The words tumbled from Sofia's lips in ragged shards, each syllable tearing from her throat like shrapnel. "But then I started wanting to break up with him." Her voice shattered on the confession, a sob cracking through the words. "This was five months ago—way before you, Peter." Her eyes, wide and drowning, locked onto mine, pleading for belief. "I felt like I was drowning. Like the girl I was… was dissolving."
Her hands flew to her throat, fingers clawing at the delicate skin as if fighting for air. "He was controlling. Cruel." Her breath hitched, a jagged, painful gasp. "I was suffocating in his shadow." Tears carved hot tracks down her cheeks, dropping onto the white tablecloth like dark accusations. "He wanted intimacy… but I refused."
