[C].h.a.p.t.e.r. ..1..
♂♂ 
♀♀ 
Josh turned to the right to take the next street while hitting lightly on his wheel, his fingers following the beat of the music. The old song playing on the radio reminded him the good old days with his family, when he was very little. Trying to push the memories away, he parked his car in an empty driveway he was so used to see. Two shadows got out of the house and quickly ran down the short stairs of the house. It was very old, but also very big, the kind of house that belongs to the same family for a very long time.
A tall man with very short and dark hair appeared, his hands in his pockets and a petite girl stuck to his arm. Went was the kind of guy everyone notices, and wants to be around. No one could resist to his attracting charm, but Went didn't think much of it. Josh smiled and Went answered him by moving up his chin in his direction. He was not the most expressive person, but he had a heart of gold.
Josh's glance moved to Livia. Her tiny frame and the way she seemed to be following Went, as if she was simply going with the flow of life, was pretty usual. Being very open about her feelings, she was his total opposite. They were attracted to each other for as long as Josh could remember and seeing them together seemed to be the routine for him. He didn't even remember when they started off as a couple, and was not even sure they remembered themselves.
"Where's Emma?" Went asked, bending to Josh's level to look at him, and putting his hand on the car's door.
"Work. We'll go pick her up."
Emma and Josh. Josh and Emma. Josh grimaced at that thought. The girl was incredibly gorgeous, and had such a beautiful soul, but the special sparkle that's supposed to hit you deep inside your heart when you're in love was not showing. Josh had waited for it for a long time, but it always stayed hidden. He finally came to the conclusion that it simply had never existed, and had tried three times to let her go, but hurting Emma was the last thing he wanted. She was pure like an angel, sweet like a candy, and sensitive to the extreme.
The four of them had known each other ever since elementary school. Even though Went and Josh were older, they had quickly fallen for the two young girls with smiles to die for. A strange feeling of protection had invaded their mind and body, and quickly altered into a very strong friendship.
Mechanically, Livia bent down to kiss Josh on the cheek and walked up to the back door and sat down, as Went went around the car to get to the passenger's seat. Even if the four friends had transformed into two couples, the friendship was still the priority between them, and all of them felt like they were the same person, in four different bodies.
"I don't know what to do anymore." Josh let out in a sigh, feeling comfortable to finally admit himself it couldn't continue.
"If you don't feel that vibe, it's better you two stop it now." Went simply said, looking by the window.
"Have you really thought about it, Josh?"
Josh could feel the worry in Livia's sweet voice, and he looked at her in the rear mirror, sending her a compassionate smile that she sent back.
"I have, Liv. Trust me. I've been thinking about it for weeks, now."
Livia moved closer to the front seats and her head appeared between the two guys.
"Emma is going to be hurt." she simply added, almost whispering.
Both Josh and Went knew she was containing herself from letting out some tears, and both had also notice her voice breaking.
"She'll get over it. Friendship is stronger than anything else." Went explained.
Livia frowned, a questioning look illuminating her face.
"Stronger than you and I?" she asked.
Went sighed and shook his head.
"You can't compare." he simply said.
"You just did!" she exclaimed.
Josh could feel the tension between the two lovers and licked his lips, trying to follow the conversation and drive at the same time. He knew better than to get between them or to take one side or the other. Went remained calm, while Livia was ready to explode, both faithful to their distinctive and especially different personalities.
"Look, Livia, I didn't want to insult you."
Livia moved, letting her back fall on the seat and uncrossed her arms.
"I know." she simply answered.
"But you'd choose Josh over me, wouldn't you?" Livia asked after a silent minute she had spent thinking about their argument.
Josh knew that this kind of question could only break the truce that was installed between them at that point, but even though he knew that Went should and probably would answer her name, he secretly wished Went would choose him. He quickly pushed away this stupid thought and felt ashamed to even have thought about it.
"Is that such an ultimate question? Do I really have to answer this?" Went wondered.
"No, I have my answer already." Livia said, looking by the window as Josh parked the car next to brown building.
Emma walked out, a black dress barely covering half of her body, her perfect brown hair down and her purse in hands. The three of them could hear her long boots hitting the ground with every step she took.
She opened the door on the other side of Livia and let herself fall next to her, closing the door in a rough way.
"My god, I hate days like that!" she said as a greeting.
Livia giggled, knowing that Emma's job was actually to stand there and be photographed, but she admired the professionalism she was handling everything with.
"To the club, darling!" she joked before both girls burst into laughter.
Josh smiled at the closeness the two girls had, and decided that tonight was the night. His life would change, and his decision would most likely break everything he had spent all his life building. The friendship of the four people sitting in his car, at this exact moment.
