Chapter 6

Amirah Holland POV:

I spent three agonizing days in that hospital bed, completely alone. No calls, no messages, no visitors. Just the rhythmic beeping of machines and the occasional polite inquiry from a nurse. It was a stark, brutal confirmation of my utter insignificance in Kendrick's life. He hadn't even noticed I was gone.

When I was finally discharged, my body still weak and aching, I made my way back to the penthouse. The glass and steel felt heavier, colder, than ever before. As I pushed open the front door, a cacophony of laughter and festive chatter spilled out from the living room. My heart, a bruised and battered thing, clenched.

Kendrick and Chrissy were there, surrounded by ribbons and tissue paper, their faces flushed with excitement. They were decorating, their movements playful and intimate. Chrissy held up a shimmering ornament, giggling, while Kendrick adjusted a string of fairy lights. Their domestic bliss felt like a punch to the gut, a vibrant, mocking contrast to my desolate solitude.

I hesitated in the doorway, a phantom, unseen and unheard. I wanted to turn around, to run, but my legs felt like lead.

Chrissy, catching a glimpse of me, paused, her bright smile fixed in place. "Oh, Amirah! You're back! Where did you run off to, sweetie? We barely noticed you were gone." Her words, delivered with a forced cheerfulness, were a thinly veiled jab, a reminder of my invisibility.

I stared at her, my throat tight. I couldn't bring myself to speak, to explain the hospital, the fever, the crushing loneliness. What was the point? She wouldn't understand, and Kendrick certainly wouldn't care.

Kendrick, seeing me, finally detached himself from Chrissy. He walked towards me, a small, wrapped box in his hand. "Amirah," he said, his voice surprisingly gentle, almost apologetic. "I got you something. For your birthday." He held out the gift, a small, elegant box.

My birthday. I had completely forgotten. The thought was a jarring reminder of how utterly lost I'd become. I took the box, my fingers brushing against his, a fleeting contact that sent a strange shiver down my arm. It was a delicate, silver necklace, intricate and beautiful. It was something Chrissy would wear. Something sleek and modern, completely unlike the worn, sentimental jewelry I cherished. It was a gift for someone he didn't truly know.

"Thank you, Kendrick," I murmured, forcing a polite smile. I clutched the box, a hollow ache spreading through my chest. "I'll just... put this in my room." I turned to escape, desperate for the solitude of the guest room, for a moment to process this fresh wave of emptiness.

But as I turned, his hand shot out, firm and unyielding, gripping my wrist. My backpack slipped from my shoulder, landing with a soft thud. The sudden contact made me flinch, a jolt of alarm running through me. His grip was tight, possessive, a stark contrast to the gentle gesture of the gift.

"Amirah," he said, his voice low, his eyes narrowing slightly, "where have you been?" His gaze dropped to my hand, where the IV needle pricks and faint bruises were still visible, stark against my pale skin.

My breath hitched. My secret was out. I pulled my wrist back gently, but he held firm. I met his gaze, my own eyes, I knew, blank and devoid of emotion. "I was in the hospital," I stated, my voice flat, almost monotonous. "I had a fever, passed out in the rain. Dehydration, exhaustion." The words were devoid of self-pity, just facts.

His brow furrowed, a flicker of surprise, then something akin to concern in his eyes. A flash of the old Kendrick, the one who would have rushed to my side. "The hospital? Why didn't you call me? Or Chrissy?" His voice held a hint of genuine confusion, almost irritation.

A bitter laugh escaped me. He still didn't get it. Chrissy. Chrissy, who had sabotaged my calls. The realization was a cold, hard truth. She had done this. Purposely. To ensure I was truly alone. "I tried," I said, my voice rising slightly, a hint of the old anger sparking. "I called you. Repeatedly. At least a dozen times. But your phone was off. And then it said the number was unavailable."

Chrissy, who had been hovering nervously, quickly stepped forward, her hand on Kendrick's arm. "Oh, darling! I'm so, so sorry! My phone must have died on the trip, and then I forgot to mention it to you. I thought you'd want to be completely disconnected while we were away. You know, a true escape. I never meant for Amirah to be... unreachable." Her eyes fluttered, a picture of innocent regret.

Kendrick looked from Chrissy to me, then back to Chrissy. He sighed, a weariness settling over his features. "It's alright, Chrissy. Next time, Amirah, just text me. Or email. My phone is often off for client meetings. You know that." His words were a dismissal, his acceptance of Chrissy's flimsy excuse a clear statement of where his loyalties lay.

My chest tightened, a fresh wave of despair washing over me. He chose to believe her. Always her. I said nothing, simply nodding, my face a mask of compliance. The gesture was a bitter surrender.

I turned and walked away, my steps measured, deliberate. I just needed to be alone. I needed to escape the suffocating weight of their intertwined lives, their lies, their casual cruelty.

A knock. Soft, hesitant. I looked up from the book I wasn't reading. Kendrick stood in the doorway, his silhouette framed against the warm light of the hallway. He looked... troubled. His usual composure seemed to have cracked, just slightly.

"Chrissy feels terrible," he said, his voice lower than usual. "She didn't realize her phone would block your calls. She wanted me to tell you how truly sorry she is."

A humorless laugh escaped me. "Sorry? For what, Kendrick? For ensuring I spent three days alone in a hospital, believing I had no one? Or for making sure you couldn't be bothered by a 'childish problem' like me?" My voice was sharp, laced with a bitterness I hadn't known I still possessed.

His jaw tightened, a muscle jumping in his cheek. His eyes, usually unreadable, now held a flicker of something close to anger. "Amirah, that's enough. She's genuinely upset."

"Genuinely upset?" I challenged. "Or genuinely worried her little charade would be exposed?" I watched his face closely, searching for a crack in his facade.

He ran a hand through his dark hair, a rare sign of agitation. "She moved my work phone to the other room. She thought it was helping me 'unwind' from work. It was a mistake. A genuine oversight." He rarely explained himself, rarely justified his actions. This was... new. Unsettling.

My mind reeled. He was actually explaining. For the first time in months, he was offering a reason, a defense, for something that had gone wrong. It was a sliver of contact, a hint of the old connection, and it confused me more than his coldness.

But then, the flicker of agitation hardened into something more familiar. "You're being immature, Amirah. This is exactly what I meant by 'growing up.' You need to stop making everything about yourself."

The words, so familiar, so cutting, extinguished the fragile spark of hope. I looked at him, truly looked, and something inside me finally went numb. He would never see me. Never understand. He would always twist my pain into immaturity, my need into dependency. He would always prioritize his convenience, his version of reality. My anger, my love, my pain-they were all just noise to him.

"I'm not being immature, Kendrick," I said, my voice flat, hollow. "And I'm not making everything about myself. I'm just telling you the truth." The truth felt like a heavy weight, settling deep within me. My heart was not just broken; it was numb. The last remnants of my love for him, the desperation, the yearning, slowly dissolved into a quiet, profound emptiness. He was just a man. A man who had once been my world, but was now a stranger.

He stared at me, a flicker of confusion in his eyes. He clearly didn't believe me, didn't understand this new, detached version of me. "Fine," he finally said, his voice rough. "If you insist on being ungrateful... I was going to offer to take you to that little cafe you always liked, the one with the matcha lattes. For your birthday. Like old times."

A distant memory, a pang of longing for a past that no longer existed, stirred within me. He was offering a ghost of a gesture, a memory I no longer cherished. But the numbness held fast. "No, thank you," I said, my voice steady. "I'm quite alright. And I'm not ungrateful, Kendrick. I just... I don't need you to buy me off anymore. I'm grown up now."

His face tightened. I could see the anger warring with something else, something I couldn't quite decipher. "You're not a child anymore, Amirah." His words were an accusation, a veiled threat. "You don't need to be punished."

"No," I agreed, a small, sad smile touching my lips. "I don't. And I don't need to be rescued, either." I had to break free. Completely.

The semester finally ended, a blur of exams and final projects. I spent every waking hour at the library, avoiding the penthouse, avoiding Chrissy's triumphant smiles and Kendrick's distant gaze. I rarely went home, opting instead for long nights at my friend' s dorm, claiming study groups or late-night research. The less I saw of them, the easier it was to breathe, to maintain the fragile peace I had found in my numbness. My interactions with Kendrick and Chrissy, when they happened, were perfectly polite, detached, almost formal. I was a guest, a polite stranger, and the charade felt dangerously close to real.

Finally, all my academic obligations were met. My papers submitted, my grades secured, my acceptance to MIT confirmed. My escape plan was in motion. It was time. Time to say goodbye. Not with tears, not with anger, but with a quiet dignity I finally felt I had earned.

I walked into the living room, my heart a dull thud against my ribs. Only Chrissy was there, lounging on the new cream sofa, a sketchbook in her lap. Kendrick was gone. My shoulders slumped slightly. I had wanted to tell him one last time, to sever the ties face-to-face.

Chrissy looked up, her eyes narrowing. Her smile, usually so practiced, faltered slightly. "What do you want, Amirah? Kendrick's not here. And I'm busy." Her voice was sharp, cutting. All pretense of politeness was gone.

My jaw tightened. "I was just looking for Kendrick," I said, turning to leave. I didn't need this. Not now.

But Chrissy was faster. She sprang up, grabbing my arm, her grip surprisingly strong. "Oh no, you don't. Not before we have a little chat, you pathetic little leech." Her voice was a furious hiss, her face contorted with rage. "Still clinging on, aren't you? After everything? Do you really think he'd ever choose you? A broken little girl who can't even take care of herself?" She spat the words at me, her eyes burning with a desperate fury. She wanted a reaction. She wanted to shatter my composure.

But the numbness held. "My apologies, Ms. Castro," I said, my voice soft, almost bored. "It seems I've overestimated your decorum. I thought you had some class, some breeding. My mistake."

Her eyes widened, a flash of surprise, then something cold and calculating. I heard the distinct click of the front door, the sound of Kendrick's return. Chrissy's face changed instantly. Her eyes welled up, her lips trembled, and then, with a sharp, unexpected movement, she dragged her perfectly manicured fingernails across her own arm, leaving four thin, red lines.

"Oh, Kendrick!" she wailed, her voice thick with sudden, theatrical tears, clutching her arm. "She attacked me! Amirah, she just... she just snapped!"

Kendrick stood in the doorway, his briefcase in hand, his face a mask of shock and anger. He dropped the case with a thud, rushing to Chrissy's side, his arm encircling her. He glared at me, his eyes cold, accusatory. "Amirah," he said, his voice a low, dangerous rumble, "what have you done?" He looked at Chrissy's arm, then back at me, his gaze hardening. "I told you to be sensible. I told you not to cause trouble."

A bitter laugh bubbled up from my throat. This was it. The final act of his cruel play. I met his gaze, my eyes shining with a defiance born of utter despair. "Oh, yes, Kendrick. I did it. I snapped. I attacked your precious Chrissy. Are you happy now? Is this finally enough to get rid of me? Because if it is, then fine. Good. You win." I spread my hands wide, a gesture of surrender and challenge. "Now, what are you going to do? Send me to jail? Disown me? Or do you finally admit that you never cared about anything but yourself?"