Hello! This is my newest story, and let me tell you, I am so excited about this. I've had this story in mind for a while now, but never got the chance to start on it until now. I'm stepping out of my comfort zone with this one, mainly because I have a few things in mind with this fanfic that I have never really touched on before, so I'm looking forward to that.

This is most likely going to be a very lengthy story, much like 'Afraid of falling in love with you', so there goes the rest of my year, haha.

But in all seriousness, I'm pretty excited to write this new one, and I hope all of you will love it as much as you did with 'Afraid of falling...'.

In the mean time, here is my newest story, Burdened Hearts.

PROLOGUE

Love.

What is love?

How can a stupid little word be so powerful?

Why do people even fall in love? How is it possible that this weird, special kind of bond makes two people fall in love with each other? How does this phenomenon even work? How could something so damn small, be so big? How can two souls dwell into one in a matter of time? Why does infatuation manipulate people like this?

Why would someone risk their own life for the one they love?

Those are only a few of the millions of questions that were burning inside of him, her - inside both of them.

But what is the definition of love? Is it two people who can't live without each other? Or is it two people who would die for one another?

How can one simple little 4 letter world be one of the most mindful things on the planet? No, that's ridiculous. What does 'love' even mean? That word has to mean nothing, right? Nothing at all. It was like an empty space that would never be filled. The word 'love' should mean darkness; the trauma one goes through while being in love should be illegal. The pain one goes through while dedicating their life to another should not be allowed.

What comes to mind when you hear that bizarre 4-letter word? What do you see? What do you feel?

Now, here we have a boy and a girl. Gosh, was he handsome. And goodness, was she ever gorgeous.

Long story short, they loved each other. What did the word 'love' mean to them?

Well, to them, it meant everything.

But now, it was next to nothing. They felt nothing. They saw nothing.

They use to think that love was just a silly little action that most people fell into. They use to think that love was just another thing they didn't want to involve themselves in. They never ever understood the concept or the purpose of falling in love. All there was to it was setting your eyes on one person, and giving your heart up for someone else. Seems pointless, don't you think?

But in the moment they least expected, everything altered in a way they didn't want.

At one point in their lives, something about the way they felt towards their friends and my family meant very little to them, and all they could focus on was each other. They both felt the feeling of hatred flame up within their veins, making them want the things they desired so badly, right in their hands. There was this feeling where they needed something to fill the desire of not wanting to be alone. Something about them had changed, the moment they realized that everything they thought about love was wrong.

It was a new feeling, as if they wanted to have something that they couldn't have - something they knew they couldn't have. It had changed them in a way they never thought was possible.

But what scares them the most was how their whole lives changed because of the person they once called their enemy.

To not be afraid to risk your life for another person, especially when you begin to feel something deep within you for them.

How absurd, right?

But no.

All those time when they thought that love was just a word, they were instantly proven wrong. It scares them to remember how fast their perspective on life changed, how their perspective of their family had changed, but there wasn't anything they could do about it. It was as if their minds was glued to their hearts; they only had to listen to their heart, and nothing else.

They didn't realize how much they could affect each others life and future until the harsh reality pulled them apart. Pulled away from everything, everyone that they ever cared about. Stripped away from the ones they loved the most.

But as their lives progressed, they began to realize that they were losing everyone and everything around them. At one point, they were both at the darkest point in their lives. They didn't have anyone to turn to. They had no one to talk to, except that they did.

They did have someone to talk to, someone to run to, someone to cry to.

But the thing was, they wanted nothing to do with each other - not anymore.

They both knew that they were stupid, they knew that they were in bitter, emotional pain, remembering all the chances they had, but didn't take. They can remember every memory, every moment of that dark point in life. They can remember feeling their emotions get torn apart in a way no one had never experienced before.

But how else would you feel when you knew you were falling in love with someone you promised yourself to hate?

It was as if each day that passed by was getting darker, more painful to live through. How could it be, that they were once in love with each other? As of now, it seemed as if it was just an old folks tale. Their hearts would tighten up as these brutal words were spoken, but they didn't know each other anymore. Whatever was once there was simply, gone.

They were both unaware that all they were trying to do was protect each other, to save what could have been because that was what they promised to do.

They began to hear things from other people, people who tried to manipulate lies into their heads. People told her lies about him, and people told him lies about her. But they were nothing more than false dishonesty, swimming into their minds, breaking their hearts even more, wondering how it could be possible.

But they didn't know they were lies.

But they were ripped apart from each other before they could really confess what was in their hearts all these years. The people around them made them change, pulling them apart until they were no more than mere strangers in each other's life, dragging them away from each other until the sounds of each other's names were nothing more than a distant sound.

And that's what scared them.

The people around them had turned them against each other until they got to the point where they were oblivious to each other's presence.

And it killed them on the inside because at one point if their life, they were everything to each other. From the very start, they meant the entire world to each other.

They meant everything to each other, even before they were romantically linked. At one point, before even knowing what love was, they were the pair of friends that always made you shake your head and mutter under your breath. They argued, bickered and insulted each other til no tomorrow, yet, for some reason, they still cared about each other as if a part of their own soul belonged to the other.

As strange as it was, they grew up to be inseparable, being the couple that made everyone turn heads in admiration and jealousy.

But that was before - a long, long time ago, it was now unspoken of, forgotten of.

It was different between them now.

Because of the people around them now, because of the dark influences that triggered them to become foreign to one another, they knew that deep inside, they not only lost a piece of their life, but a piece of their heart.

Where there were once kisses, were now profanity that escaped from their cold lips. Where there were once warm embraces, were now punches that resulted in bruised bodies. Where there were once laughs, were now screams of hatred. Where there were once gazes, were now tears.

But as mentioned, they wanted nothing to do with each other anymore.

They hated each other.

Because of this stupid thing called 'love', they were so close to losing everybody they ever cared about.

But despite this hell that they continue to endure, they both knew that they had lost the one person they needed the most.

She was hurt, emotionally, mentally, physically...in every way possible. She wanted to scream for him, but she knew he wouldn't answer - not anymore, not ever.

'Fight for me, please.'

'No.'

'But you promised me.'

'Promises are meant to be broken.'

He was hurt in ways one cannot even begin to imagine. He wanted to run to her, but he knew that she wouldn't dare to look him in the face ever again.

'I just don't know who you are anymore.'

'...I don't either.'

'It's like...I never knew you.'

Sometimes, they could still feel it in their hearts, pumping inside of them, making them cringe with every emotion. They could feel every raw emotion, every sharp breath, every painful cry that ever fled out of their bodies. The cruel memories replayed itself over and over, against their will.

This was how a girl fell in love with the wrong guy at the right time, how a boy fell in love with the right girl at the wrong time, how they had to experience the wrath of having their emotions be played around with, how they made mistakes, how they made life threatening choices, how their lives fell apart, how they almost lost everything that was important to them...

They needed each other, they couldn't deny it. But the truth settled in, telling them that no matter what, they would never be friends again, that they would never feel anything for each other again, that they would remain as strangers until their death...

They knew that there would never be any sense of love between them ever again. Never again. They promised that.

'I hate you so much. I wish...I wish you were dead.'

'You know that's not true.'

'I WISH YOU WERE DEAD!'

'But you don't hate me, do you.'

'I...I don't know.'

Cruel, threatening words were always shared between them, but the violence and foul language just seemed to increase until they were no longer words, but actions. How it pained them to act like this, but the memory of what was once love, quickly turned into a pool of hell. They swore to never speak to each other again, but deep inside, they would walk through Satan's breath just to take even the smallest glance at one another, to bring some sanity back into their bodies, into their minds, to remind them what use to be.

But there was still something else...

It's been 5 years.

They changed - they both changed.

He was only trying to protect her.

She was only trying to save him.

But they didn't even know it.

And they hated each other.

But it's been 5, long years, and they haven't seen each other since then.

It's been 5 whole years, and there hasn't been one moment where they have thought about one another, a moment where they've seen each other. To them, the other was gone, forgotten, out of their life, nothing more than a stupid little memory that was pushed to the back of their heads.

Until now.

This is a story about a boy and a girl.

And it will break your heart.

Remember, this is only the prologue :)

So, how was it so far? I'd love to hear some feedback, and I promise I'll try my best to get onto chapter 1 ASAP!

Thanks so much for reading, and please REVIEW!