Chapter 146
I have news about the Turners,” the voice said..
Alex froze.
His throat went dry, and for a moment, he forgot how to breathe.
He swallowed hard. “I uh…” his voice cracked. He paused. He could hear his heart beating loud in his cars.
Yes, he had changed his mind and asked for the search for her to continue.
Just to be sure. Just to know she was alive and if she was okay.
It was eating him alive, not knowing. The doubt, the different things constantly playing in his head
If he could just confirm they were safe, maybe his heart would stop this constant ache. Maybe he can finally accept reality and move on.
“Are they alive?” he asked, trying to sound calm, even though his voice trembled slightly.
“Yes. They are fine. They moved. They are in a to-”
“I don’t want to know,” Alex cut in quickly, his voice going cold.
He didn’t trust himself. If he knew where they were, he would go to her. Without thinking. Without stopping. He would find her and beg her to stay with him. Even if she didn’t want him.
And he couldn’t let that happen.
Not again.
“Drop everything. I never want to hear about them ever again.”
“Ok, sir.”
Alex ended the call and stared at the phone in his hand. For a second, he didn’t move. Then, slowly, a sad chuckle escaped his lips.
So it was true then. She had left. Willingly.
He looked up, eyes blinking fast, but a single tear slipped down his cheek before he could stop it.
He pressed his lips tightly, trying to keep the sob trapped inside. But his chest was heavy, and the ache was too real.
Mia.
She had been the only girl who made him feel something. The only girl who didn’t care about his name, his money. She had looked at him like he was enough. Like he was worth fighting for over and over.
But it was all a lie…
The same person who made him feel whole is the same person who broke him.
The only girl who made him’cry.
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Chapter 146
He let out another soft laugh, though there was nothing funny about this.
“Never again,” he whispered.
He turned from the window and walked slowly back to the bed. He sat down, his shoulders hunched forward, and his hands dangling between his knees.
His voice was soft, cracked, and almost bitter when he spoke again.
“Mia Turner, I guess we’re even now. I used and hurt you. You used and hurt me.”
He raised his eyes to the ceiling, like maybe the stars he couldn’t even see would give him answers.
“We are even.”
Meanwhile in a small hotel room Mia and her family were still deciding how to start their new life.
A new life they were forced into.
“Going to college needs a lot of money though,” Mary Turner said quietly, breaking the silence that had fallen over the
room:
Mia sat cross-legged on the edge of the bed, her hands resting on her knees. She nodded calmly, like she had already thought this through a thousand times before now.
“Don’t worry, I have money saved,” She said softly.
Her mom’s eyes flickered, and in that second, Mia could tell exactly what was running through her mind. She was remembering something. The look of shame in her eyes was clear as a day.
Probably remembering when they had tried to pressure her, ganged up on her to use her savings for something that had nothing to do with her. Something as stupid as Lily going to that ridiculous Unicorn Party.
A party she didn’t even get an invitation for. It was funny..
“Thank God Mia was stubborn not to give her money when you all tried to force her savings out of her to support Lily for a meaningless party she didn’t even get an invite to,” Ethan said her thoughts out loud, leaning against the wall near the bathroom.
His voice wasn’t loud but it hit hard. He was always ready to say the things everyone else liked to skip over.
There was a pause. Everyone felt it.
Mia glanced at her mom again and this time, she saw it, regret. It swelled up in her eyes.
“Not my fault Mom gave me a fake invitation,” Lily blurted, rolling her eyes like she was tired of the whole thing. Like she was the victim.
Ann snorted. Loudly.
“Can’t believe you spent months fussing about a party, getting a new dress, jewelry, shoes… only to not even get in,” Ann said, laughing now, full chest, with no shame. “That was wild.”
Mia couldn’t help it either. A small chuckle escaped her lips before she could stop it. Lily had made their lives miserable with all that talk. Unicorn Party this, Unicorn Party that. It was all she talked about for weeks.
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Lily narrowed her eyes and gave everyone a glare that was supposed to shut them up, but it didn’t work.
“Not to forget the bragging we had to endure for months,” Ann added with a smirk. “Only for you not to even smell the
venue.”
Even Ethan smiled at that one, and Mia could see him biting the inside of his check to hold back a laugh. Everyone in the room was clearly trying to contain themselves, but they were failing. The whole thing was ridiculous.
“I did enter though,” Lily muttered, folding her arms.
“Yeah, thanks to Mia,” Ann fired back without missing a beat, still laughing like it was the funniest thing she had ever remembered.
“Okay, enough,” their mom said suddenly, her voice firmer now. She turned to Mia, her expression softer than it had been all day. “I’m sorry I tried to deprive you of your education, Mia.”
That caught Mia a little off guard. For a second, her throat tightened and she didn’t know what to say.
“It’s fine, Mom,” Mia whispered.
Her mom nodded back at her, then turned to the rest of the room:
“Like I said, it’s a new start for us. It’s not what we wanted, but let’s all make good of this situation,” she said, her tone trying to stay strong even though her eyes looked tired. “I will be giving each of you eight thousand dollars to get your basic necessities. Phones, clothes…”
“I want a phone first, please,” Lily said quickly, her face lighting up as if none of the last few minutes had just happened.
“We all do,” Ethan replied, deadpan.
“True,” Ann agreed.
Then Lily, still grinning, raised a finger like she was about to say something important.
“I think we should also address the most important thing before we get those phones,” she added.
Their mom raised an eyebrow. “What are you talking about?”
“I’m talking about Mia running to go and call Alex Blackwell once she gets her hands on a phone,” Lily said, her voice a mix of nervous and dramatic. “Let’s talk about that. I don’t want to die, Mom.”
The room went silent. Completely.
