Chapter 7 Confronting

• Victoria paced the living room, her mind racing with thoughts that spiraled into despair. The silence of the house felt heavy, amplifying the thudding of her heart. She had to confront Daniel; there was no other choice. Taking a deep breath, she steeled herself, her resolve hardening like a stone.
• When Daniel walked through the door, still wearing his work clothes, she turned to face him, determination in her eyes. “We need to talk,” she said, her voice steady but strained.
• “About what?” he asked, dropping his briefcase by the door, a casualness in his tone that made her stomach churn.
• “About your texts. The ones I found on your phone,” she stated, her heart racing as she watched his expression change from casual to guarded.
• His brow furrowed. “What are you talking about?”
• “Don’t play dumb, Daniel. You know exactly what I mean. The texts you’ve been sending to her,” she said, the words tumbling out, full of anguish.
• “I told you, it was just a joke,” he replied, shifting his weight uncomfortably. “You know how guys are. They mess around.”
• “Messing around? Those weren’t just jokes. You were flirting with someone else!” she exclaimed, her voice rising. “You’re treating this like it’s no big deal, but it is!”
• “Victoria, you’re overreacting,” he said, his tone dismissive. “You shouldn’t have gone through my phone in the first place. That’s an invasion of privacy.”
• “So I’m the bad guy here?” she shot back, feeling the heat of betrayal. “I find something that hurts me, and instead of owning up to it, you make it my fault?”
• He shook his head, frustration etched across his features. “It was nothing! Just some lighthearted banter. You’re reading way too much into this.”
• “Lighthearted banter?” she repeated incredulously. “How can you call it that when it involves someone else? What would you say if I were the one sending flirty messages?”
• He paused, his expression hardening. “You’re not being fair. This is just a misunderstanding.”
• “A misunderstanding?” she echoed, disbelief coloring her tone. “You’re the one who’s misunderstanding the gravity of this situation. I trusted you, Daniel. I thought we were on the same team.”
• “I’m still on your team! This doesn’t change anything,” he insisted, stepping closer, but his eyes avoided hers. “I love you, Victoria. You know that.”
• “Do you?” she challenged, her voice cracking. “Because it doesn’t feel like love when you’re texting someone else. It feels like betrayal.”
• “Come on, don’t blow this out of proportion. You’re taking this so personally,” he replied, his voice rising defensively. “I didn’t mean for it to happen. It was just some stupid texts.”
• “Stupid? This isn’t just some silly thing, Daniel!” she shouted, tears pricking her eyes. “This is about trust! This is about us!”
• “Trust? You think you can just go through my stuff and call it trust?” he snapped, the anger in his voice cutting deeper than any knife. “You’ve invaded my privacy, and now you want me to explain myself?”
• “Invaded your privacy?” Victoria felt the heat rise in her cheeks. “You’re the one who’s been crossing boundaries! You think I wanted to go through your phone? I was hurt and confused!”
• “Maybe if you didn’t jump to conclusions, we wouldn’t be in this mess!” he said, his voice rising. “I can’t keep defending myself against your accusations!”
• Victoria felt her heart sinking further, the weight of his words crushing. “Accusations? Is that all this is to you? A petty argument about my accusations?”
• “It’s not just accusations. You’re making me sound like the bad guy here!” he insisted, stepping back as if the very notion offended him. “You’re blowing everything out of proportion.”
• “Am I?” she asked, her voice trembling. “Because it feels pretty clear to me that something is very wrong. I can’t even recognize you anymore. The man I fell in love with wouldn’t betray me like this.”
• “Maybe you just don’t know me as well as you think,” he replied, crossing his arms defensively. “You’re making this about you when it’s really just a small issue.”
• “A small issue?” Victoria’s heart felt like it was shattering. “You’re trivializing my pain. This isn’t just some small issue, Daniel. This is everything. This is us!”
• He sighed, running a hand through his hair, frustration evident in his expression. “You’re not being reasonable. You’re letting your emotions cloud your judgment.”
• “Letting my emotions cloud my judgment?” she laughed bitterly. “This is not about being reasonable; this is about being hurt. It’s about feeling like I’ve been replaced by someone else.”
• “Replaced? Victoria, you’re being dramatic,” he said, his voice tinged with impatience. “It was a mistake—one that means nothing. Can’t you see that?”
• “Can’t I see that?” she echoed, tears streaming down her face. “I trusted you, and now you’re trying to dismiss my feelings as if they don’t matter. I’m asking for honesty, and you’re just giving me excuses.”
• “I’m being honest! I didn’t cheat on you. I didn’t—” He paused, his expression shifting to one of uncertainty. “You’re taking this so far.”
• “You say you didn’t cheat, but how can I trust you when you can’t even admit your wrongdoing?” she cried, the pain of betrayal overwhelming her. “You can’t even see how hurtful this is for me.”
• He stared at her, the tension thick in the air. “I’m trying to explain. I can’t just say I’m sorry for something that wasn’t even a thing.”
• “Then what do you call it?” Victoria asked, her voice barely above a whisper, filled with heartbreak. “What do you call flirting with someone else? Because it sure feels like a betrayal to me.”
• “I don’t know what to say anymore,” he admitted, his frustration palpable. “You’ve already made up your mind about me.”
• “Maybe I have,” she replied softly, the hurt in her heart suffocating. “Because if you can’t even acknowledge the pain you’ve caused me, then I don’t know who you are anymore.”
• “Don’t say that,” he said, his tone pleading now, but she could see the distance in his eyes. “We can fix this. Just give me a chance to show you.”
• “A chance? I don’t even know what that means anymore,” she said, feeling lost. “How can I trust you when I feel like everything has changed?”
• Daniel opened his mouth to respond, but the words fell silent between them. The weight of unspoken truths filled the room, wrapping around them like a suffocating blanket.
• Victoria wiped her tears angrily, heartbroken. “I just wanted to understand, Daniel. Instead, I feel like I’ve lost everything.”
• He took a step back, his expression unreadable, the air between them thick with unresolved tension. “I don’t know what else to say.”
• “Maybe that’s the problem,” she whispered, her heart heavy with sorrow. “Maybe you just don’t know me at all anymore.”
• And with that, she turned away, feeling the cold distance settle in the space where their love once thrived, leaving her in a painful silence that echoed the heartbreak they had both created.