I’ve been lying to myself for too long

Sadie’s pov

My heart was pounding before the ceremony even began. This was supposed to be the night Leo had dreamed of, the night I had worked so hard to make perfect for him. The school gymnasium was packed with students, parents, and teachers, all buzzing with excitement as they waited for the awards to be handed out. I sat between my mum and Daisy, my best friend, trying to shake the uneasy feeling that had settled in my stomach since the moment we arrived.

But when Leo grabbed my hand, that feeling turned into something much darker.

“Get up, Sadie! We need to talk,” Leo’s voice was tense, his grip tight around my wrist. His brown eyes, usually warm and full of charm, were filled with something I couldn’t quite place. Urgency and panic.

“Leo, what are you doing?” I whispered, trying to pull my hand free, my heart raced with confusion. “They’re about to announce your award. Can’t this wait? Let’s talk after—”

“No, it can’t wait,” he interrupted, his voice cracking slightly. “Please, Sadie, come with me now.”

Without giving me a choice, he tugged me up from my seat, guiding us through the tightly packed rows of students and parents. I glanced back at Daisy, who looked just as confused as I felt. My mum, who had flown in just for this ceremony, didn’t seem concerned, assuming Leo was just being his usual self—spontaneous, unpredictable. But this wasn’t normal, not for him.

As we pushed past the crowd, I could hear the host’s voice over the loudspeaker, calling out more award categories, one by one. Leo’s name would be next. He was about to win Best Athlete of the Year, a title he’d worked for his entire school life, a title that had meant everything to him.

But none of that seemed to matter now.

Leo dragged me down the hallway, away from the excitement, until we reached the restroom at the back of the building. The cold, fluorescent lights fluttered above us, casting harsh shadows across his face as he finally let go of my hand. I stumbled back a step, feeling my heart race even faster.

“What’s going on, Leo?” I demanded, my voice shaking as I leaned against the cool tiles. “Why are we here? You’re about to go on stage in front of everyone!”

For a moment, he didn’t speak. His eyes were glued to the floor, his hands fidgeting in front of him as if he were trying to gather the courage to say whatever was weighing on his mind. The silence between us felt like it was stretching forever, and with each passing second, the dread in my chest grew heavier.

Finally, he looked up at me, and when our eyes met, I saw something I never expected—guilt. His voice was barely a whisper when he spoke. “I’ve made a mistake, Sadie.”

A cold chill came upon me. “What mistake?”

He took a deep breath, running a hand through his messy blond hair. “I… I’ve been lying to myself for too long. About us.”

I blinked, my heart stopping for a beat. “Lying? What are you talking about?”

His gaze dropped to the floor again, as if he couldn’t bear to look at me while he said the words. “I don’t think we should be together anymore.”

The world tilted beneath my feet. It took a moment for the meaning of his words to sink in, and when they did, they hit me like a punch to the chest. I felt the air leave my lungs, my entire body going cold.

“What?” I managed to choke out. “Leo… what are you saying?”

He winced, taking a step closer but not quite reaching out to me. “It’s not you, Sadie. You’ve done nothing wrong. You’re amazing. You’re too amazing, honestly. That’s the problem.”

The tears stung my eyes, blurring my vision. “Too amazing? What the hell does that even mean?”

He looked up at me then, his face etched with regret. “I’m always behind, Sadie. I feel like I can never catch up to you. You’re smart, driven, beautiful… and I’m just me. I don’t want to hold you back.”

I shook my head, trying to make sense of what he was saying, but the words just felt like excuses. Cheap, hollow excuses.

“You’re breaking up with me because you think I’m… better than you?”

Leo’s silence was all the confirmation I needed. He wasn’t denying it. He wasn’t even trying to fight for us.

“You’re really doing this now?” I asked, my voice trembling as I fought back the tears that were threatening to spill over.

“You’re breaking up with me right before your big moment? Right before you get the award we’ve been celebrating for weeks?”

His face twisted with guilt, but he nodded.

“I have to. I can’t keep pretending like everything’s okay when it’s not."

"My heart broke into pieces right there, in that cold, empty restroom." I couldn’t breathe, couldn’t speak. The young man I had given everything to, the one I had supported and loved through all his ups and downs, was throwing it all away. And for what? Some misguided sense of inadequacy?

“I don’t understand,” I whispered, my voice cracking under the weight of my emotions. “Why now, Leo? Why are you doing this now?”

He reached for me then, his hand brushing against mine, but I pulled away before he could touch me. I couldn’t bear to feel his warmth when my entire world was collapsing around me.

“I’m sorry, Sadie,” he said, his voice thick with emotion. “I wish things could be different.”

Before I could respond, we both heard it—the host’s voice echoing from the speakers in the main hall.

“And now, the winner of Best Athlete of the Year… Leo Anderson.”

Leo’s head snapped toward the door, and for a split second, I thought he might hesitate. That maybe, just maybe, he would reconsider everything. That he would realize what he was about to lose.

But he didn’t.

Without another word, he turned and walked out of the restroom, leaving me standing there, tears streaming down my face, completely and utterly broken.

I wiped my cheeks with trembling hands, forcing myself to move. I couldn’t just stand there. Not when everyone was out there, watching him take the stage, expecting me to be the supportive girlfriend like I had always been. I took a shaky breath and followed him out, my legs feeling like they might give way at any moment.

As I made my way back to my seat, I saw him on stage, smiling for the crowd as he accepted his trophy. The bright lights shone on him, making him look like the golden boy everyone believed him to be. His friends cheered, his parents beamed with pride, and there I was, trying to hold myself together in the shadows.

I slipped back into my seat beside Daisy, my eyes glued to the stage, but all I could hear was the echo of his words in my head.

‘I don’t think we should be together anymore.’

Leo began his speech, thanking his coaches, his team, his family. The crowd was hanging on his every word, but I wasn’t really listening. My mind was spinning, my heart aching so badly I thought it might shatter all over again.

But then he said something that made my blood run cold.

“I want to dedicate this award to someone very special,” he said, his voice filled with emotion. “To my dearest friend, someone who’s been there through everything, who’s supported me in ways I can’t even explain—Tasha.”

I froze. Tasha? My heart clenched painfully as I turned my head, searching the crowd for her. And then I saw her.

Tasha, the girl I had always suspected but never quite confirmed. The girl who was always hanging around Leo, always texting him, always a little too close for comfort. She stood up from her seat, beaming, as if this was her moment too. As if she had earned this just as much as he had.

Before I could even process what was happening, she was running toward the stage. Leo stepped down to meet her, and she threw her arms around him, right there in front of everyone. He didn’t hesitate to hold her, smiling like he’d just won more than a trophy.

My world came crashing down around me.

“Sadie!” Daisy’s voice was distant, as if she were calling me from far away. “Isn’t that your boyfriend?”

I couldn’t answer. I couldn’t move. The tears that I had been fighting so hard to hold back finally spilled over, and before I knew it, I was on my feet, rushing out of the hall, my vision blurred with tears. Daisy called after me, but I didn’t stop.

I didn’t stop until I was alone in the restroom again, where everything had started, where Leo had broken my heart.

And now, as the sound of their celebration echoed in my ears, I let the sobs I’d been holding in break free. I slid to the floor, burying my face in my hands, wondering how I could have been so blind.

How could he do this to me?