Her whole life literally fell apart that day. All it took was one lie.

~•~

He was an idiot. Nothing more, nothing less. Freya began to think that about him from the moment they started dating, but deep down, she still believed, or at least hoped, that everything would improve, and maybe he would even turn out to be the one. The one she would end up marrying in front of the altar. The one she would say yes to when he knelt before her with a ring in some romantic place.

He wasn't. He wasn't the one. He was everything but the one. He wasn't the knight in shining armor on a white horse, like those who appear to princesses in fairy tales.

He wasn't the rescuer who would change your whole life with how sweet and kind he was to you, like the perfectly written guys in romantic movies.

Perhaps it was because this girl, who wasn't a princess, didn't need saving.

When Freya met Roberto, they were both at the beginning of their careers, which were slowly progressing for the better. They were both at the best moment of their lives when they first met in that crowded bar in Lisbon, Portugal. Their lives at that moment were so great that they started dating two weeks later because neither needed time to think about it, and neither needed a break from each other.

It was summer, and both of them had a break from their sports. Roberto was at home because he was born in Lisbon. He didn't need to travel somewhere else because he loved Lisbon and it was home to him. Plus, he hadn't been home for a long time, so he was trying to make up for it with his parents. Freya, who was already living in Monaco with her mother and sister at that time, chose Lisbon because her friends told her it was absolutely breathtaking, and she would fall in love with it immediately.

That evening when they met, their friends decided on a night out at the bar because they knew both needed a little break and distraction from all the stress that came with their sports.

They bumped into each other at the bar and immediately hit it off. It was probably because they were both professional athletes, but there was something so unforgettable about that moment that the next day, Roberto found her on Instagram and asked her if she wanted to meet up, suggesting they could go to lunch together. And so they got together.

However, despite all that, the couple didn't need saving. Neither of them was mentally ill. Neither of them was physically ill.

The main reason for their relationship, why they actually started dating, was their friends, who constantly pounded into their heads that they would make a great couple and that one day they would be an unstoppable pair, thanks to their talent in sports. And it happened. They soon became one of the most popular sports couples around at that time. Their fame still couldn't be compared to David and Victoria Beckham's, but they were definitely popular.

They didn't have much time for each other, but that's the case for most athletes. That's already expected when you get together with someone famous, whether it's a singer, actor, or athlete. On top of all that, they both tried to advance their careers. Despite all this, they still tried to meet at least once a week because the time spent together was the most important thing in the relationship.

Freya continued to live with her mother and sister in Monaco, and Roberto lived in Lisbon in his large penthouse near the football stadium. Most of the time, the couple spent in Lisbon with Roberto because it was easier for them than living in Monaco with her family.

And what they both wanted happened. They succeeded. Roberto became one of the best young footballers Portugal had ever seen and won various awards and trophies with his club. Freya continued to surprise the badminton world with her incredible successes - no one expected a skinny girl from Sweden to get this far.

Freya may have looked skinny, but she definitely didn't lack muscles. She regularly worked out and constantly built her muscles. She maintained strict diets - her mother watched everything the girl ate and drank and even monitored everything she did during the day because that too could affect her future in sports.

Her life was practically perfect, except for a few exceptions that Freya didn't like to talk about.

She had a flourishing career where she could only get better due to her young age, and fans loved her, so she also had sponsors. Among fans, rumors circulated that she also had the most perfect boyfriend who always stood by her and brought her flowers just because he wanted to and because he felt that way. However, Freya wasn't very sure about that because what he did behind the public eye was far from perfect.

It was Roberto who ruined her life. It was he who, in October 2023, started spreading to the world in interviews that Freya had had an abortion, even though he was against it and wanted to keep the child. It was he who spread to the whole world that Freya physically attacked him when it wasn't as she said. All of Freya's greatest fears accumulated on her in one week because of a few interviews Roberto did after the couple broke up.

However, Freya never physically or mentally attacked him. She had witnessed several cases of domestic violence, and at that moment, she decided that she never wanted to be the one to commit domestic violence - she even watched the force she jokingly poked or dug into her boyfriend's eye. She didn't even have the strength to stand up to anyone and punch them. She didn't have it on her conscience either. Moreover, Roberto was twice as big and three times as strong as she was, so she would never dare to do it to him. If she did, he would return it to her and much worse than what she would do to him.

And the abortion? Maybe the girl went through with it, but under duress. She was literally dragged there by force. She was the one who wanted to keep the child, even though she would probably have to end or at least pause her career, until her body was ready for that physical strain again. Despite all the risks and downsides that pregnancy brought, she was prepared to carry a living being under her heart for nine months, whom she would love and cherish once it was born.

However, Roberto didn't want to hear a word about it. They constantly argued about her pregnancy. He kept arguing that they were still young and a child was a lifelong commitment. He didn't want to commit to such a big and very important thing.

And what he eventually said was one of the reasons why the couple actually broke up.

"I don't want to spend the rest of my life with you," he uttered these words during one of their regular arguments. The worst part was that he didn't seem to regret these words when he said them. Naturally, it hurt Freya because when you're already with someone, you hope it will be forever. Why would you be with someone, even though you know you'll break up in a few months?

He ultimately coerced her into having an abortion, and Freya spent the next few days crying her eyes out under her duvet in her room, refusing to talk to anyone.

She couldn't swallow what her own boyfriend had forced her to do, and she left him. It didn't happen without a few blows and psychological manipulation from his side, but she managed it.

She left him.

She expected the footballer to move on. To say it was just an ordinary relationship and carry on with his life. After all, that's what Freya was trying to do. She tried to forget about her relationship with Roberto as quickly as possible, even ordering a few lawyers to help erase all their shared photos from the internet because the girl refused to have any photos of them accessible. She never wanted to see a picture of herself standing next to him again.

But Roberto didn't move on.

Freya stopped following football and blocked all football-related accounts on social media that kept popping up and offering her things. She never wanted to see his face again because what he forced her to do against her will was something she couldn't easily get over.

But he didn't try to. He did the worst thing anyone could do. He destroyed Freya's life even more than he had done before.

When Freya finally crawled out of bed and started living her life again with a smile on her face, the worst happened. She finally stepped out and started training again when her manager called her, saying she had a lot to explain regarding the interview Roberto had done an hour before.

The girl didn't know anything because she didn't follow Roberto's life. However, when people around the tennis court started looking at her strangely, she quickly realized that something was wrong and decided to check out the interview.

She didn't want to believe what she heard. So many lies in such a short time. Tears started welling up in her eyes and blurring her vision. However, she didn't need her eyes to know that everyone was watching her as if she were the worst person on the planet. She literally collapsed in the middle of the tennis court - a few people, of course, didn't forget to record it and eventually put it on social media, which only added fuel to the fire because, as always, everything was taken out of context.

That day her whole life literally collapsed. It only took one lie to do all that.

That very day, she flew from Monaco back to her home country. She flew to Sweden, where her father still lived with his new wife. He was ready to accommodate his daughter in his house, even if his wife didn't want to - fortunately, she didn't mind, and she was very excited to see Freya.

Freya couldn't stay in Monaco. She couldn't stay somewhere where everyone knew her and where she didn't have much privacy. On the other hand, her father lived in the small Swedish town of Ystad, which counted around 10,000 inhabitants. That's why she decided to fly there.

Her father even came to the airport for her because he didn't want her to have to take a bus or a train. He knew what was being said about his daughter on the internet and didn't want to cause anyone to know that Freya was in Sweden.

And one of the worst pieces of news for Freya came shortly after she landed at the airport in Stockholm. The Badminton World Federation banned her from the upcoming competitions until they properly investigated everything. Their message ended with words promising to inform Freya of any changes they make so she would know when she could return to the court.

So here she was.

In a small town on the edge of Sweden. With a ruined reputation and no chance to continue in the sport she dedicated her whole life to.

She had been in Ystad for only two days when she decided it was the best time to finally go for a walk around the town. She had been at home for two days and only in the garden with her stepbrother, who was six years old at most. She was afraid to go out into the streets, even though her father and his wife assured her that everyone here had some sport or some celebrity gossip, because they had bigger problems than some celebrities breaking up.

In the end, she managed it.

It was mid-April, but the weather was unpredictable, so Freya opted for long jeans with sneakers and a warmer jacket over her T-shirt. She decided not to take a hoodie; instead, she chose a warmer jacket. She didn't want to be bundled up again in case it warmed up later in the day.

She headed out around three in the afternoon because the whole family was already home, and she wanted to give them some time just for themselves.

The town, despite its population, was alive. There were always people on the streets, chatting and laughing. Freya loved the atmosphere of Ystad because it was completely different from Monaco. Here, nobody rushed, and everyone knew each other. In Monaco, maybe a lot of people knew each other because it also didn't have as many residents, but there was always someone rushing, and there was always something happening.

In Ystad, there were days when nothing happened. Days dragged on at a snail's pace, but nobody was bored because you just sat down for tea or coffee with a friend and caught up on everything you hadn't had time for in the past few days.

Freya wasn't paying much attention to where she was stepping when she accidentally bumped into someone and fell to the ground.

She raised her gaze to apologize to the person she had bumped into, but she stopped short when she realized who was standing in front of her.

Max Verstappen.

~•~