Chapter2
1990 Words
|~ LILY~
The moment I pulled out of the mansion driveway, my hands trembled on the steering wheel. My vision was still blurred from the slap, from Adrian’s cold, unreadable expression, from the finality in his voice when he said, “I believe what I saw.”
The engine hummed beneath me, but it sounded like my own heartbeat echoing in my chest—loud, uneven, accusing. Every turn of the wheel felt like navigating a storm I couldn’t see the end of. My fingers dug into the leather, white-knuckled, trying to hold myself together, though it was a losing battle.
My phone vibrated in the cup holder. I glanced down. Grace. My chest tightened, my stomach knotting.
I answered before I could think twice, my voice breaking immediately. “Grace…”
“Lily? Oh my God, are you—” Her voice was panicked, urgent, almost breaking.
“I… I just left,” I admitted, swallowing against the lump in my throat. “I—I don’t even know what’s happening.” My grip on the wheel tightened so hard my knuckles ached.
“Okay. Okay. Slow down. Where are you? Are you driving?”
“Yes… yes, I’m..” My voice faltered. “I’m driving to nowhere. I don’t… I don’t know where to go.”
“Listen to me,” she said firmly, her tone sharp but steady. “Drive to my place. Just head there. I’ll be here. I promise. No stops, no detours, just go.”
I blinked rapidly, trying to steady my breath. “Grace… I don’t know if I can… everything—everything just—”
“Hey,” she interrupted, her voice dropping to a calm, even weight. “Focus on me. Breathe. One hand on the wheel, one hand off. You’re not alone. You can do this. I’ll see you in twenty minutes.”
I swallowed, shaking my head even though I couldn’t see her, pressed my foot down harder, letting the city lights smear across the windshield. Every turn, every honk, every blurred sign made my chest tighten, but Grace’s voice anchored me in some small way.
Minutes stretched into what felt like hours, but eventually, the familiar building of Grace’s apartment came into view. My hands were shaking violently, and I had to put the car in park before I even thought about getting out. My chest heaved. My throat ached. My fingers still clutched the steering wheel like it was a lifeline.
I knocked on the door, my knuckles raw.
It swung open almost immediately. Grace’s eyes widened in surprise, and then softened the moment she saw me. My makeup was ruined, my hair stuck to my tear-streaked cheeks, and my clothes smelled faintly of my own sweat and fear. Without a word, she pulled me into her arms.
I collapsed into her, trembling, letting everything break loose—sob after sob, the tension unraveling in waves.
“Shh… I’ve got you,” Grace murmured, guiding me inside. Her apartment smelled like coffee and vanilla, familiar and grounding, a world away from the mansion’s cold marble and sterile luxury.
I sank onto her couch, burying my face in my hands. My body was shaking as if it had a mind of its own. Grace sat beside me, handing me a box of tissues.
“Here,” she said softly. “Take a breath.”
I did, but it didn’t help. My chest felt like it had been hollowed out. The silence stretched until I finally managed to choke out, “It’s… it’s Adrian… Miranda… Colin… it’s all gone wrong, Grace. Everything.”
Grace wrapped an arm around me, her hand steadying mine. “Start at the beginning,” she said quietly. “I’ll listen. No judgment, I swear.”
I nodded, gripping the tissue box, my fingers trembling. “I went to the mansion today. Just… to see him. To talk. And… Miranda slapped me. And she—she accused me of… of being with Daniel. Daniel, Grace! Adrian’s friend, his family’s friend! And…” My voice cracked, my body shaking. “They had… proof. Or at least, they say they did. I swear, Grace, I didn’t. I never—”
“Shhh, Lily,” Grace interrupted gently. “I believe you. Keep going.”
“They made me… sign divorce papers. Adrian, he didn’t even look at me when he said it. Grace… he said he believes what he saw. He doesn’t believe me. He… he’s done. I… I don’t even know how I’m supposed to breathe right now.”
I pressed my face into my hands again, sobbing. Grace didn’t pull away. She just held me, letting me collapse fully into her embrace.
“Breathe,” she whispered. “It’s okay. You’re safe here. You’re allowed to cry.”
I let go again, recounting every detail—the slap, Miranda’s venom, Colin shoving the folder into my chest, the way Adrian picked up the papers and threw them toward me like he was discarding me. My voice was hoarse from screaming inside my own head, but she listened, patient, unwavering.
“I...” I broke off, hands clenching the tissues. “It felt… I don’t know… I felt like I was invisible. Like I was nothing to him. Like everything we had… was just… dust.”
Grace didn’t say anything at first, just let me lean on her, my body trembling. Then she pressed the tissue back into my hand. “Breathe, Lily. Look at me.”
I did, finally, lifting my tear-streaked face. Her eyes were steady, warm, full of care. “You’re alive. You’re here. You didn’t lose yourself, even if it feels like it.”
I nodded slowly, blinking rapidly. “It’s just… everything’s over. I thought… I thought we had trust. And now, he’s gone. He doesn’t even want to see me. And it’s all… it’s all because of some lie. Or a setup. Or…” My voice trailed off, heavy with despair.
Grace held my hands in hers. “Lily, you’re not over yet. We’re going to figure this out. I don’t care what anyone says, you know the truth. You’ll find a way to show him that, too. But first… you need to breathe. You need to survive today.”
I shuddered, pressing my forehead against her shoulder. “I… I don’t know if I can survive this.”
“Yes, you can,” she said firmly. “And you will. But for now… let’s just sit. You’re not alone anymore.”
I let myself rest against her, feeling the warmth of her presence seep into my bones. I cried again, softer this time, letting the weight of betrayal settle in my chest.
After a long, quiet moment, I lifted my head and whispered, “Grace… I don’t even know how I’ll face him again. Or if I even want to.”
“You will,” Grace said, a small, certain smile forming. “And when you do, you’ll have all the pieces back. But for now, we start with this moment. Right here, right now. Step by step.”
I nodded, wiping at my face with another tissue. “Step by step.”
We sat in silence after that, the kind of silence that wasn’t empty but full of understanding. Grace didn’t rush me. She didn’t ask questions that I couldn’t answer. She just let me exist, raw and broken, and for the first time since leaving the mansion, I felt a tiny flicker of hope.
A flicker that maybe, just maybe, I could fight back.
- Writer
