CHAPTER 68: FIRST REAL HEARTBREAK

Catherine’s POV

I hadn’t even walked five minutes when a car horn blared behind me. I didn’t bother looking back. The sound came again, but I still kept walking, hugging my arms to my chest.

The third honk came, longer this time, and I finally turned around to see Julian’s car.

Of course.

He slowed to a stop beside me, rolling his window down halfway. His hair was slightly ruffled like he’d been driving fast, and the collar of his shirt was unbuttoned, the fabric loose around his throat. His eyes flicked over me, then to the empty road.

"Get in," he ordered like he was my boss.

I exhaled and shook my head. "No, thanks. I can walk."

He gave a quiet scoff. "Are you really going to be stubborn about this? Save yourself the stress and get in."

I didn’t reply. He drummed his fingers on the steering wheel impatiently, watching me.

"I said no. I’m fine," I repeated, more stubbornly this time.

"Right," he muttered, putting the car in gear. "Fine, walk then."

The car started rolling slowly beside me. Every few seconds, he’d pull a little ahead, then stop until I caught up. I tried ignoring him, but his voice came again tauntingly low.

"Let go of your pride, wildcat."

I stopped walking. "Don’t call me that."

He smirked, leaning one arm out the window. "Then get in the car."

I folded my arms across my chest. "Would that get you to stop calling me that?"

He tilted his head, pretending to think. "If that’s what you want, then deal."

I hesitated, then sighed and opened the passenger door. The truth was that I actually wanted to get in but without tampering with my self respect, so the wildcat thingy came at the right moment and became my perfect excuse.

The moment I sat down and buckled my seatbelt, he started the engine. "You comfortable, wildcat?"

My head snapped toward him. "You just—!"

He laughed, in an infuriating way and I squeezed my fingers tight. "Not my fault you actually believed me."

My eyes narrowed at him. "You’re such a—"

"Careful," he said, still grinning. "Kids your age shouldn’t curse."

I glared at him but said nothing. My fingers itched for the door handle, but when I tried it, it didn’t budge. I looked down and realized he’d locked the doors.

He noticed my expression and laughed again. "Nice try."

"You’re such a moron."

"I’ve been called worse."

We drove in silence for a while after that. My pulse still hadn’t settled completely, and I could feel the ghost of his earlier kiss pressing at the back of my mind.

I wanted to say something about it, about the way it had left me confused and wanting more. I turned toward him. "About earlier..."

"Don’t," he said quietly, not looking at me.

"What?"

"Don’t bring it up." His hands tightened on the wheel. "It was a mistake. I shouldn’t have done that."

The words hit harder than I expected. A mistake.

"Oh." I looked out the window, forcing a little laugh. "Right. Yeah. I figured."

He glanced at me briefly. "It’s not— Look, I didn’t mean it like that."

"No, it’s fine," I cut him off with a sharp voice. "You don’t owe me an explanation. I get it."

"Catherine?"

"I said it’s fine," I repeated. My throat burned. "You don’t have to pretend like it meant something."

He stayed silent for a few seconds, then sighed. "You don’t understand. It’s going to be hard, but I know putting an end to it is the best thing for us."

Oh! He wasn’t dismissing me. He was trying to draw a line that neither of us knew how to stay behind.

I didn’t say anything else. I just stared at the windshield, pretending I didn’t care, while every beat of my heart reminded me that I did.

Days later; the last day of exams

Students were filled with excitement about the semester coming to an end. I should’ve been happy, but I wasn’t.

My eyes landed on Collins who was standing near the cafeteria, surrounded by his friends.

I’d been trying to talk to him for days, but he kept dodging me. Now that the semester was over, I thought maybe we could finally talk and clear the air before I went home, so I called his name.

He heard me, I knew he did but instead of turning toward me, he grabbed the waist of the girl beside him and kissed her right there. To prove a point.

Something hot rushed up my chest. For a moment, I just stood there, frozen, my face burning while his friends hooted and laughed.

When he finally looked at me, there was no trace of guilt in his eyes.

I walked up to him in anger while still maintaining a calm voice. "Collins? We need to talk."

He turned back to his friends, ignoring me completely. That single act made me feel very humiliated. I clenched my fists and my jaw tightened as his laughter got loud.

"Collins," I called again, louder this time. He still ignored me.

Something inside me snapped. Before I could stop myself, I unscrewed the cap of my water bottle and poured it straight onto his face. The shock on his face was worth every second.

"You’re an asshole," I hissed, and turned, walking away.

Gasps and laughter echoed behind me, people whispered as I passed. I didn’t care.

By the time I got to the parking lot, I was already regretting it. It seemed like someone already posted my action on the timeline because half the campus was giving me judgeful stares.

When Gabriel pulled up beside me, I almost didn’t get in.

"I heard what you did to Collins," he said once we were on the road.

I slumped in my seat, staring out the window. "I don’t want to talk about it."

He nodded, understanding the situation. "Okay, but if I drop it, I’ll still say this... I’m sure he deserved every drop of that water."

That made me smile a little.

When we got home, he dropped me off but didn’t come in. "Have somewhere to go?"

"Yes, I am meeting up with my friends," he said, and drove off.

I got in and went upstairs, took off my clothes, and sat on my bed for a while. That’s when it hit me that today was Julian’s birthday.

When Sasha had mentioned it, I hadn’t thought much about it until now. The memory of her saying she couldn’t throw him a party came back, and a small idea popped up in my head.

Maybe I could do something simple for him. A cake.

I went downstairs and found Mara in the kitchen. Lucy was sitting at the island, scrolling through her phone.

"Mara," I called, walking closer. "Today’s Julian’s birthday. I was thinking maybe we could bake a cake for him before he gets back."

Mara gave me an expression-less look and just before she could speak, Lucy interrupted without looking up. "Bring my meal to my room."

Mara paused, clearly torn. "Yes, ma’am," she said after a second.

I bit my tongue. Lucy was rude to her, but I didn’t want trouble, so I decided to be quiet about it.

"It’s fine," I said quietly. "Hurry up and get back so we can start."

It took almost an hour, but we managed to bake a chocolate cake for him. I even found some leftover icing in the fridge and wrote "Happy Birthday" across the top. It looked clumsy, but it was heartfelt.

By seven, Julian still hadn’t come home. I was starting to wonder if he would return tonight when I heard the sound of a car driving in.

He was back! My stomach flipped. I grabbed the cake and hurried upstairs, into his room, deciding to surprise him. I turned off the lights and stood by his bed, trying not to laugh at how ridiculous I must’ve looked holding a cake in the dark.

The door opened, and he stepped in.

"Surprise!" I said softly, the candlelight shining on my face. "Happy birthday, Julian."

He quickly turned the light on and for a moment, he just stared, his expression shifting from shock to confusion and then anger.

His dark eyes squinted. "What the hell is going on here?"

"I— made a cake to celebrate your birthday."

He stepped forward. "Who told you to do this?" His teeth pressed together and his muscles ticked at the corner of his face.

I swallowed, my smile faltering. "I just thought..."

Before I could finish, he knocked the cake from my hands, causing it to splatter across the floor.

My breath caught in my throat. "Julian!" I gasped. "What is wrong with you? Do you know how much effort it took to make that cake?"

"Get out," he barked. "Now."

"What’s wrong with you? Why are you getting mad over this?" I demanded, my voice shaking between fear and anger. "I was only trying to do something nice!"

"Get out!" he shouted again, louder this time.

I’d never seen him that angry. His eyes were wild, his chest heaving. The sound of his voice alone made me flinch. I turned toward the door, ready to leave, but froze when I saw Lucy.

She stood at the doorway, watching the whole thing unfold. Without saying a word, she brushed past me and went straight to Julian.

He didn’t push her away. He didn’t even look at me. He just stood there, rigid, while she wrapped her arms around him.

The world seemed to tilt for a second. Tears stung in my eyes while I backed away with a tight throat and trembling hands.