His name was Nathaniel

104

The morning after their fight, Adaliya woke up to her phone vibrating endlessly on the nightstand. She groaned, rubbing her eyes, only to see an overwhelming number of notifications lighting up her screen.

Multiple missed calls from her mother.
Several messages from Lola.
A string of texts from Violet, all in capital letters.

Her stomach twisted with unease as she unlocked her phone, her heart rate picking up as she saw the words "HAVE YOU SEEN THE NEWS?!" flashing at her from multiple people.

A sinking feeling washed over her as she opened the first link Violet had sent.

There it was—her and Nathaniel, standing outside the clinic, mid-argument.

The photos weren't just a few blurry snapshots taken from a distance; they were crisp, clear, and damning. One showed Nathaniel, his expression tense, lips parted as if mid-sentence, while Adaliya stood with her arms crossed, her jaw set in frustration. Another showed her looking away, as if dismissing him, while Nathaniel stood stiffly, hands clenched at his sides.

The headline made her stomach churn:

"TROUBLE IN PARADISE? HEIR NATHANIEL DONOVAN AND GIRLFRIEND SPOTTED IN HEATED ARGUMENT OUTSIDE A PRIVATE CLINIC—COULD A PREGNANCY BE INVOLVED?"

Adaliya sat frozen, her pulse hammering in her ears.

How did it spiral into this?

They had barely left the clinic when their fight had resumed in the car, but she hadn't expected anyone to have been watching, let alone for it to be twisted into something so invasive. And the worst part? Somewhere in the article, the word 'pregnancy' was slipped in—just enough to spark rumors.

She barely had time to process it before her phone rang again. Her mother.

Adaliya hesitated, but she knew she couldn't avoid it forever. With a deep breath, she answered.

"Adaliya." Her mother's voice was sharp, impatient. "Tell me right now—is it true?"

Adaliya pinched the bridge of her nose. "Mom—"

"Don't 'Mom' me! Your face is plastered all over the internet! And now people are saying you're pregnant? Are you Pregnant?"

"I'm not."

There was a pause. "Then why were you at a clinic?"

Adaliya exhaled, already exhausted. "Because I wasn't feeling well. I thought I might have had a stomach bug. That's all."

Her mother wasn't convinced. "You do realize how this looks, right? You're with a Donovan, Adaliya. People will do anything to twist your image. This is exactly what I was afraid of."

Adaliya's jaw tightened. "I didn't do anything wrong."

"But you let yourself get dragged into his world."

That was all it took for the conversation to take a downward spiral. Her mother kept talking—about how she had warned her, about how Adaliya should have known better, about how this relationship was bound to bring unwanted consequences.

And maybe in the back of her mind, Adaliya wondered if her mother was right.

⸻

Nathaniel sat in the lounge of his hotel suite, gripping his phone so tightly his knuckles turned white.

His grandfather who arrived shortly after sat across from him, an unamused look on his face as he tossed a printed copy of the morning's news onto the coffee table between them.

"Want to tell me why I had to hear about this from a damn magazine?" his grandfather asked coolly.

Nathaniel didn't respond immediately. His gaze flickered to the headlines again, a flash of irritation crossing his features.

"I already told you—it's not true," he muttered.

His grandfather raised an eyebrow. "So the pregnancy part is false?"

Nathaniel clenched his jaw. "Yes."

His grandfather studied him for a long moment before leaning back in his chair. "That may be the case, but you're missing the bigger picture. This isn't just about what's true and what isn't. It's about optics. About how you handle yourself in the public eye. If you're going to fight with your girlfriend, do it behind closed doors, not in front of a damn clinic."

Nathaniel's patience snapped. "You think I wanted this?"

"I think you need to be more careful."

Silence stretched between them. Nathaniel ran a hand down his face, exhausted. His grandfather's voice softened slightly, but there was still a firm edge to it.

"Did you even reach out to her?"

Nathaniel stilled.

"Don't look at me like that," his grandfather said. "You fought with her. It's been nearly two days. What are you waiting for?"

Nathaniel exhaled sharply. "It's not that simple."

His grandfather scoffed. "Oh, it's exactly that simple. Either you fix it, or you don't. But don't sit here sulking like a boy who lost his favorite toy."

Nathaniel's hands curled into fists. He wanted to reach out. He really did.

But something held him back.

Maybe it was the lingering frustration from their fight. Maybe it was the dull ache of disappointment still clinging to him from the false pregnancy scare.

Or maybe it was the nagging feeling that he and Adaliya were standing on opposite sides of a widening gap—one he wasn't sure how to bridge.

⸻

Adaliya sat curled up on her couch, staring blankly at the unread messages on her phone.

Violet sat beside her, watching her carefully.

"Are you going to call him?" she finally asked.

Adaliya's grip tightened around her phone. She didn't know what to say. She didn't even know if she wanted to talk to him.

Everything felt heavy.

The argument. The fight in the car. The headlines. The way he had distanced himself.

And most of all, the way she had seen that flicker of hope in his eyes at the clinic before it had been crushed.

Violet sighed, leaning back against the cushions. "You guys are so damn stubborn, I swear."

Adaliya gave a humorless chuckle. "We have our reasons."

Violet was quiet for a moment before nudging her lightly. "Hey... are you okay?"

Adaliya exhaled slowly, closing her eyes for a brief second.

"I don't know," she admitted.

Violet hesitated before reaching over, squeezing her hand.

And for now, that was enough.

⸻