The Loyalty Text - S01 E04

Story 4 months ago

The Loyalty Text - S01 E04

Read Story: SEASON 1 EPISODE 4

Episode 4: The Loyalty Test

The days went by very slowly. The house that used to be full of music and laughter was now very quiet. It was the kind of quiet that makes your ears ring. Nia and Andre lived in the same house, but they felt like they were on two different islands in the middle of a big ocean. Nia was very sad. She felt like a heavy cloud was hanging over her head all the time. She wanted to talk to Andre, but every time she looked at him, she saw the wall he had built around his heart. She knew that Kate was the reason for this wall. Kate had become like a shadow in their lives. A shadow is a strange thing. It is always there, following you, but you cannot always see it. Kate was always around, but Nia never saw her fully. She was like a ghost that was trying to break a family apart.

Kate was very sneaky. She was like a cat that moves without making any sound. She began to visit the house when Nia was out running errands. Nia would go to the market to buy food or go to the bank. While Nia was away, Kate would come to the door. She would knock softly. When Andre opened the door, she would be standing there with a bright smile. She told Andre that she was just stopping by to be a good neighbor. She would bring a tray of warm cookies. The cookies smelled like chocolate and sugar. They smelled very sweet, but Kate’s heart was not sweet at all. She was not there to be a friend. She was looking for ways to break Andre’s heart. She wanted to make him feel so sad that he would stop loving his wife.

One afternoon, the sun was very hot. Nia had gone to the store to get some things for the garden. Andre was in the kitchen. He was trying to clean the dishes, but his mind was far away. He was thinking about the strange message Kate had sent him. He was thinking about why Nia was acting so weird. Just then, there was a knock on the back door. It was Kate. She had a plate of cookies in her hand. "Hello, Andre," she said in her honey-sweet voice. "I thought you might like a snack. You look like you are having a hard day." Andre sighed and let her in. He felt like Kate was the only person who was being nice to him. He did not know that her kindness was a big, fat lie.

While Andre was busy putting the cookies on a plate in the kitchen, Kate did something very bad. she did not stay in the kitchen. She moved very quietly through the house. She went down the hallway to the room that Nia used as an office. Nia loved her office. It was a small room with a big window that looked out at the rose garden. In this room, Nia felt safe. She kept her books and her papers there. On the desk, there was a small notebook. It was a private notebook with a leather cover. This was where Nia wrote down all her secret feelings. She wrote about her dreams. She wrote about her fears. And she wrote about the loyalty test.

Kate picked up the notebook. Her eyes were fast as she flipped through the pages. She found the page where Nia had written about the plan. Nia had written some very honest things. She had written, "I feel so crazy for testing Andre. I do not know why I am doing this. I love him so much, but I am so afraid. I feel like I am not good enough for him." Nia was being hard on herself. She was expressing her pain. But Kate did not care about Nia’s pain. Kate had a wicked idea. She was a very mean woman. She wanted to use Nia’s own words to destroy her.

Kate began to tear the pages out of the notebook. But she did not take the whole page. She used her fingers to rip the paper so that only some words were left. She took the word "crazy." She took the word "testing." She took the phrase "not good enough." She changed the meaning of everything Nia had written. By tearing the pages and leaving parts out, it looked like Nia was saying mean things about Andre. It looked like Nia was mocking him and calling him names behind his back. Kate put the torn pieces of paper in her pocket and sneaked back to the kitchen. Andre did not even know she had left the room.

Kate sat down at the kitchen table. She made her face look very sad. She pretended to be worried. "Andre," she said softly. "I have to show you something. I found these papers on the floor in the hallway. I think Nia dropped them. I do not want to be a gossip, but I think you should see what your wife truly thinks about you." She reached into her pocket and pulled out the torn pieces of paper. She laid them out on the table for Andre to see.

Andre looked down at the scraps of paper. His heart started to beat very fast, but not in a good way. He saw the word "crazy" written in Nia’s handwriting. He saw the word "testing." He saw the words "not good enough." Because the pages were missing the parts where Nia said she loved him, it looked very bad. It looked like Nia was saying that Andre was driving her crazy. It looked like she was saying he was not a good enough husband. Andre felt a deep, sharp pain in his chest. It felt like someone had hit him very hard. He had always been honest with Nia. He had given her his whole heart. And now, he felt like she was laughing at him in secret.

"She thinks I am not good enough?" Andre whispered. His voice was shaking. He felt like his whole world was falling apart. He looked at the words again and again. He could not believe that the woman he loved would write such mean things. He felt very small. He felt like he had been a fool. Kate leaned in closer to him. She put her hand near his. "I am so sorry, Andre," she said. "I knew she was hiding something. You deserve someone who thinks you are a king. You deserve someone who is always honest with you. I am your true friend. I am the one who is looking out for you."

For the first time, Andre did not see Kate as just a neighbor. He looked at her and saw a "true friend." He thought that she was the only one who was telling him the truth. He felt a strange kind of bond with her. He felt like they were on the same team against Nia. He did not know that Kate was the one who had torn the papers. He did not know that she was the one who had changed the meaning. He was so hurt that he could not think clearly. Anger began to grow inside him. It was a hot, red anger that burned away his love for a moment.

Just then, the front door opened. It was Nia. She had come home from the garden store. She was carrying a small bag of flower seeds. She wanted to plant them so that the garden would be even more beautiful. She wanted to try and make things better with Andre. She walked into the kitchen with a small, hopeful smile on her face. But the smile disappeared the moment she saw what was happening. She saw Andre and Kate sitting very close together at the table. They were looking at her papers.

Nia’s heart dropped. She recognized the torn pieces of paper. She knew they were from her private notebook. "Andre?" she asked. Her voice was very small. "What are you doing? Why do you have my papers?" She looked at Kate and saw the wicked look in the woman’s eyes. Nia realized that her office had been invaded. Her secrets had been stolen.

Andre did not even say hello. He did not look at her with love. His eyes were full of anger and a very deep sadness. He looked at Nia like he did not know who she was. He stood up from the table. He did not yell. He did not scream. He just picked up the pieces of paper and held them out. "How could you, Nia?" he asked. His voice was cold. "I thought we were a team. I thought you loved me. But you have been mocking me in secret. You think I am not good enough for you? You think I am making you crazy?"

Nia shook her head. "No, Andre! That is not what I meant! The pages are torn! You are not reading the whole story!" She tried to reach for the papers, but Andre pulled them away. He did not want to hear her excuses. He was too hurt to listen. He felt like she was just lying again. He looked at Kate, who was sitting there looking like an innocent angel. Then he looked back at Nia. Without saying another word, he walked out of the room. He walked out of the kitchen and went toward the front door. Nia heard the door slam shut. He was gone.

Nia was left alone in the kitchen with Kate. The silence was very heavy. Nia looked at Kate. She saw the truth now. Kate was not a friend. Kate was not just a woman who was lost and needed help. Kate was a wolf in sheep’s clothing. She had come into Nia’s home and used Nia’s own fears to destroy her marriage. Kate gave Nia a small, mean smile. It was a look of victory. It was a look that said, "I have won, and you have lost." The smile made Nia’s blood run cold. She felt a chill that went all the way to her bones.

Nia realized that she had lost control of her own game. She had started the loyalty test because she wanted to be sure of Andre’s love. But by using a trick, she had allowed a monster into her life. She had opened the door for Kate, and Kate had walked in and taken over. Nia stood in her kitchen, surrounded by the white walls that used to be so bright. Now, everything looked grey and dark. She had lost her husband’s trust. She had lost her peace of mind. And she had lost the man who was her best friend. She realized that she had been very foolish. She had tried to test a rock, and now the rock had rolled away and left her all alone.

Kate changed the meaning of Nia's notes by tearing the pages. Do you think Andre is wrong for believing the scraps of paper without letting Nia explain?

If you found out someone had gone into your private office and stolen your notebook, what would you do?

Nia called Kate a "wolf in sheep's clothing." Have you ever met someone who acted nice but had a hidden, mean heart?

Do you think Nia can ever win Andre back now that he thinks she has been mocking him in secret?