CHAPTER 20: NAYA: ONE STEP FORWARD, TEN STEPS BACKWARD.

I stood outside the venue, watching luxury cars pull up one after another to collect their well-dressed passengers or to drop them off, while I stood there trying to figure out how exactly I was supposed to get home.

I’d expected Hansel to come after me, but of course, it was an illusion. I was the one who walked out, so why was I expecting special treatment?

But right now, I desperately needed to go home

Home.

That was a joke. Hansel’s penthouse wasn’t home.

And after what just happened, after the things he’d said to me, I’d rather sleep under a bridge than go back there.

Except I had nowhere else to go.

The reality of my situation hit me like a punch to the gut. I had no money; my phone was still with Hansel, and I had no idea where I even was in relation to anywhere I knew. And the sky above grew darker by the second, promising heavy rain.

The lights at the entrance blurred in my vision, and for a second, I thought maybe I could sit on the curb and cry until morning.

I was seriously contemplating that when a sleek black car pulled up to the curb in front of me, and I stepped aside automatically to let whoever it was get out. But the engine kept running, and after a moment the window rolled down smoothly.

"Need a ride?"

I knew that voice. Would have known it anywhere, unfortunately.

I bent down to look through the window, and sure enough, Caleb sat in the driver’s seat looking at me with concern in his eyes. He was still in his tuxedo from the event, probably leaving after Isabella’s performance to avoid any awkward questions.

"No," I said flatly, already turning away. "I’d rather walk."

"Naya, wait." His voice stopped me, and I hated myself for letting it. "Look, I know things are complicated between us. I know I hurt you. But it’s about to pour, you don’t have a coat, and unless I’m very wrong, you don’t have any way to get wherever you’re going."

Thunder rumbled overhead as if to emphasise his point, and I felt the first drops of rain hit my bare shoulders. I looked up at the sky, then down at my expensive dress and ridiculous heels, then back at Caleb’s car with its warm interior and promise of not getting soaked.

Pride versus practicality. And practicality was currently winning because I was tired and heartbroken and so completely done with this entire disaster of an evening.

"Fine," I said through gritted teeth, yanking open the passenger door and sliding into the seat before I could change my mind. "But this doesn’t mean anything. You’re just giving me a ride. That’s it."

"Of course." He pulled away from the curb smoothly. "Where to?"

I gave him Hansel’s building address, then immediately regretted it because he’d now know where I was staying. But what choice did I have? It wasn’t like I could make him drop me off at some random corner in the rain.

We drove in silence for a few minutes, the only sound the gentle swish of the windshield wipers as the rain started coming down harder. I kept my eyes fixed out the window, watching the city lights blur and smear through the water on the glass.

"So," Caleb said eventually, and I could hear him trying for casual and friendly. "Hansel Ward, huh? That’s quite the upgrade."

I didn’t answer because I didn’t trust myself to speak without screaming.

"I saw what happened with Isabella," he continued, apparently taking my silence as permission to keep talking. "That was rough. She didn’t mean anything by it, you know. She’s just scared about the surgery, and she gets emotional when she’s scared."

Surgery. Right. Because Isabella was dying, and that somehow excused everything.

"I don’t want to talk about Isabella," I said quietly.

"Okay. Okay, fair enough." He drummed his fingers on the steering wheel, and I recognised that nervous habit from all the years we’d spent together. "How’s your mom doing? Any improvement?"

The question took me by surprise, stealing the air from my lungs. He didn’t know. Of course, he didn’t know. Why would he? He’d been too busy marrying my stepsister to notice that I’d lost the most important person in my life.

"She’s dead," I said flatly. "Died three days ago. You would have known that if you’d bothered to check on me even once after you abandoned me at the altar."

The car swerved slightly before Caleb got it back under control. "Naya, I—God, I’m so sorry. I didn’t know."

"Why would you?" I turned to look at him for the first time since getting in the car. "You made your choice. You chose Isabella. You don’t get to pretend you still care about what happens to me."

We stopped at a red light, and Caleb reached into the backseat to grab something. When he turned back, he was holding a manila folder.

"Actually, there’s something I need you to sign," he said, pulling out a form and handing it to me along with a pen. "It’s about the apartment."

I stared at the papers, my brain sluggish with exhaustion. "What about it?"

"The lease is in both our names, remember? Now that you’ve moved out, we need to transfer it fully to my name. It’s just a formality, but the landlord is being strict about it." He gave me that smile, the one that used to make me feel safe and loved. Now it just made me tired. "I know it’s bad timing, but if you could just sign where I’ve marked, it would really help me out. Save me a lot of legal hassle."

The light turned green, and he started driving again, leaving me holding the papers in my lap. I should read them and look through every line to make sure this was really what he said.

But my eyes were burning with unshed tears, and my head was pounding, and I just wanted this day to be over. What did it matter anyway? I didn’t want anything to do with that apartment, didn’t want any ties to Caleb or the life we’d built together. Let him have it. Let him have everything.