Probably everyone has had a best friend who felt almost like a sister, someone closer than anyone else. Someone who knew you inside and out. Well, my best friend like that ruined my life.

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Emily and I became friends back in school and had been inseparable ever since. We did everything together — school projects, birthday parties, sleepovers.

People used to call us twins, even though we looked nothing alike. And although the older we got, the more different we became, it never interfered with our friendship.

Emily had always been the life of the party — a party woman, free and confident.

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She was the one dancing on tables, laughing the loudest, catching everyone's attention without even trying.

So when I announced to her that I was getting married, I did not expect any other reaction than, “Well, never mind, I will have fun for both of us.”

Still, Emily and my fiancé Jack became friends — they actually had no choice because Emily and I spent a lot of time together.

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If you wanted to be close to me, you had to accept Emily as well. She cried at my wedding, although she had promised she would not.

“Do you want me to throw the bouquet so that you catch it?” I asked Emily in the middle of the wedding.

“If you throw the bouquet at me, I will never forgive you. My soul is not ready for commitment,” she replied, and we both laughed.

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When I became pregnant, Emily was just as happy as Jack and I were. She was with me throughout the pregnancy.

Held my hair when I had morning sickness, helped me pick out baby things, and helped me clean the house when my belly had already grown huge. I was endlessly grateful to fate for giving me such a friend.

The delivery was very difficult, and after I gave birth, Emily did not leave Sophia.

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She helped in every way she could and showered Sophia with gifts. She even started staying overnight to help me.

One evening, Emily and I sat in the kitchen drinking tea. Sophia was asleep upstairs. The house was quiet.

“Maybe you want a child too?” I asked as I poured her another cup.

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She looked at me and shook her head. “Oh, no. That’s too much. Too much responsibility.”

“But you’re so good with Sophia,” I said. “You feed her, change her, rock her to sleep. You help more than anyone.”

Emily gave a small smile. “Yes, but she’s your child. Not mine. That’s different. I like helping, but I don’t want this for myself.”

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“You don’t want a family?” I asked.

“No. Not now. Maybe not ever. I don’t want one man, one house, one life. It feels like a trap.”

I was quiet for a moment. “I want that. I want this life. I want it with Jack.”

Emily looked at me. “You got lucky. Jack is rare. Most men are not like him.”

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Just then, Jack walked in. He came up behind me and wrapped his arms around my shoulders.

“Emily, here again?” he said with a grin. “Maybe we should give you a key. This is almost your home too.”

We all laughed. But later, I realized the joke was close to the truth. Emily was part of the family. And maybe she wanted more.

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One night, when Sophia was three months old, Emily stayed over again. The baby had colic.

She cried often and woke up a lot during the night. Emily said she wanted to help. She called herself “Aunt Emily” and said she didn’t mind losing sleep.

It was late. The house was quiet, but something woke me. I heard a noise and sat up in bed.

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At first, I thought Sophia was crying again. I listened closely, but it wasn’t her. The sound was coming from downstairs.

I reached out and felt the empty space beside me. Jack was not in bed. That felt strange.

I got up and slowly walked toward the kitchen. I was still half asleep, but as I came closer, I heard soft voices. Then I saw them.

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Emily and Jack. Right there. In my kitchen. I froze. My heart pounded. I could not speak. I could not move.

Emily saw me first. Her eyes went wide. She pushed Jack away and scrambled to grab her clothes. Jack didn’t move fast. He stood there, calm, as if nothing was wrong.

It was my home. My baby was upstairs. And they did that.

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Emily stood there, shaking. Then she dropped to her knees and started crying. Her face was wet with tears. Her voice was loud and broken.

“Rachel, I’m sorry! I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to — please, forgive me,” she said over and over.

I just stood there. My hands were cold. My whole body shook.

“Why?” I asked. My voice came out thin and weak. “Why would you do this to me?”

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Emily looked up at me. Her eyes were red. Her face was pale. “I don’t know what happened. Please, forgive me. It was a mistake. It won’t happen again. I promise.”

She reached for me, still crying. But Jack grabbed her arm and pulled her to her feet.

“Don’t humiliate yourself in front of her,” he said. Then he looked straight at me. “You brought this on yourself, Rachel. We haven’t done anything for months.”

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I stared at him. “Because I was pregnant with your child!” I shouted. “I gave birth to our daughter! Do you know what that did to me? And now you say this?”

“I’m your husband. I have needs,” he said.

“And I’m your wife!” I yelled. “But that didn’t stop you from sleeping with my best friend!”

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Emily kept crying. “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry.”

Jack’s voice got louder. “What was I supposed to do? It’s instincts. You let Emily stay. You let her sleep here. I couldn’t resist.”

“Instincts?!” I screamed. “What instincts?! Are you an animal?!”

Jack’s face changed. He looked tired. “I’m not going to explain anything. You won’t understand anyway,” he said.

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He took Emily by the hand and walked to the door. She kept crying. She kept looking back at me. “I’m sorry,” she said again. Then the door slammed.

I collapsed into a chair and started sobbing. My whole body shook. My chest hurt. I could barely breathe.

How could they do this to me? My best friend. My husband. I kept seeing them in the kitchen.

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I kept hearing Emily cry and Jack’s cold voice. I just could not wrap my head around it. Nothing made sense.

Jack never came back. Not even once. He left everything behind. So I packed up his clothes, his books, everything he owned.

I put it all outside. Then I filed for divorce. I took away his parental rights. He did not even fight me. I got the house too.

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I went through the divorce with great difficulty. Every day felt like a fight to stay strong.

I was left alone with a small child in my arms. Sophia cried a lot. So did I. My parents helped me as much as they could.

They took turns holding the baby, cooking meals, and trying to cheer me up. But the pain of betrayal stayed with me. It hurt deeply.

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Still, time passed. Ten whole years. Sophia grew into a smart, kind, and beautiful girl. I found a new job and slowly rebuilt my life and career.

I made peace with the past. I stopped thinking about Emily and Jack. I believed they were gone from my world forever.

Then one day, I heard the doorbell ring. I opened the door and froze. A woman stood there.

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She looked like Emily, but not the Emily I remembered. She was thin, tired, and pale. Her eyes were hollow. Her smile was gone.

"Hello, Rachel," she said. Her voice was soft, almost hard to hear.

I stared at her. My heart started to beat faster. "What are you doing here?" I asked.

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Emily looked down and began to cry. "I have no one else to go to," she said. Her shoulders shook as she spoke.

I stood there for a moment. Then I stepped aside. "Come in."

She walked in slowly. We sat down on the couch. I watched her carefully. She looked like a shadow of the girl I used to know.

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"I’m sick," she said. "I need treatment. I need money. I don’t know who else to ask."

I looked straight at her. "And Jack?"

She gave a dry laugh. "We broke up after two years. He cheated again. I was not the only one for him. He never changed."

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I nodded. "No surprise there."

"You have every right to hate me. You have every right to throw me out," she said. Her eyes filled again. "I hurt you. And now it feels like life is hurting me back."

I shook my head slowly. "Let me ask you one thing. Why? Why did you do it?"

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Emily looked away. "I don’t know. Maybe I was jealous. You had everything. A good man. A home. A child."

"You never wanted that kind of life," I said. "And it was far from perfect."

"I know. I said I didn’t want it, but maybe deep down I did. Maybe I just didn’t know how to handle it. I made a huge mistake. I can’t explain it. I just want to say I’m sorry. Truly sorry. Forgive me, Rachel."

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"Apologies won’t change the past," I said.

"I know," Emily whispered and lowered her head.

"I think this conversation is over," I said. I stood up and left the room.

When I came back, Emily was standing at the door with her bag.

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"Wait," I said. "I didn’t tell you to go."

She turned, surprised. "But I thought…"

I handed her an envelope. "This is for your treatment. If you need more, let me know."

Her hand shook as she took it. "I don’t know how to thank you. I’ll pay you back, I promise."

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"Don’t think about that now. Focus on getting better."

"So… you forgave me?"

"I don’t know. Maybe I did. Maybe I just accepted what happened. You were once my friend. I can’t let you suffer."

"Thank you," Emily said. She leaned in and hugged me.

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It was hard for me to get over myself, but I hugged her back. Not because I forgot what she did. Not because the pain was gone. I did it because she needed it.

She was broken, and I could see it in her eyes. Life had already punished her in ways I never could. She had lost everything. I had no reason to hurt her more.

My life was full now. I had Sophia, my home, my peace. And maybe, without meaning to, Emily had saved me. If things had gone on with Jack, I might have ended up more hurt than I ever imagined.

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