and do something I can’t ever move on from?’

“What's wrong?” Wes’s once loving expression now contorted into a worried one as Mia shook uncontrollably. “Are you feeling unwell?”

She was, and it worsened when she realized that every move they made was being watched. Gwen and Lucy’s presence did more than dampen the mood; it also brought the other girls’ true feelings to light. They weren't there only to spectate after all, but also to judge —

If the person that Wes had chosen over their Alice was anything special.

She tried searching for anything to anchor her self-esteem to, but ended up with an onslaught of insecurities instead. The realization caused more horrific scenes to surface, and she dreaded the cruel fate that this newfound happiness of hers would soon face. Her vision pricked, the fluorescent bulbs above her sparking white flares at the edges—a warning that she was about to reach her limits.

“Haaah… Haaah…”

Her breaths came in sharp, uneven bursts. The world stretched, shrank, distorted—all was falling apart. She tried to separate the illusion from the truth, but the fear flooded in and drowned her head.

Her eyes snapped closed, her panic rising far too much to handle.

‘Breathe. Breathe. Just breathe.’

“Mia? Mia, please.”

Something grabbed her shoulder, and her body reacted as if she were in danger. She staggered back a couple of steps, feeling nauseous and ready to collapse by this point. Her hands wrapped around her upper torso, palms hot and slick with sweat even though her skin felt icy-cold. 

‘Just stop. Stop thinking. Stop feeling. Please, please stop...’

“Mia, listen...”

‘I can't. I’m sorry I can't. I can't take this. I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I'm sorry…’

“...There’s a back door around the corner. Go ahead and use that to get out of here.”

The unexpected words captured some of Mia's attention, and she slowly looked up to find a sad, heart-wrenching smile on Wes’s face.