Chapter b28 /b

Dinner was anything but pleasant.

No one at the table enjoyed the meal.

Charlotte had nothing to say to them, so she finished eating quickly and headed straight to her room

Back in her room, she noticed the gift box on her desk and remembered that she still hadn’t given Sean the watch.

She picked up her phone and dialed his number.

“Hey, bSean/b. Remember the gift I mentioned? I forgot bto /bgive it to you earlier. Are you home now?”

“Yeah, I’m here.”

“Great. I’ll bring it over now.”

Π

.35 Bonus

Meanwhile, bZac /band Wendy walked through the front door of Harmony Hill Vi

Mrs. Zimmer nced behind them and basked/b. “Mr. Gibson, isn’t Miss Riley with you?”

Zac frowned. “bShe’s /bnot home?”

Mrs. Zimmer looked confused. “Miss Riley hasn’t been home for days. I thought she was

with you.”

Something in Zac’s chest tightened. A bad feeling crept in. Without another word, he strode up the stairs to Charlotte’s room.

The vanity waspletely empty no makeup, no skincare, nothing.

The little decorative items she used to keep on her shelves had all disappeared.

He yanked open the closet. Not a single piece of clothing remained

Everything. Every trace of her. Gone.

The room looked exactly like it did before she moved in.

His breathing turned heavy. He stormed to the railing and barked downstairs, “When did she move her things out?”

Mrs. Zimmer flinched at his tone, her voice small. “I–bI /bdon’t know, Mr. Gibson. When I went to clean her room the next day, it was already empty. I thought you knew…”

Zac clenched his fists, frustration boiling in bhis /bchest.

He pulled out his phone and called her.

A busy signal

He btried /bbagain/b. This time, it went straight to voicemail.

She blocked his number.

His jaw tightened. He immediately dialed Quinn, one of the few people Charlotte was close to In Harbor City.

The moment she picked up, she sounded surprised. “Charlotte? She hasn’t contacted me. I have no idea where she is ”

b“/bFind out,” bZac /bordered.

Quino frowned but pulled up lier messaging app and sent Charlotte a text.

The moment she hit send, an error message popped up.

She stared at the screen.

Blocked

Confused, she muttered, “That’s weird

“Well?” bZar’s /bbvoice /bwas Impatient.

Quinn sighed. “She blocked me too.”

Zac’s expression darkened.

Across the room, Wendy listened to the conversation, quickly putting the pieces together.

Charlotte was gone.

Her things were gone.

And judging by Zac’s reaction, he hadn’t seen thising.

Suppressing her excitement, she feigned innocence. “Zac, does this mean you and Charlotte broke up?”

Her words hit him like a p.

Breakup?

That wasn’t what he wanted.

That night, when he told her he never wanted to bsee /bher again, it was just anger talking. Even when Charlotte blocked him, he hadn’t thought of it as a real breakup.

He thought it bwas /bjust her throwing a tantrum, waiting for him toe and smooth things over.

But now, standing in an empty room, seeing that she had taken everything that belonged to her, a flicker of doubt crept in.

bWas /bthis really just a tantrum?

Zac’s expression darkened.

Beside him, Wendy clung to his arm, her voice sweet and coaxing Zac, since you two are over, just let it go. No need to dwell on the past. How about we take a little vacation and clear our heads?”

Zac snapped out of his daze, his initial panic hardening into imitation.

Fine. If Charlotte wanted to act out, he would y along

How long could shest? A week? Two?

She woulde crawling backb, /band when she did, he would make her realize just how little her little stunt had mattered to him.

He smirked and shrugged, “Sounds bgood/b. You pick the ce.”

2