CHAPTER 32: CHAPTER THIRTY TWO: THE WEIGHT OF GOODBYE

Christy’s POV

Knock knock!

The knock on my door came earlier that morning, I got up with a tired sigh and dragged my body to open the door.

Gray was standing outside, he handed me a box, his expression unreadable,

" it had been delivered anonymously" he said expressionlessly before leaving.

I was grateful for the fact that he respected my decision to be alone and didn’t bother making meaningless conversations.

My name was scrawled in bold red ink across the lid and chill ran through me before I even opened it.

Inside lay a dinner gown of black silk, shimmering and luxurious. A single note sat on top, the handwriting sharp and venomous:

"Wear this tomorrow night. Don’t disappoint me, trash."

I didn’t need to guess who sent it.

Celeste’s cruelty always had a signature, elegant on the surface, poisoned underneath.

The dress wasn’t a gift, it was showoff, she wanted me to come see how she takes everything I want and wish for, she wants to watch my reaction as she becomes Kendrick’s fiancee.

My hands shook as I touched the fabric, it was beautiful but it made my heart clench in pain. I tossed it on the bed as if it burned me.

For a moment I stood staring at it, my reflection in the mirror behind me, until my chest cracked and the tears came, hot and endless.

I told myself I wouldn’t cry. But I did.

Later that afternoon, I made my decision.

I couldn’t keep running in circles, waiting for Celeste’s next strike. I needed closure. I needed to say goodbye to the only person in Kendrick’s family who had treated me like I was more than disposable.

Grandpa.

The drive to his estate was heart wrenching. I kept trying to muster up the courage to say goodbye to him. The last thing I wanted was to see him heartbroken but I have got no other choice.

By the time the butler ushered me inside, my heart was pounding so hard I could barely breathe.

He sat in his favorite chair, a blanket over his knees, glasses perched low on his nose. When his warm and gentle eyes lifted to me, I nearly broke on the spot.

"Christy," he said softly, reaching out a trembling hand.

"Child, you look pale. Come, sit." he gestured to the seat opposite him.

I sat opposite him, twisting my fingers together. The words were like stones in my throat.

"Grandpa... I came to say goodbye." I said with a barely audible voice.

His hand paused over the book he was reading.

"Goodbye? What are you saying, girl?" He asked me with a frown.

From his expression, he seemed to be unaware of the current happenings.

"I don’t belong here Grandpa, I was foolish to think I did. Kendrick’s world... your family’s world... it isn’t mine." I forced a smile, though my vision blurred with tears.

"Don’t you dare say that." His voice cracked with emotion.

"You’ve been a light in this house. Even in his coldest moods, I saw how Kendrick looked at you dear.Please don’t throw that away." he begged with a hoarse voice.

"He’s getting engaged tomorrow, Grandpa, to Celeste and when I confronted him, he had no excuse for his actions. I don’t want to ruin your happiness by clinging to false hope. I just... I wanted to thank you. For treating me like I was worthy when no one else did." My tears spilled faster and the pain in my chest intensified.

The silence that followed was crushing. His shoulders sagged, his breathing uneven. When he spoke again, his voice trembled with sorrow that

"If you walk away, Christy, you’ll break his heart and mine. But if you truly believe this is best..." He paused, eyes shining with unshed tears. "Then I won’t stop you."

I dropped to my knees in front of him, pressing my forehead to his frail hands.

"I’m so sorry," I whispered, sobbing.

"Child," he murmured, stroking my hair, his voice as broken as mine.

"don’t be sorry for surviving. Just... be strong. That’s all I ask." he said with a sorrowful voice.

I left his house with swollen eyes and a weight on my chest so heavy I could hardly walk. I thought that would be the hardest part of my day.

But fate wasn’t finished with me.

Because outside my apartment, someone was waiting.

"Kara?" I froze in shock.

She looked nothing like the proud, mocking girl I’d known. Her hair was tangled, makeup streaked down her face, her clothes torn and dirty. Her eyes were wild with misery.

"Christy," she sobbed, stumbling toward me.

"I’m sorry. I didn’t mean for it to go this far. I thought Celeste would help me, but she used me, like she uses everyone." Her voice cracked as the words spilled out in a rush.

"You have to be careful," she begged.

"Tomorrow... She’s planning something worse. Please, believe me. I didn’t know she’d be this cruel." she said with a desperate expression.

Her desperation sliced through me, but my mind screamed not to trust her.

The same Kara, who had mocked and betrayed me? .

And now she was warning me against the same person she had been working for?

"I don’t believe you," I whispered, backing away.

"You chose your side." I said to her, making sure to keep a safe distance from her in case this was also a trap.

"Please. I don’t have anyone left."Her face collapsed with grief, tears spilling down her cheeks.

But I couldn’t.

I couldn’t let myself fall for another trap, so I turned away and hurried inside, leaving her cries echoing behind me.

I thought that would be the end of it but less than an hour later, I heard the news.

Kara had thrown herself in front of a train.

The world spun as my knees gave out.

I collapsed against the wall of my apartment, gasping for breath. I had brushed her off like dirt, and now she was gone. Her final words rang in my ears.

’I don’t have anyone left’.

Guilt stabbed through me like a knife and my chest burned with a pain I couldn’t soothe. I didn’t know if I was crying for her, for myself, or for both of us.

The hours turned into night but I just sat on the couch, knees pulled to my chest, staring at nothing. My body aching and my heart shattered.

That was when the door bell rang at midnight.

My stomach twisted as I forced myself to get up and check the monitor.

Kendrick? .

He stood outside the gate, disheveled, his clothes wrinkled, his face pale, his body thinner than before. His eyes looked haunted and desperate. He pounded weakly against the door, his voice breaking through the speaker.

"Christy... Please open the door, I need to see you."

My whole body shook. Every part of me wanted to run to him, to throw the door open, to bury myself in his arms.

But memories of Celeste’s smirk, of the dress, of the humiliation and the fact that he was getting engaged to her tomorrow , chained me to the floor.

"Ken, let’s go. She’s not opening and you are killing yourself like this." Gary appeared beside him, placing a hand on his shoulder.

But Kendrick refused to move, his hands gripped the door knob like it was the only thing holding him up.

"I can’t... I can’t leave her... Christy, please! Just one minute. Let me explain!" His voice cracked, raw with anguish.

I pressed my hands over my mouth to stifle a sob. On the screen, I saw him sink to his knees, forehead against the cold door.

My heart shattered into pieces, but I couldn’t move. I stayed frozen, watching him like a ghost behind glass.

"Don’t do this," Gary begged. "You’ll only make it worse."

Kendrick didn’t move for the longest time, he just knelt there, shaking, the night swallowing him whole.

Finally, with a strangled breath, he staggered up. Gary guided him away into the shadows.

The screen went blank and I collapsed to the floor, sobbing until my throat burned. I had pushed him away.

Kara was gone, Grandpa’s heart was breaking and I was utterly, hopelessly alone.

I couldn’t sleep after Kendrick left,the silence pressed down like suffocating weight.

All the memories of our time together came rushing into my head. When we had laughed, when I had dared to hope. Now all of these memories were overwhelming me.

Kara’s broken face wouldn’t leave my mind. Her plea, her despair, her end. I whispered apologies to the air, knowing they’d never reach her.

Grandpa’s trembling voice echoed too.

’Be strong. That’s all I ask of you’

But what did strength mean? Walking away? Or holding on even when everything hurt?

I didn’t know anymore.

My gaze fell on the black gown sprawled across the bed. It glimmered under the lamp like a curse.

Celeste wanted me humiliated and destroyed. Maybe she would get what she wanted.

At three in the morning, I stepped onto the balcony, hugging myself against the cold. The stars above felt distant, indifferent. I whispered anyway, hoarse and broken.

"Please... let tomorrow be the last time I hurt."

The wind carried the words away.

When I returned inside, the gown still waited for me like fate itself. I brushed my hand across it, steadying my resolve. If Celeste wanted me to fall, then I’d fall, but on my own terms.

And in the silence of my room, I swore I heard Grandpa’s voice again, steady in my mind,

Be strong.

Tomorrow, everything would end.