In the bustling city of Melbourne, Cassalia and Blake are excited to embark on a new chapter of their lives, hoping to have a smooth and delightful first year at Melbourne University, where every moment will be beautiful and unforgettable.
However...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Days bleed into each other, turning into a week, and the silence from Blake feels more like an ache than a relief. He's become a ghost, withdrawing piece by piece. It's as if he's finally agreed to give me the space I've been asking for. No calls, no messages, no quiet gestures of reassurance. Just... nothing. And though this is what I wanted—what I demanded from him—the hollowness that fills its place twists inside me.
I miss him. I miss us. But the reminder of his betrayal stings sharper. I can't go back; I'd be foolish to, and yet, my thoughts are in constant turmoil. Each time I wonder if I should hear him out, Paul's words echo in my mind, steady and insistent: Don't give him a time of a day. Blake doesn't deserve a second chance. You deserve so much better. You'd be repeating your own mistakes if you forgive him—just like you did with Ben. And he's right. I've learned this lesson once before, and I know I'll get through it again. My heart will heal. I'll find my way out of this, no matter how hard it feels now. The pain will pass, eventually.
"Penny for your thoughts?" Austin's voice jolts me back to the present as he settles next to me.
"Oh, hey," I say, trying to force a small smile. "Didn't see you come in." I lean back on the couch, catching sight of Ben rummaging through the fridge. "How were your classes?"
He raises an eyebrow, clearly not buying it. "My classes are the last thing I'm worried about right now," his gaze is fixed on me. "What's weighing on your mind?"
I exhale, almost too tired to pretend. "Blake. What else?"
Austin wraps an arm around my shoulders, pulling me close. "At least he's not bothering you anymore," he says gently.
"But he'll figure things out eventually," I sigh, the thought weighing on me. "Eve and Paul haven't said anything to him, but I wouldn't put it past Ray."
Austin shakes his head, reassuring me. "I didn't tell him, and that's why I've been meeting him at his place instead of here. I told him that Ben is hosting some of his friends."
From the kitchen, Ben chuckles. "I'm pretty sure he knows she's here."
"As long as Blake doesn't show up, I'm happy," Austin says, his tone a little too casual. I don't know why, but his words sting. As much as I want to push Blake away, it hurts to think of him fully erasing me from his life. Even in math class, where silence now fills the space that used to hold stolen glances and quiet laughter, he's made himself a ghost. He no longer brings me coffee, that simple ritual now hollow and gone, and he always sits at the farthest end of the room. It's as though he's systematically erasing himself from every corner of my life, piece by piece, until nothing remains. And maybe that's what makes it hurt the most.
