I sat watching them laugh, play cards, tease. It was my own fault I was not apart of the group. To them I was one of them sitting on that picnic mat under the shining sun, not a care in the world, as the ocean breeze danced through our curls and we sipped the red wine. Did they know the truth? No! I had forced myself into the group. They saw me as a gentle, quiet girl who had great intellect and could speak poetry. But they didn't know what I had planned. Did I dare tell them the truth looking in their eyes.

There was Nate. Pure. Genuine. Smart. From day one he had sought me out and welcomed me. I never felt alone with him. He spoke so easily and we could speak about every subject. There was no awkwardness.

Daisy was as sweet as honey. But she had one flaw. She was so introverted that our friendship didn't work. Maybe it was her sense of neglect that sent me to these actions. I craved attention but somehow her lack of friendship really annoyed.

Elizabeth had everything I wanted. Man, I envied her. My smiles were so fake. Yet, I knew everything about her, her flaws, her greatest wounds, because she let me into her confidence. In fact, I knew all their secrets. I never share theirs or my own real ones.

Sarah was the real one. She believed my story to heart and really pitied me. But she often forgot how I just needed their love, not their attention.

Then there was Shane. Outgoing. Athletic. Full of jokes. He always teased and joked with me. Perhaps he was the one whose look of betrayal would constantly haunt me. After all, he never allowed anyone to truly harm me.

You may ask, what did they ever do to deserve this betrayal. Let me tell you. They didn't see my pain when I really needed them. They never saw beneath the fake smiles over sandwiches and wine. They just accepted me without a thought. They never cared to ask why I prefered to walk alone. Nor did they see the tears I carefully hid. Maybe they betrayed me first. You see, friendship is two ways. There must be work done on both sides. I was sick of doing it all. So I showed them how I always took the first step.

The picnic dissolved into evening, and as the sun bled orange across the horizon, Elizabeth suggested we move to her place for drinks. Her apartment was perfect, of course. Everything about Elizabeth was perfect: polished tile, spotless kitchen, fur furnishings in unspoiled white. Everything I could have been if the world hadn't been so cruel to me. I watched them file inside, their laughter echoing off the hardwood floors. Nate held the door open for me, always the gentleman.

"You okay?" he asked, noticing my hesitation on the threshold. "You've been quiet today."

I looked up at him, letting my eyes soften just enough. "I'm fine. Just tired." A vulnerable pause. "Sometimes I feel like I'm bothering everyone. You know?"

His face changed immediately, a familiar crease of concern blooming between his brows. He reached out and squeezed my shoulder. "Never. You could never bother me."

Inside, Sarah was already pouring wine. She had a tendency to drink too quickly when she was happy, and she was always happy around us. Around me, especially. I was her little project, her charity case, the broken girl she could save. It gave her purpose.

"Come sit," she called out, patting the seat next to her on the couch.

I did, and she immediately draped her arm around me. The weight of it felt like a chain.

Elizabeth was telling a story, something about a man she'd met at work who was interested in her. She laughed about how oblivious she was to his advances. Everyone leaned in, hanging on her words. They always did. She was the main character, and we were merely her supporting cast.

"He sounds wonderful," I said softly when she finished. "But be careful, Liz. People aren't always what they seem."

She turned to me with that perfect smile. "What do you mean?"

I hesitated, letting uncertainty wash across my face like a cloud. "Nothing. It's just... I've heard some things around the office." I hadn't, of course. "About his past relationships. I don't want to say more. I respect you two's privacy, of course."

"What things?" Elizabeth asked, herface falling.

"I probably shouldn't have said anything," I whispered, the perfect picture of someone torn between loyalty and concern. "I just care about you too much to see you hurt."

Shane laughed. "Come on Cass, you're being vague. Either tell her what you know or drop it."

I dropped it. But the damage was already done: I'd planted the seed of doubt in Elizabeth's mind and this drama would go on for weeks, Elizabeth running herself in circles as Sarah and Nate scrambled to protect us both. Daisy would remain silent and anxious, as she always did, and Shane: Shane would try to call me out, but everyone would eventually side with me. The sensitive girl who just wanted to protect her friends. The girl who was so burdened by what she knew, she could barely speak it aloud.

I took a long sip of my wine and smiled into the glass.

"I'm sorry," I said. "I shouldn't have brought it up. Let's just enjoy the evening."

As they moved on to safer topics, I watched them the way a scientist watches cells under a microscope, the evening already poisooned. Each of them so beautifully, so perfectly fragile. And I held all their fractures in my hands.

They had no idea what was coming.