Too Late To love her💔💘

CHAPTER FOUR

I was so embarrassed about what happened yesterday, not even knowing how I will face him in school today.

On my way to the next class still thinking how Ethan wasn’t always loud about it.

That was the worst part.

If he had shouted… insulted me in front of everyone… maybe it would have been easier to hate him.

But he didn’t.

His cruelty was quieter.

Colder.

The kind that made you question yourself.

“Hey.”

I froze.

That voice—

I turned slowly.

Ethan was standing in front of me.

For a second, I thought I was dreaming.

“You dropped this,” he said, holding out my notebook.

My heart skipped.

He noticed me.

He actually noticed me.

“T-thank you,” I said softly, reaching for it.

Our fingers almost touched.

Almost.

But he pulled his hand back just before I could.

Not by accident.

Never by accident.

Still, he smiled.

And that smile…

It wasn’t real.

“You should be more careful,” he added casually.

I nodded quickly. “I will.”

For a moment, we stood there in silence.

It felt different.

Like maybe… just maybe… things were changing.

Then his friends walked in.

“Yo, Ethan!” one of them called out.

Ethan glanced at them, then back at me.

And just like that—

Something shifted.

“Oh,” he said lightly, his tone changing. “This yours?”

He held up the notebook again, like he had just found it.

Confusion filled my chest.

“I… you just—”

“You should keep track of your stuff,” he said, louder this time.

His friends were watching now.

Smirking.

Waiting.

“I wasn’t—” I tried to speak, but my voice felt small.

Too small.

Ethan let out a quiet laugh.

Not loud enough to seem cruel.

But enough.

“Relax,” he said. “You look nervous.”

My face burned.

“I’m not,” I whispered.

“Sure you’re not,” he replied, his voice smooth, almost teasing—but empty.

His friends chuckled.

And just like that, the moment was gone.

Replaced with something sharp.

Something humiliating.

He handed me the notebook again.

This time, our fingers didn’t even come close.

“Try not to lose it again,” he said before walking away.

They followed him, still laughing quietly.

And I stood there.

Holding the notebook.

Holding onto a moment that never really existed.

Because that was Ethan.

Kind… when no one was looking.

Cold… when it mattered.

And me?

I was foolish enough to treasure even the smallest pieces of him.

Even when they were breaking me.

Even when I knew…

They meant nothing.