*Natalie’s POV**
My heart plummeted into a cold, dark abyss the second the heavy mahogany front door slammed shut.
I stood near the gate, frozen on the pavement. My mind was reeling, spinning in a chaotic circle of confusion and mounting dread.
*Why did he go back inside?*
The question echoed relentlessly in my head, each repetition louder and more frantic than the last. Why had Gavin turned his back on me the moment he saw me hugging my friends? Did I do something wrong? Was the warmth I shared with Silver and Golden too much? I searched my desperate, racing thoughts, trying to find where I had made a mistake, but my panic only blinded me further.
I swallowed the lump of anxiety rising in my throat and forced a bright, grateful smile onto my face as I turned back to Golden and Silver
