CHAPTER 216: THE BEACH HOUSE

The night felt colder the second Dominic and the others disappeared into the dark.

I stood there, frozen, my mind was still catching up to everything that just happened.

People were still whispering near the glass doors.

The sound of it all made my skin crawl.

June squeezed my hand gently. "Come on," she said. "Let’s get out of here."

We were about to walk out of the gates, when someone called out, "Ash."

It was Ian.

He was walking fast toward us. His hair was a little messed up, his shirt sleeves rolled upwards.

He didn’t even try to smile.

"He texted to bring you," Ian said when he reached us.

I blinked. "Who?"

"Dominic."

"Where?"

"The beach house. He’s not spending the night here."

For a second, none of us said anything.

Then June quietly asked, "is he okay?"

Ian shrugged, avoiding her eyes. "Not really. But... we’ll go to him. Before the press catches on."

For a moment, I didn’t say anything.

I just nodded, because yeah, there was no way Dominic was coming back here tonight. Not after that.

Ian glanced over his shoulder like he didn’t want to be seen lingering too long.

He walked ahead, not waiting for an answer. June and I just followed.

The driveway felt endless. Paparazzi flashes still blinked near the gates, but quieter now.... the chaos had probably moved online. You could already tell the videos were spreading.

When we got to the car, Ian opened the passenger door for June, not saying a word.

She hesitated before getting in, like she was about to say something to him, then didn’t.

I slid into the backseat.

The first few minutes were quiet..

You could hear the wind through the open window and June’s light breathing in the front.

I started biting my lower lip....a habit I always hated but couldn’t stop.

June tried to speak first. "So, um... that was insane."

Ian didn’t respond. He just stared ahead, flexing his jaw, gripping the steering wheel a little too tight.

June sighed softly and looked out the window.

I could tell she wanted to talk to him, to say something, but she didn’t.

He didn’t even glance at her.

Okay, something was off.

I could feel it.

It was weird, seeing him quiet like that.

Normally they’d be bantering or arguing about something dumb, but right now, he looked like he was holding too many thoughts in his mouth, afraid one might slip out and make everything worse.

It was intense.

The silence stretched until it started to feel too loud.

So I spoke.

"Where exactly are we heading?"

"The beach house," Ian said.

"What beach house?" I frowned.

He hesitated a little before answering. "It’s Dominic’s. His granny left it for him in her will."

I looked up. "I didn’t know that."

"Yeah," Ian said quietly. "He hasn’t gone there since she passed. Says it feels too empty. But he texted me saying he’s going tonight."

I stared at the back of his head, trying to picture Dominic in that kind of silence.

The idea of him alone in an old beach house felt wrong. Thank God he agreed for us to come along.

Ian continued, his tone was softer now, "He texted me after everything went down. Said he’s heading there. Told us to come too."

I nodded. "Phew! That’s a relief."

He chuckled. "We should still celebrate his birthday. Just us. No outsiders. Just how we planned before his dad turned his birthday into a business meeting."

June nodded. "That’s better. Tonight’s so messed up."

Ian’s lips twitched like he wanted to agree but didn’t trust his voice.

He just nodded once and kept driving.

The silence after that wasn’t peaceful.

It was the kind that fills your head with too many thoughts.

Every so often, I’d catch the faint reflection of Ian’s frown in the window.

And June... she kept glancing at him.

When he finally did speak again, his voice cracked a little.

"He didn’t deserve that."

I turned my head toward the front seat.

"Do you think he’s okay?"

Ian sighed. "No," he said honestly. "But he will be. He just needs to breathe."

I nodded, but the ache in my chest didn’t fade.

Because I knew how much Dominic hated being alone when he was hurt...and how he’d always try to act like it didn’t bother him until it finally broke him.

The road blurred by, until Ian finally slowed down.

He pulled over in front of a small convenience store. The fluorescent lights hummed above the empty parking lot.

He turned off the engine and said quietly, "Ash, you’ll come with me."

I looked up, surprised.

He nodded toward the store window. "We should get him a birthday cake. Maybe a few drinks, something small. Just... pick something out."

I swallowed and nodded back. "Yeah. Okay."

Then he turned to June. His tone softened but still carried that quiet edge. "Stay in the car. We’ll be back in a few minutes."

June looked like she wanted to argue, but she didn’t. She just leaned back in her seat and crossed her arms.

Ian opened his door and stepped out first, the cold air rushed in as he did. I followed him.

"Let’s make it quick," he said, shoving his hands into his pockets.

I nodded again, my chest tightened.

The automatic doors slid open, as we walked in.

The store was mostly empty, just a tired cashier scrolling through her phone behind the counter and soft music humming from an old radio.

Ian grabbed a basket.

"Let’s make it quick," he said again, his voice was lower this time.

I followed him to the small bakery section at the back. Rows of cupcakes and mini cakes lined the glass shelves, the kind that came with too much frosting and names like Choco Dream or Velvet Kiss.

"What does he even like?" Ian muttered, scanning the labels.

"Chocolate," I said without thinking.

He looked at me for a second, like the fact that I knew that mattered.

"Chocolate it is," he said, reaching for a dark one with gold flakes on top.

I smiled faintly. "He’ll pretend he hates it. But he’ll still eat the whole thing."

That actually got Ian to chuckle.

"Yeah," he said. "That sounds like him."

We moved to the drinks aisle.

Ian picked up a few bottles.... soda, then wine, and even alcohol.

I added a few bags of chips and some plastic cups.

When we reached the counter, the cashier gave us a polite smile.

"Birthday party?" she asked.

Ian exhaled. "Something like that."

Her smile faded when she noticed our faces, we probably looked like we’d just walked out of a funeral, not a party. She didn’t ask more questions.

She started scanning the items, one beep after another.

Ian shifted beside me, like something just crossed his mind.

"Shit," he muttered under his breath. "I’ll be right back....need to grab a few more things."

Before I could ask what, he was already walking off, long strides down the next aisle.

I watched him disappear past the drinks section, hands in his pockets.

The cashier kept scanning in silence, her eyes flicking between me and the empty aisle Ian had gone down.

I just stood there, hugging the cake box, trying not to think too much...about Dominic, or the way my stomach still hadn’t stopped twisting since we left the party.