𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐨𝐥𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 | ✓

31

I lean into the backrest of the sofa, pressing my thighs tighter together as I fidget with my fingers while Spencer Wright keeps his entire focus fixated on me. 

"I loved being rich. It was a part of me, an inseparable part. I loved doing all those stupid things rich people do, and most of the time it's only for flexing but I loved it." And now I'm tossed aside from that world.

I rub my brow before tangling my fingers together. "My mom used to work in the same office as my dad. They were both rich, and when they married, their families' companies sort of combined, so Mom was most of the time out with Dad. They sent me to kindergarten early on and there I met my first friend, Everly. About a year later, we became friends with Olivia. We went to a school that was only for the elites. In first grade, Alexander got added to our group before three other guys joined."

A bittersweet smile tugs my lips. "We were the perfect pact, the richest kids of the school in a group, you messed with one of us and you were officially screwed. We grew up together, we were there for each other, for our first kisses, first fights, first date nights, first time drinking... for all of our firsts. We knew each other's deepest darkest secrets, wishes, anything you name it. Olivia used to steal her mom's notes and magazines and we would spend hours looking through it, to the point where we had every little detail of our perfect weddings planned out."

My voice breaks. Talking about them now makes me realize how much I truly miss them. I press my hand to my temple, staring at the table, willing myself to stay composed. I inhale sharply and fiddle with my fingers.

"Fast forward to high school, we were the popular kids. I loved the attention I used to get; every second of either receiving attention from a girl, who envied me for having more expensive dresses, or a guy crushing on me. I relished in it." A sad smile curls my lips, my chest aches and I gaze out of the window. Wright slightly shifts on my right.

"I was never in an actual relationship in high school, I didn't want to limit myself. A few weeks before prom, Alex asked me to be his date and I accepted. It made sense, we had been friends forever, he was the richest guy in school and we were the perfect match. And when he asked me to be his girlfriend, I agreed to that too."

Shakily I inhale a deep breath, fidgeting harder with my fingers, and chew my bottom lip, sensing my energy seeping out of me. I drop my head and my hair falls over my shoulders like a curtain covering me from Wright's intense gaze.

Half of me doesn't want to continue. Because I know talking about it will force me to live through everything once more. But at the same time, bottling them up inside of me is exhausting me far more than I'd like to admit.

Maybe I need reassurance from someone outside of this entire shitshow to tell me nothing's my fault. That I'm prey to this misfortune and the way everyone treated me is wrong. Those who separate me from the person I was before bankruptcy are wrong, including myself. That at the end of the day, I'm the same person.

But when everybody has started treating me like I'm a nobody, an absolutely worthless girl, it's hard to make myself believe otherwise.

"Gracie," Wright whispers as he gently pushes my hair away from my face and tucks it behind my ear. His fingertips brush my cheek, making my breath hitch as I dare to spy a glance in his way.

My chest tightens as our eyes lock. His warm hand engulfs one of my palms, stopping my excessive fidgeting. Warmth courses through me as tingling sensations run up and down my body.

"Don't force yourself, okay?" his gentle voice makes my heart skip a beat, as knots tie and untie around it. Mindlessly, he traces idle circles on the back of my wrist with his thumb, momentarily making my mind go blank.