Page 55 of With This Mask

"Bullshit. You've been a wreck all day." She grabs my arm, checking the traffic in the hallway. She drags me across and checks the closest door. She drags me into an empty classroom before I can protest. "Spill. Now."

The genuine worry in her tone breaks the last of my crumbling composure. I fucking break. A strangled sob rips from my throat and instantly, it’s nearly impossible to breathe.

“I broke up with Alec last night,” I choke out.

“Holy shit,” she breathes, blinking rapidly in shock. “Why? What happened?”

I gasp as I wrap my arms around my middle, trying my hardest not to completely fall apart. But the tears are cascading down my face, and there’s no stopping them now. "Alec’s dad. He sent this goon after me and dragged me into his mafia boss car. He told me to end it. That Alec has to end up with Victoria. And he threatened Liam’s company. He threatened my mom’s fucking house! Said if I didn’t end things, he’d end both of them.”

“Damn,” Isabella muses, her eyes darkening with disgust. “That's so fucked up."

“I didn’t have a choice, Izzy,” I say as a sob rips up my throat. “I had to protect them.”

“Of course you did,” she says as she wraps her arms around me. “You’re one of the strongest people I know. You always do what’s right, even when it hurts, babe.”

“Then why does it feel so wrong?” I ask, my chest heaving with sobs.

“Because love isn’t logical,” she says softly as she rubs my back. “But I’ve got you, okay? Get it all out.”

I sob into her shoulder, barely noticing how I soak her jacket. But I’m a wreck, too emotionally drained to speak anymore. But she just holds me, attempting to ease the suffocating pressure in my chest just a little.

The rest of the day drags on like nails on a chalkboard. I go through the motions on autopilot, dodging Alec at every turn. By the time I get home that night, I'm utterly exhausted, collapsing into bed, still in my clothes.

I know I did the right thing. The only thing I could do. But as I stare blankly at the ceiling, the gaping hole in my heart throbs and bleeds.

Being with Alec was the best thing that ever happened to me. And letting him go might just be the thing that destroys me.

The next morning, I stumble out of my apartment, still emotionally hungover from the day before. But I freeze when I see what's waiting for me.

A dozen vibrant red roses sit on my doorstep, tied with a simple white ribbon. My heart squeezes painfully as I crouch down and pluck the small note nestled among the blooms with trembling fingers.

Salem,

I know you're hurting. I can see it all over your face. This isn't the end for us. Dammit, you're it for me, and I'll never stop fighting for what we have.

But I know something is going on. If you won’t talk to me now, I’ll wait. It’s fucking killing me, but if time and space is what you need, that’s what I can give you. But I’m here, Salem. Whenever you’re ready. I’m here.

Always yours,

Alec

Tears blur the words as a strangled sob escapes me. Damn him. Damn his stubborn, loyal, loving heart.

I want to march over to his house and fall into his arms. I want to tell him everything, consequences be damned. I want to kiss him until we're both breathless and whole again.

But I can't. I won't put him at risk like that, no matter how much it hurts. Scrubbing away my tears, I put the roses inside and head to campus with a heavy heart.

All day, I watch Alec from a distance. He looks as wrecked as I feel - dark circles under his eyes, hair unkempt, shoulders slumped. It physically pains me to see him like this and not go to him.

But I have to stay strong. For him. For us.

The roses keep coming. Every morning for the next week, a single perfect bloom appears on my doorstep without fail. No more notes, but the message is clear – Alec isn’t giving up, even in the face of my rejection.

With every rose, the cracks in my heart splinter a little more. Alec is the shell, going through the motions like a ghost. The light in his eyes is gone, and it's all my fault.

I did this to him. To protect him, yes, but that doesn't lessen the guilt clawing at my insides.

Shit, I miss him. I miss his smile, his touch, the safety of his arms. I miss the way he challenged me and believed in me and praised me so fiercely.