Page 15 of Say You'll Stay
“You do realize this means she’s dumping you, right?” I say, turning to Drew with a pointed look. The words hang in the air, a blend of jest and truth, a test of the levity that has always been our family’s unspoken coping mechanism.
Judith’s laugh, a genuine burst of amusement, breaks the tension. She gives Drew a sideways glance, one that’s both apologetic and teasing. “He’s not entirely wrong,” she says, the twinkle in her eye betraying her enjoyment of the moment.
Drew, for his part, seems momentarily lost, a deer caught in the Deveaux headlights. But then, realizing the jest, he attempts a chuckle, though it’s clear he’s out of his depth. “I guess family loyalty really is everything here,” he manages, trying to play along.
And for the first time in longer than I can remember, I feel a flickering spark to life in my chest.
A fragile thing, this hope, a smoldering ember in the darkness of my despair. It’s a tiny pinprick of light in the overwhelming shadow of my mistakes.
Chapter seven
It’s been weeks since I last saw June since our worlds collided and shattered in that dimly lit restaurant. But the memory of his face, the anguish in his eyes as I walked away, is seared into my mind, a permanent brand on my heart.
And days spent casting furtive glances over my shoulder, jumping at every unexpected sound. Each creak makes my home feel emptier, every distant murmur from the city below, hushed like the blinking of hidden eyes watching my every move.
The evening’s shadows lengthen across my small living room, twisting the familiar corners into pools of unease.
I’m curled on the couch, wrapped in a blanket that offers little warmth, but serves as a fragile shield against the growing paranoia seeping into my bones. The TV drones on, a low background hum, but my mind is elsewhere, tracing the ragged edges of my fractured sense of safety.
Wondering if I’m losing my grip on reality… The sudden buzz of my phone breaks the cycle of my anxious thoughts—it’s Louis, checking in on me.
“I’m fine, just tired,” I type back, the words a half-truth and my phone grows heavy in my hand, yet the only tether to a world I’m no longer certain I belong…or want to be apart of.
A sharp rap at the door jolts my heart into a panicked flight. Then, on learn instinct, I freeze—every muscle coiled tight; ears straining for any hint of danger.
Another insistent knock follows, and I force my feet to carry me to the peephole. The metallic click of the lock sounds thunderous in the charged silence as I turn the knob, with an over exaggerated gulp.
My breath catches in my throat as I pull the door open, only to find no one there - just a small, unassuming package sitting on the threshold.
With trembling hands, I retrieve it, the weight of the parcel belying its innocuous appearance. Tearing open the plain wrapping, I feel my stomach lurch as a single sheet of paper flutters to the floor.
The words, scrawled in a harsh, angular script, seem to leap off the page, a cursive strike intent on wounding, my already battered heart.
“He’s not yours anymore. If you know what’s good for you, you’ll forget Juniper Deveaux ever existed.”
My knees buckle, and I sink to the floor, the note clutched in white-knuckled fingers. June’s name is a dagger to my soul, a constant, inescapable pain.
A villainous heartache relentlessly consumes; Now a cruel reminder that the past always has a way of clawing its way back—no matter how desperately I try to outrun it.
Rage erupts through me. A living, breathing thing that momentarily overpowers the fear coiled tight in my chest. I push myself upright, the crumpled paper a physical manifestation of my defiance.
How dare they - this faceless, nameless entity - attempt to dictate my life, my heart?
Pacing the length of the room, I feel a sickening dread take root. Is this connected to the strange occurrences - the unexplained glitches, the unsettling sense of being watched, and the missing lingerie that haunts my dreams?
The pieces swirl in my head, a dizzying burst of unanswered questions, when my phone suddenly vibrates again, the familiar name cutting through the haze - Louis, my best friend, the one who has proven himself time and again.
In this moment of turmoil, his call is a lifeline, pulling me out of the web of my own frantic thoughts. Even as my heart aches for June, the man I’ll never be good enough to have. So, I cling to every bit of comfort in Louis’s steady presence, the reassurance of his unwavering support.
Without hesitation, I answer, the words tumbling out in a rushed torrent. “Lou, I got a note. Someone’s threatening me, telling me to stay away from June.”
After a tense beat of silence, Louis’s voice filters through the speaker, calm and assured. “Okay, Cara, take a deep breath. I’m on my way. We’ll figure this out, I promise.”
His words ground me in the present even as the specter of June’s rejection looms large in my mind.
I nod, even though he can’t see me, clinging to the promise of his unwavering support. “Okay,” I whisper, the sound of my own voice small and lost.
Sinking back onto the couch, the threatening note still clutched in my trembling hand, I wait.