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"As an addition to this, the photo he himself shared on his social media, passionately kissing the lady, and oddly enough, after the revelation, he hasn't taken it down yet. Despite the scandal involving the famous model, reliable sources claim the charges against her were dropped by Gerard himself. In short, no one really understands what's going on between this couple, and we hope to have more detailed information on this later.”
"To conclude this note, you can find the beautiful photo the model posted on her social media, tagging Gerard Durand in the ultrasound of their future baby, strongly confirming the information we have provided here. And for now, all that remains is to congratulate the new parents on their impending child."
A choked sob escapes my throat as I finish reading the entire article, and without waiting a second longer in this torture, I head towards his Instagram account.
As I wait for it to load, I pray with all my might that it's not real, that there's nothing there, even if it is true.
But all that illusion shatters when all his posts appear, and before my eyes, the first photo on his profile, which shatters me into a thousand pieces.
I can't believe what I'm seeing, it's all true.
The one in the photo is her, holding the sample of an ultrasound, simply tagging him. It's true, it's all true.
He lied to me, Gerard cheated on me.
An agonizing scream escapes my throat uncontrollably. I can't believe it, let alone understand why he did this to me.
What did I do to deserve all this pain? My soul hurts, breathing hurts, and for a moment, I just want to die to end this consuming pain.
The tears don't stop, muffled cries speak for me.
I was once told that reality is worse than nightmares, and now I confirm it. I've had horrible nightmares, but reality is worse than anything.
I can't, I can't handle this.
It's too cruel and horrible. I gave him everything, all my love, my happiness, my body, everything I am, and this is how he repaid me. I was foolish, I think to myself, hitting my legs, how could I trust him?
I keep thinking about when he did it, at what point he dared to do it. Didn't he think about me? How much would it hurt me? Or did he never really care about me and this was all a very good performance on his part?
Amidst my shock, I hear my phone ringing. But I don't care to answer anyone right now, and I let it ring without thinking about it.
I try to get up from the bed where I've been sitting all this time, but in my attempt, my legs weaken and I soon fall to the floor.
I've never felt so helpless, the pain turning physical overwhelms me, and I can't even hold myself up.
"Julie, open up, the door is locked and I can't get in!" I hear Chloé's voice from outside, making me realize it's probably her who's been calling.
But I don't even know how I'm going to be able to get up, when my body feels so heavy.
"I'm worried about you being here all alone after what Sophie told me," she says, tapping several times on the door.
"Give me a moment," I tell her, but with my voice barely above a whisper, I doubt she heard.
I lean against the wall, pushing myself slowly to stand up, and when I manage to steady myself, I walk slowly out of my room.
As I reach the living room and head towards the hallway to open the door for her, I hear Chloe speaking again, but this time, she doesn't seem to be talking to me.
"What the hell are you doing here, you jerk?" she sounds upset on the other side of the door.
"Hey, Chloé, this is none of your business," I hear the person say, and the moment I recognize his voice, my body seems to tremble again.
"I'm warning you, get lost!"
"Chloé," I whisper.
"My love, I'm out here, please come out, we need to talk," he says to me, and at that moment, I have to put my hands over my mouth to keep from letting out my sobs, knowing he's there.
"Julie, don't open the door!" Chloé warns me.
"Stay out of this, it's none of your damn business!" he shouts angrily at my friend.
"Of course it's my business! Juliette is my friend, and look what you've done to her!"
"Juliette, open the door!" he tells me. "OPEN THIS DAMN DOOR, NOW!"
He yells, banging hard and repeatedly on the wood, to the point where I think he might break it. My heart races with fear over what might happen next.
"Don't do it, Julie!" Chloé says sternly. "Last warning, come out now or I'm calling the police."
"I don't care if you call the entire army! I'm not leaving until I've spoken with her!"
At that moment, I hear a loud noise on the wall that makes me jump. Could Gerard be capable of hitting her? No, that's not possible...
"Come in if you dare!" she shouts at him, and now I know that if I don't intervene, everything will descend into chaos.
"Chloe, no!" I shout, swinging the door wide open, and what I see is my friend on top of him, trying to hit him.
"What do you think you're doing?"
When he sets his eyes on me, I grit my teeth. I don't even want to meet his gaze.
"Chloe, let him go," I ask my friend, and she does so immediately.
"Come inside, Juliette," she asks me. "You have nothing to say to him after what he's done to you."
"You better shut up or I'll forget you're a woman!" he snaps at her.
"Gerard, stop!" I shout. "I don't want to talk to you, so just go."
I try my hardest not to collapse right there.
"Juliette, please, let me explain," he says, approaching me, but I push him away, disgusted to have him near me. "Things didn't happen the way you think."
I can see a hint of despair and helplessness on his face.