Chapter 18 Breakup

Leena glared at the two with murderous eyes. Words couldn't describe how infuriated she was in that moment.

The two of them quickly turned to face her. "Leena, what are you doing here?" Miguel asked, shock written all over his face.

Alina, on the other hand, seemed totally unfazed, as though she had been expecting Leena.

Ignoring his question, Leena addressed Alina. "Congratulations, you got what you wanted. I knew it, you just wanted me to find out about this affair."

Alina was indeed fond of scheming. Did she really think that Leena would just walk out of there without saying anything when she found out about her secret love affair with Miguel? Contrary to what she had expected, Leena always liked to get to the bottom of things. She was Miguel's girlfriend, after all, and she loved him. There was no way she'd let him go so easily. She needed to hear the truth from Miguel himself.

"Tell me the truth," Alina said dryly. "Does this even shock you? I have been in love with Miguel since we were in college. We dated for three years. How about you? How long have you been together already?"

"Alina!" Miguel pleaded. He wanted Alina to stop making the situation worse, but Alina just shrugged him off and continued to stare at Leena condescendingly.

Leena was heartbroken. Never once did she fail Miguel. She never cheated on him, and this whole time, she'd thought Miguel never cheated on her. But alas, she had thought wrong. As soon as she'd heard about what happened to Rena, she'd begun to have her doubts about love. To think that Rena and Jimmy had been together for many years already and yet Jimmy still fell out of love for Rena, what better luck would there be for her and Miguel, who had only just started dating? They lost touch for nearly nine years but her heart had always yearned for him. Miguel was the love of her life. Leena shook her head, emotions overwhelming her. How could something like this happen? Could a person really change that much in nine years?

"I just need you to be honest with me, Miguel," Leena said as she looked at Miguel. "Please, tell me. Who do you really love?" Leena held her breath. Miguel had been with Alina for three years in the past. Even when he went to study abroad, he couldn't seem to keep her off of his mind. Did he really love her?

Was Miguel just fooling Leena?

Miguel wore a pained expression, his thoughts racing. He never expected Leena's sudden appearance, and was utterly speechless. He could do nothing but gently call out her name, "Leena..."

"Enough of this, Miguel," Leena said firmly, though she was biting back tears. "Just answer me straight. I don't want to have any more misunderstandings. I love you, and I cherish this relationship that we have."

Miguel lowered his head shamefacedly and refused to say a word. Leena understood what he meant. His silence hurt more than Alina's vicious words.

Speaking of Alina, she seemed fed up with this whole drama. "Miguel! You are so disappointing! You keep telling me that you love me, yet refuse to say it out loud in front of this woman!" Without waiting for a response, Alina began to leave.

"Alina!" Miguel cried helplessly. It looked like he was itching to chase after her.

Leena saw how Miguel was totally drawn to Alina. Alina's words had a greater effect on him than hers. She could also feel how he wanted to run after her. Thus, she grabbed his hand and held it tightly.

She didn't want to let him go. This whole time, she had been holding in her tears, but now, she let them stream down her cheeks. "Are you really going to chase after her without considering my feelings? I am still your girlfriend, Miguel. Shouldn't you be explaining things to me first?"

Alina went past the corner of the corridor, which made Miguel even more fidgety. He didn't even think to comfort his girlfriend. Instead, he tried pulling away from her grasp, murmuring some half-baked excuse, all the while his eyes were glued on Alina's receding figure. "I'll explain everything later, Leena. Right now, I need to make sure Alina's okay. She has a tendency to do stupid things when she's angry."

Leena stubbornly tightened her grip on his hand. Miguel didn't seem to notice, he just shouted Alina's name and yanked his hand out of Leena's to run off.

Leena stood there, alone in the corridor, staring at her empty, trembling hand. She couldn't tell if she was trembling from the heartbreak or from Miguel's forceful yank. Miguel had truly left her. Did that mean she failed? Leena couldn't believe what was happening. The past few days had been a complete roller coaster. Both Rena and now Leena were grieving their lost loved ones, and they lost to the same woman, Alina.

Alina's sudden appearance in their lives seemed to have caused unwanted chaos. When Carlson had first talked about Alina, Leena had admired her, thinking she was a strong, legendary woman. She never thought the retribution would come so soon, so swiftly and so painfully. Was she just collateral damage in Alina's grand scheme against men?

Tears rolled down her cheeks. This whole situation was just too ridiculous! Raising her head, she laughed bitterly. She realized that it didn't matter how good their relationship was as childhood friends. Whatever and whomever she was destined to lose in life, she was bound to lose. No relationship was indestructible. Rena and Jimmy had a nine-year relationship, but they still broke it off. Leena concluded that women should learn to love themselves and not place their trust in men.

Despite all that, Leena still felt utterly heartbroken. Wiping away her tears, she took a deep breath. Then, she returned to her waiting friend as though nothing happened.

Back inside the cafe, she found Rena still sitting and still fuming. "Where the hell is that damned Alina?"

"She won't be coming," Leena replied flatly, picking up her bag quickly. "She never intended to come. We need to go."

"What?" Rena stood up, confused. "Why did she tell us to come here if she wasn't planning to show up?"

Leena refused to respond and hastily went out of the cafe. She was afraid that if she slowed down, Rena would see how vulnerable she was at that moment. "Leena!" Rena yelled as she followed her out. She grabbed Leena's hands and frowned. "Are you alright? I'm the one who just got dumped. Why are you upset?"

Leena couldn't keep it in any longer. "Rena, I'm sorry. Miguel and I just broke up, too. Now we're both out of love."

Rena was completely stunned for a few seconds. "What did you just say?"

Leena lowered her head and griped her bag tighter. Rena tugged on the corner of her clothes gently and asked, "What happened, Leena?"

Leena took a deep breath, trying to maintain her composure. Forcing a smile, she answered her friend's query. "Alina stole my boyfriend, too-- that's what happened!"