I Refused To Smile
1187 Words
Chapter 2
Arabella's POV
.The first thing I notice is not the whispers and the phones still pointing at me, not even the diamond ring shining in Sebastian’s hand, it's the fact that my breath seized. It feels tight and painful my chest as if the air has suddenly become too heavy.
Everything keeps happening too fast. My father is walking toward me and Sebastian is still standing beside me.
Luca is still moving through the crowd and for a second, I think he’s really coming up to the stage. My heart jumps hard against my ribs. No, he can’t do that, he shouldn’t, this is not his world and his fight.
But then, he stops right at the edge of the crowd like he remembered his place and it allows the invisible line between us suddenly real again. Something inside me drops and I don’t even understand why.
My father reaches me first. “Arabella,” he says. His voice is calm. The kind of calm that makes people listen.
The ballroom grows quiet again and the whispers fade into a tense silence. Hundreds of eyes are still watching waitingvsmd judging.
“Come with me,” he continues. This wasn't a question, or an order.
My legs feel weak but I force myself to stand straight because If I break, they will never let me forget it.
“I’m fine,” I say, but It’s a lie. My voice sounds thin even to my own ears.
Sebastian steps closer and he moves his hand to my back like he owns the right to comfort me. “We should continue,” he says smoothly while turning slightly so the guests can hear him. “This is clearly a misunderstanding. Arabella has had a long evening.”
A misunderstanding. The words make my stomach twist. I can still see the photo burned into my mind. The way I looked at Luca and the way the moment felt too real to deny made it nothing to misunderstand.
My father studies me with his eyes moving over my face and my shaking hands, the phone still snatched tightly in my fingers.
Then he turns to Sebastian. “We will handle this privately,” he says.
The message is clear and the show is over, at least for now, but the damage is already done.
A woman near the front raises her phone again saying, “Mr Kingsley, is the engagement still happening?” she calls out boldly.
More murmurs, questions and speculation follow, the crowd smells scandal and they are eager to have it.
Sebastian’s jaw tightens, but his smile doesn’t break. “Of course,” he replies. “Nothing has changed.”
Everything has changed and I can feel it in the way the room looks at me now, not like a princess but a headline.
My father steps closer to me. “Give me your phone,” he says quietly.
I hesitate, I didn't do that because I want to hide anything, it suddenly feels like the last thing that still belongs to me.
“Arabella.” His tone sounds just slightly and slowly, I place the phone in his hand. He glances at the screen once and something dark flashes across his expression, but it went away.
He turns to one of the security men nearby. “Clear the press from the front entrance,” he orders. “No one leaves with recordings.”
The man nods immediately. Power moves fast and this is becoming bigger than I imagined.
Sebastian leans toward me again. “You should smile,” he whispers. “People are still watching.”
I look at him with the irritation behind his polished calm. “You care more about them than about me,” I say softly.
His eyes feel hard. “This affects both of us,” he replies.
Before I can answer, movement already catches my attention. Across the ballroom, Luca is still standing there watching but didn't come closer.
I can see the tension in the way his hands are tightened at his sides,bhe looks like he is holding himself back and suddenly I understand something. He wants to help but doesn’t know how because helping me might destroy him.
My father notices my look and he follows it. His expression turns cold. “Mr Romano,” he calls.
The sound of his voice cuts cleanly through the room and every head turns.
Luca straightens immediately. “Yes, sir.” Even from this distance, I can hear the respect in his tone and it shows the line he refuses to cross.
“Bring the car around,” my father says. “Miss Kingsley will be leaving.”
Relief and fear crash into me at the same time because leaving means escape for me but it also means surrender.
Sebastian reacts instantly. “She is not leaving,” he says. “This engagement will not be humiliated because of a ridiculous rumor.”
“It is not a rumor,” I say before I can stop myself.
Silence drops like a stone this moment and Sebastian turns slowly. “What did you say?”
My pulse races, I didn’t plan to speak but the words are already out. “I said… it’s not a rumor.”
The crowd gasps and my father’s face becomes unreadable.
Luca doesn’t move, he just keeps looking at me like he knows this moment matters.
Sebastian laughs softly, but there is no humor in it.
“You’re emotional,” he says. “We’ll discuss this later.”
He holds for my hand again but this time, I pull it away. This is a clear everyone sees but can't be ignored and this time, the whispers burst.
My father steps between us. “That is enough,” he says. Power falls in and for a second, no one dares to speak. Then he turns to me. “You will come with me now.”
I looked at him back, the man who built my life and ho planned my future and only believes control is the same as protection.
Behind him, I see Luca turning slightly toward the exit going to follow orders to prepare the car, doing exactly what he is supposed to do as a driver and nothing more.
Something inside me twists painfully because I suddenly realize that If I walk away now, everything will be decided for me and the scandal will be buried. The engagement will continue and my feelings will be locked away like they never existed.
My father starts walking and he didn't bother checking if I’m following because he knows I always do.
Sebastian watches me carefully, and the crowd holds its breath as I move. I can see Luca walking through the doors leaving me behind.
But something inside me breaks and before I can stop myself, I turn and run after Luca.
The crowd gasp behind me and my father’s voice cuts through the ballroom. “Arabella!”
I didn't look back because for the first time in my life, I am not doing what I’m told.
- Writer
