24\u2013Our Best Friend Was Shattered\u00a0<\/p>\n
Baxter:\u00a0<\/p>\n
She screamed, saying things that gave me goosebumps. Although I wanted to argue with her and point out her discrepancies, I could not.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The pain in her eyes silenced me. I just did not understand. Some things made no sense.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cSo, is there anything else you want to talk about before we end this conversation forever and all move on?\u201d she hissed, a big tear rolling down her cheek.\u00a0<\/p>\n
None of us could say a word. I guess we were also guilty of many things. I mean, the others were.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I was a victim of her games too, but I kept silent.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Right now, she was talking about her trauma and what she had been through.\u00a0<\/p>\n
In that, my friends and I had become part of it.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cNow that this conversation has ended, I am going to ask you for the medicine. My children want it. As for custody, it will remain with me,\u201d she uttered confidently.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cNone of you were there when I gave birth alone. None of you wanted these children. You all have your lives. How about you don\u2019t disrupt mine, and I won\u2019t interfere with yours?\u201d She proceeded to make new rules.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe will work like professionals. Even the other night, Elgin, Baxter told me you didn\u2019t want anything to do with Elara. So why are you making a whole scene here?\u201d she continued, exposing me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Elgin turned to look at me, and I only clenched my jaw, not even meeting his eyes.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But I wasn\u2019t lying.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He did say he didn\u2019t want anything to do with her. So what if I told her that?\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAnyway, children are dying. I was called here with the promise of better treatment and the arrival of my reason to find the cure. So let\u2019s stick to that,\u201d she finally finished.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Then she sassily wiped the tear from her cheek with one finger, flicking it away as she got up from her seat.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The same nerdy girl who couldn\u2019t speak a word against anyone. The same Madeline who had been teased, bullied,\u00a0<\/p>\n
and called mad Madeline.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She had grown into such a strong woman. But why did she risk it all?\u00a0<\/p>\n
Were my friends really worth all the trouble she went through?\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cNow we will meet at the office,\u201d she hissed, stomping her foot before leaving for the mansion.\u00a0<\/p>\n
We three sat together, just staring at her as she left. The same Madeline was now a very powerful mother.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy did you tell her that I did not want to do anything with Elara?\u201d As soon as Madeline left, Elgin turned to question me,\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause that is the truth, isn\u2019t it? You told us you did not want to do anything with her or the child. I only delayed the information to her because I thought it would be awkward for you to say it,\u201d I hissed back at him, lying, because that was not what I intended.\u00a0<\/p>\n
1\/3\u00a0<\/p>\n
24\u2013Our Best Friend Was Shottered\u00a0<\/p>\n
+25 Bonus\u00a0<\/p>\n
I maliciously used that information to hurt her, to remind her that the man she picked that night did not even want her or the baby. 1\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd am I lying? You told us you did not want the baby, but right now in front of her, you are acting like you are hurt that she did not include you in the child\u2019s life,\u201d I hissed back at him, adding more so he could not act like he was a victim.\u00a0<\/p>\n
His body language proved that he knew it very well because, once again, he looked down embarrassingly.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI said it just in front of you two,\u201d Just as I had expected of Elgin.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cForget about it. Guys, this is crazy,\u201d Graham stood up, hands on his waist.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Now we were all just standing around in a circle, looking at each other and realizing the mess we had created many years ago.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cShe gave birth to my child. I have a child. I have been going crazy wanting to hold a baby all these years, and to think I have one\u2026 You guys don\u2019t understand what it means to me,\u201d Graham explained.\u00a0<\/p>\n
However, I believed he was only crying now because his own partner could not conceive.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Previously, he did not want a child with Madeline, he just wanted a one\u2013night stand.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYeah, because he is your heir, right?\u201d I stated, watching him turn to look at me almost in a threatening way.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cReally, what\u2019s up with you, Baxter? You cannot act like you were any different than us,\u201d Graham hit me with his response, and I started to chuckle, laughing at him for still trying to manipulate me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cBut isn\u2019t it the truth? I told you we should not do it. But don\u2019t you remember the night? Don\u2019t you remember the conversations we had that ended up with us sleeping with her that night?\u201d I closed my eyes and clenched my fists.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The two were staring at me blankly.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The sad part was that it all started because they read her diary. Where their hopes rose, mine drowned.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Then I realized she did not only have a crush on me, she had feelings for all of us.\u00a0<\/p>\n
All the time I felt special, it crumbled in front of me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
2\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt doesn\u2019t matter what happened in the past. We all acted the same. Right now, we need to figure out\u2026\u201d Graham suddenly shut up once he slipped on a few words.\u00a0<\/p>\n
We watched his face in silence.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2013\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI, I don\u2019t know. I mean, of course, Elara is my baby, but but Madeline made it clear. She just wants to help with the cure. I think we should stick to that,\u201d Elgin uttered, stealing his eyes from us.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Of course, he already had two babies and was married, and he would never do anything to upset his overly obsessed mother and crazy wife.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sadly, there was nothing we could do. Madeline had made up her mind and the rules. Our egos were so high. Our crimes were so big. We could not question her anymore.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhile we are all moving on, just remember that she ran away because that night her life turned upside down, that she was going to lose her babies, and that they, her family, the council, they were threatening to kill her and the children,\u201d Graham uttered defeatedly, his voice cracking.\u00a0<\/p>\n
2\/3\u00a0<\/p>\n
24\u2013Our Best Friend Was Shattered\u00a0<\/p>\n
25 Bonus\u00a0<\/p>\n
That part silenced us all. While I looked at the others\u2018 guilt\u2013ridden faces, I knew mine wasn\u2019t carrying any other expression either.\u00a0<\/p>\n
P\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland\u2019s breathtaking cold.<\/p>\n
24\u2013Our Best Friend Was Shattered\u00a0 Baxter:\u00a0 She screamed, saying things that gave me goosebumps. Although I wanted to argue with […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[24],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-19020","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-no-daddy-novel-by-novelnozi"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19020","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19020"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19020\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19225,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19020\/revisions\/19225"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19020"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19020"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19020"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}