This story happened in real life, but for the protection of my peers and myself, I will be changing the names of those involved. My purpose in sharing this is to find a sense of closure and, hopefully, to help other students who may be going through something similar.
Strawberry and I were tight—really tight—at the start of our sophomore year. We rolled with the same crew, and had upperclassmen on our side; life was smooth. So when Bia, one of my boys, pulled me aside one day with a warning—“Watch what you say to Strawberry”—I brushed it off. My mom’s voice echoed in the back of my mind, reminding me to be cautious about whom I let into my circle. But I told Bia he was overthinking it. Everything felt fine—until it wasn’t.
The Pugh Center was our spot, where I met Rosita, a freshman with the kind of energy that could light up a room. She was goofy, fun, and seemed like she’d be a good addition to my little squad. But before I even got the chance to lay down the basics of loyalty and trust, Rosita started running her mouth, spreading rumors that I was seeing this guy we’ll call “Guy.”
Thing is, I already had someone—my man back in Miami. Sure, we were in that messy stage of arguing every other day, but I would never have cheated. So, naturally, I shut the rumors down. But they kept coming back like a bad echo, and I couldn’t figure out why.
That’s when I started digging—and the truth was far from pretty. Rosita and Strawberry had gotten chummy, hanging out like they’d been best friends for years. But Strawberry wasn’t just playing the friend role; she was feeding Rosita all my personal business, using her as a pawn to get dirt on the football team. Worse, Strawberry conveniently left out the part where I was in a committed relationship—and meanwhile, Rosita, who played innocent so well, had her own agenda: she wanted Guy all to herself.
Bia had been right all along. That’s why he had given me the heads-up. Strawberry and Rosita weren’t just snakes—they were a whole garden of deceit. And I should’ve listened to my mother when she told me to watch who I called “friend.”