Chapter 34
Seren is done with concern that comes too late.
Moments ago, Swain had clearly sensed that something was off with Slater. He could have stepped in and stopped everything before it happened, but he didn’t. What’s the point of caring afterward? The damage was already done.
Regret gnawed at Swain.
But Seren didn’t give him a chance to make things right. She glanced at him with cool indifference. “If there’s nothing else, you should go p>
With that, the heavy door closed behind them.
A solid iron door now separated Swain and Slater from Seren—and in his heart, Swain felt she’d shut him out for good.
He could never get back in.
“Slater, I’m sorry,” Carla said, hurrying over, her eyes glassy with unshed tears. “If it weren’t for my birthday party, you and Seren wouldn’t have had such a big
falling out. Maybe we should just forget about the whole thing p>
Slater, no longer looking lost and shaken, had already recovered his usual arrogance. He brushed her off, his tone casual. “There’s nothing to forget. The argument between me and her is none of your business. You don’t need to blame yourself p>
He shrugged. “It’s your birthday, you’re the one who matters. As for certain irrelevant people, whether they show up or not doesn’t make any real difference p>
He’d already lost his composure in front of Seren. He wasn’t about to let Carla see him falter, too.
Besides, Carla had been looking forward to her party for ages. He wasn’t about to let Seren ruin it for her.
Swain stood by, his face stormy with anger.
Slater could treat his own sister so harshly, and after lashing out, he didn’t even bother to apologize-just acted like nothing had happened.
But when Swain caught sight of the tears shimmering in Carla’s eyes, he swallowed all the harsh words he wanted to hurl at Slater.
The fault lay with Slater, not Carla.
Carla was innocent in all this.
Tomorrow was her birthday; if Swain started a fight with Slater now, it would cast a pall over everything.
Carla’s birthday party mattered. He couldn’t ruin it.
The three of them turned and climbed into the black Mercedes.
As Carla got in, she glanced back at the firmly shut door. A faint, mocking smile played on her lips.
With the door closed, she no longer had to see Swain or Slater’s faces.
Inside, Seren felt no sadness—only exhaustion.
It was the kind of weariness you feel after working sunrise to sunset,
vi.ne
tending fields that in the end, you realize don’t even belong to you?
Now that she wanted to sever ties with them, they clung to her all the more.
She glanced down at the dark bruise blooming on her wrist, then tugged her sleeve down to hide it.
The mark looked ugly but didn’t hurt; it didn’t need any special attention. In time, it would fade.
Her constitution meant it would probably take longer than most, but that was nothing new.
She was never the fragile type.
Heading upstairs, she scrolled through her call log and found Lennon’s number.
She wasn’t sure why he was the first person to come to mind-maybe because she’d already been thinking of moving in with him a bit sooner than planned.
This whole fiasco today had forced her to put on a show just to get them to leave,
but at least she’d spared Nadine any real trouble.
What about next time?
In front of others, she still wanted to keep some dignity.
And she never liked imposing on people. The last thing she wanted was to drag Nadine into her mess.
The phone rang just once before Lennon answered.
His voice was calm and reassuring. “What’s up p>
Seren paused, steadying herself, trying to keep her voice from betraying her mood.
She spoke as casually as she could. “Are you free to pick me up tonight? If not, just send me your location-I can-” get there myself.
She didn’t finish.
Lennon’s answer was firm, leaving no room for doubt. “I’m free. Send me your location on WhatsApp. I’m leaving now p>
“Wait for me p>
He hung up without another question.
Seren let out a silent breath. She’d been afraid Lennon might ask why she suddenly wanted to move in early She wouldn’t have known what excuse to give him if he had.