Vivianne's circle was already gathered when Grace arrived. The moment she stepped into the room, silence fell like a heavy curtain. The girls whispered amongst themselves, their perfectly manicured hands curling around teacups, their gazes darting toward Vivianne for direction. Grace hesitated in the doorway, her stomach twisting with the weight of their attention.
Vivianne did not disappoint.
"Oh, look who decided to grace us with her presence," Vivianne said, her voice laced with honey and venom. She leaned back on the velvet couch, her painted nails tapping against the rim of her champagne glass.
Grace steadied herself, though her heart betrayed her resolve with a hard, uneven thump. "I'm sorry I couldn't make it—"
"Sorry?" Vivianne interrupted, a sharp laugh cutting through the tension. She tilted her head in mock curiosity, her hair cascading over her shoulder like spun gold. "Do you think an apology fixes humiliation? Do you have any idea how it looked when your name was on the guest list and you never showed? Do you understand the embarrassment that caused me?"
Grace stiffened, her jaw tightening as her fingers curled into the fabric of her dress. She opened her mouth to respond, but the words faltered. Her hands trembled slightly, hidden from view.Vivianne leaned forward, her gaze cutting through Grace like a blade. "You don't get to make excuses," she said, her voice dangerous. "You either respect my invitations, or you're not one of us."
Grace's chest burned with the weight of humiliation and anger, but she refused to let her emotions take over. Her voice was calm, deliberate, but sharp enough to slice through Vivianne's arrogance.
"I didn't realize friendship came with attendance requirements," Grace said quietly, her tone polite yet pointed.
The room fell silent. Vivianne's expression froze, her eyes narrowing with a flicker of disbelief at Grace's words. It wasn't an outburst—it was controlled, precise, a subtle correction to the queen bee's assumed dominance.
Vivianne's lips curled into a slow, dangerous smile. "How ungrateful."
Grace held her ground. Her stomach churned, but she didn't falter. Without another word, she turned on her heel and left, her steps purposeful despite the weight pressing down on her.
The parking lot was quiet, save for the sound of her heels clicking against the pavement. Grace walked briskly toward her car, her thoughts spiraling as she reached for the keys in her purse.Her breathing felt uneven, like the air refused to settle in her lungs. She needed to get away—from Vivianne, her suffocating world, her father's relentless expectations.
Sliding into the driver's seat, she paused for a moment, gripping the wheel tightly. The need for escape felt like a physical force, pushing her to act. The seashore was calling her. It had always been her refuge, the one place where she could shed the pretense and simply breathe.
As she started the engine, movement in her peripheral vision caught her attention. She glanced toward the shadows by the building and froze.
Aries Cain.
He stood there, partially concealed by the darkness, his tall frame rigid yet composed. His eyes—a striking shade of steel—were fixed on her car, unreadable but intense. Grace's pulse quickened. There was something in his expression that unsettled her, a quiet weight she couldn't place. His gaze lingered, as if tethered to her, and for a fleeting moment, she wondered what he was thinking.
It wasn't just observation—it was something else. He didn't move, didn't look away, almost as if he wanted to follow her, to drive her to wherever she was going. Grace's grip on the steering wheel tightened, and she forced herself to look away, swallowing the unease rising in her chest.
The car hummed to life beneath her, and she pulled out of the lot, leaving him behind. But his gaze stayed with her, lingering in the back of her mind like a shadow she couldn't shake.
The seashore stretched out before her, vast and untamed. The waves roared against the rocks, the sound filling the silence in her chest. Grace stepped out of the car, the sharp wind biting at her skin, pulling at her hair.
This was her sanctuary. The one place where the weight of expectation faded, if only for a moment.
She walked along the shoreline, her heels sinking slightly into the damp sand. The rhythm of the waves mirrored her turmoil, crashing and retreating, a battle between chaos and calm.
Grace closed her eyes, breathing in the salty air as the memories of the evening washed over her. Vivianne's mocking smile. Her father's stern face. The suffocating pressure to fit into a world she didn't belong to.
How much longer can I do this?
She crouched down by the edge of the water, letting the cold seep through her fingers. The stars overhead seemed far away, distant yet comforting in their indifference. Here, she could exist without judgment, without roles to play or masks to wear.
Grace stayed there until the chill crept into her bones and the sky darkened further. When she finally rose and walked back to her car, her steps felt lighter, though the weight in her chest hadn't entirely vanished. She wasn't sure if it ever would.