Chapter 43: CHAPTER 42

Jason's POV

I couldn't understand why she was acting that way. When she walked away, I knew something was wrong. Since she was with my mom earlier, something must've happened.

I jogged toward the lift and furiously pressed the button. When the doors finally opened a minute later, I stepped in and pressed the floor button to my penthouse.

Did she argue with Mom?

No, I highly doubt that. Mom loves her, so they wouldn't argue. Then what happened?

As soon as the doors opened, I jogged into the living room, looking around for her.

"Mom?" I called out loudly.

She suddenly appeared with a vase of white roses and smiled at me before placing it on the coffee table.

"Why are you yelling? I'm right here, jeez. Do you like the flowers? Shay brought them. She said they were for me, but since your living room is so gloomy, I'll leave them here to make this place feel a little homier."

I took off my suit jacket, threw it over the couch, and stared at the flowers. So, that means nothing really happened between them before I got here.

"Did something happen?" she asked, giving me a confused look.

"No. She just left without saying why. It's a pity—I really wanted to have lunch with the both of you."

Something lying on the couch suddenly caught my eye. I pushed the cushion aside and saw car keys—one of my car keys that I always kept inside the drawer in my study room. I grabbed it and showed it to Mom.

"Why is this here?" I questioned.

"Oh, that! I was looking for those transaction files in your drawers, and I was going through them here on the couch. It must have been inside one of the folders and slipped out."

I stared at her, and something snapped in my mind.

"You went through my desk?"

She slowly nodded.

"Yeah. What's the big deal? Your dad asked for those files because they were important."

Ignoring her, I ran to my study room. I yanked open the last drawer, and a cold sweat ran down my spine when I saw that the picture and the bracelet were gone—along with the folder. Mom came into the room and stood in front of the table.

"I saw Shay's picture inside, and I—"

I didn't hear the rest of her sentence. Bolting out of the room, I rushed into the elevator again.

Shit! Shit! Shit!

She knows. She found the freaking file!

That's why she looked upset in the lobby—because she saw everything in my desk. Dammit! Why did she have to find out today?

I ran to the parking lot, scanning for her car. I really hoped she hadn't left yet because now, I had to explain myself. I had to tell her the truth. No more playing games. It was over.

To my relief, her car was still parked there, just across from mine. She was sitting inside, staring at the steering wheel. When she looked up and saw me, I slowly approached. She glared at me before getting out of the car, standing in front of me.

"I tried to understand but nothing adds up. But one thing I'm sure of—despite knowing who I really was from the beginning, you pretended not to. Am I right?" Her voice was cold.

I nodded. "Yes, you're right."

She dangled the bracelet in front of my face, her expression hard.

"Then how did you get this? It's a collection item, my initials are on the charms. It's mine."

I couldn't answer.

She lowered her hand to her side. Tears glistened in her eyes, and something ached inside me.

"From what I remember, I lost it when I went on an arranged date with Chase Evans. I was too preoccupied to notice that it went missing during that time."

"I found it in the lobby where you dropped it. It was a coicidence."

She scoffed. "A coincidence?"

"Yes."

She folded her arms.

"Fine. Then, answer me this—when you saw me in the elevator—did you already know who I was?"

I glanced down at the ground and nodded.

"I recognized your face—"

"How?" She snapped.

I looked up, meeting her gaze again.

"I was also there that day to meet someone. I saw you in the hotel's elevator—when you were going up and when you were coming down. I ran into you twice that day."

She closed her eyes, a tear sliding down her cheek. My hand itched to reach out and touch her, but I held myself back.

"Then, when did you do a background check on me?"

I sighed and took a step closer, but she stepped back.

"I was confused by the way Chase reacted around you after your date. He wouldn't tell me who you really were, so I had someone run a background check."

Her eyes narrowed.

"I have every right to be mad at you right now. So when I ask the questions, you still have to tell me the whole truth."

I quickly nodded.

She was holding back her anger. I thought I knew her well just by reading her background—but that was my biggest mistake.

"When did you suddenly want to know about me?"

I bit my lip, clenching and unclenching my fists. She was like a ticking time bomb, and I had no idea when she would explode.

"When Chase recognized you at work. He never told me that you were the one he went on that arranged date with, so I had to connect the dots myself."

"So that's it. You must've known when I tried to hook you up with Sylvia."

"Shay—" I reached for her arm, but she pulled away sharply.

"Did you plan it?" she finally yelled.

"I didn't—"

"Tell me the truth!"

"Okay, yes! I planned everything from the start! But nothing went according to plan once we started going out. You have to believe me, Shay! But I'll admit—I gave it a shot with an ulterior motive."

Her lip trembled.

"You manipulated me into falling in love with you."

"No, I didn't exactly plan it that way."

She let out a dry laugh.

"Oh? So everything you did for me was calculated and planned huh. Was your mom part of it too?"

"No."

She looked relieved. "Everything  you've told me so far including your feelings for me—was all part of the plan right? Because they weren't true."

"Not all of it."

"Then why were you using me in the first place?"

I clenched my jaw, forcing the words out.

"To get close to you. I needed you to get back at your father. He did something I can't forgive. When I found out about you, I saw my chance for revenge—to humiliate him."

Tears welled in her eyes.

"You are brutally honest. You should have been brutally honest before—pretending to like me when you didn't! How dare you mess with my feelings?"

"Let me get something straight."

"What?"

"I didn't do much to win your heart. You were the one that made the first move remember? You turned a small gesture of kindness into special attention. You would've fallen in love with anyone at that point, even if it wasn't me."

She chuckled lowly. "Did you really think that?"

"Isn't it the truth?"

She shook her head.

"You son of a bitch. Why don't you get it that it has always been you, Jason. I loved you. So you had no right to play with my emotions this way."

She turned around and started getting into her car. I tried to force myself to move, but I couldn't. Her words had struck me deeper than I expected. All this time, I thought that when she admitted to falling for me, it wouldn't mean anything—because, to me, this had all been an act.

But I was wrong. And she was right.

I walked over to her side and opened the door just as she was putting on her seatbelt.

"Get out of the car. You shouldn't be driving right now."

She smirked and stared straight ahead.

"Your survival instinct is still alive," she muttered. "Since I was going to hit you with this car."

Before I could react, she pulled the door shut and sped off.

I wanted to chase after her, to tell her how I really felt, but when I saw the look on her face, I knew it was best to leave her alone for now. I ran my fingers through my hair in frustration and kicked the tire of a nearby car.

Dammit. I shouldn't have let my judgment get in the way.

I had officially ruined everything.

I turned and slowly walked back inside the lobby, but then—a loud screeching sound, followed by a crash, pierced the air.

Shay!

The thought sent a jolt of fear through my body, adrenaline surging as I bolted back outside. I hadn't even realized it was raining until the downpour hit me, soaking through my clothes.

Her car had stopped at the corner, its brake lights blinking on and off.

I ran towards it, banging on the window. She was sitting inside, her hands gripping the steering wheel, her head lowered. She wasn't moving.

Panic gripped me. I knocked harder.

"Shay! Are you alright? Can you hear me? Open the door!"

After what felt like an eternity, she slowly lifted her head. Relief flooded me—she was okay. But she was trembling, her body shaking violently.

I glanced at the front of the car. She hadn't crashed too badly—just a minor hit against the concrete wall surrounding the entrance of the apartment building.

I clenched my jaw. I should never have let her drive off. I knew something like this was bound to happen.

The door clicked open. I immediately pulled it open and reached for her hand.

"Are you okay?"

"Don't touch me!" she cried, her voice breaking into a sob.

She stepped out of the car, her gaze fixed on the ground. I took a step back, unsure of what to do.

"Leave the car like this," I told her gently. "I'll call someone to pick it up."

She walked past me but then suddenly stopped. Turning back around, she looked at me with pure outrage in her eyes.

"Do you hate my family that much?" she demanded. "Because after everything you just said, I feel like killing myself right now."

Her words hit me like a freight train. My chest tightened.

"After I heard what happened to my brother, I wanted to die with him," she continued, her voice trembling. "I didn't want to be left alone in this cruel world. Despite that, I missed you. I wanted you by my side because I knew you're the only one I have now."

She let out a shaky breath.

"Being with you... that void inside me finally disappeared. I was able to endure it. I gained the strength to continue living in this harsh reality. You made me think love was supposed to be like that—that even though it couldn't solve all my problems, it gave me the strength to overcome them. Love is really something great, isn't it?"

I couldn't speak.

Her words held a weight I was only now beginning to understand, and it crushed me to realize I was losing her this way.

"But..." she whispered, her voice breaking. "It's actually not—when everything is based on a lie."

She didn't say anything else. She simply turned around and walked away.

I felt like my chest was being crushed, making it hard to breathe. Tears pricked the back of my eyes as I watched her go.

No. I can still fix this.

I forced my feet to move, running after her. But just as I reached her, a cab suddenly pulled up. She quickly got in.

"Shay—wait!"

The taxi sped off, disappearing down the street.

I stopped in my tracks, my hands clenched into fists. My entire body sagged in defeat.

There was nothing I could do to stop her. Nothing I could say to make her come back.

It was over.

We were done.

And it was all my fault.

A/N

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