All Chapters of PRETEND PRINCESS: Chapter 151 - Chapter 160

Yuki's POVIt was raining. Of course it was raining.I huddled with Lily under the weeping gray sky, wrapping my hands around the rim of the black umbrella that spanned above both our heads, but the chill crept into my bones anyway. The cemetery smelled like damp earth and dying flowers. Everyone dressed in black. Everyone whispered.I didn't. I couldn't.I gazed and gazed at the closed casket as if if I looked long enough, it would open with a creak and Grandpa Roman would just sit up complaining about how cold his feet were, or how Suzu was hungry for breakfast, or something ridiculous like, "Yuyu, my nails need to be clipped. They're scratching the bed."He didn't. He never would.I didn't know there could be a drowning in grief. That you were attempting to gasp in a sea of air, but it was all for the rest of them, not you.The priest's words continued, gentle and solemn. I didn't listen to a single word. My eyes hurt, but I couldn't cry. Not yet. Not until I could get something o

Yuki's POVJapan was different now.Not because the skyscrapers had changed or the wind burned colder. No. Because of me. I was different. I had stepped off that plane with color, loud laughter, flamboyant pants, and shiny lip gloss. Now I was drab. Dull. Fractured in places I didn't even realize I had.I dragged my feet out of the airport, not even bothering to call for a cab. My backpack was as heavy as lead, yet I wore it. The cold air stung at my skin, but I didn't flinch. My eyes were dry from crying too much on the plane, yet still, I could see him everywhere. Roman. My grandpa. The man who hummed while making tea. The man who had forgotten my name one day and remembered it the next with tears in his eyes.He was gone.And Creed? Creed had pushed me so hard, I wasn't certain that I would be able to make it back.I did not want to feel anything.So I ended up going to the only place where feelings could be drowned out in flashing lights and thumping bass.A club.Not one of the f

Zara's PovAlready past 2 AM when I half-carried myself back to my room, heels dangling from my hand and toes numb from all the walking. I closed the door slowly, cautiously, as if I was hiding something from the walls themselves. Yesterday, I submitted my letter of resignation to Creed and said goodbye to that suffocating office.And today? Or tonight?I'd gone to a freaking all-night aquarium with Zed. What the heck does that? He did. It had been one of the weirdest, stupidest things I'd ever done. And yet, somehow, it'd been magical. Underwater tunnels, jellyfish lanterns, eerie still broken only by the rush of water and our laughter. I'd laughed more tonight than in months. He was silly. So silly. And I. I was starting to like silly.But now it wasn't a single thing. Zed and I had been sneaking around a lot. Since that night, the night that changed everything. He'd started showing up more. Picking me up, dragging me to weird locations—a smoldering bookstore smelling of cinnamon an

Yuki's POVAs soon as I stepped into the Shengli Media sliding glass doors, the buzzing fluorescent light overhead immediately compounded my headache. The entire lobby smelled of overpowering air freshener and stale coffee. I was walking into a new world—one I was not ready for.They trudged like zombie bees, heads down, eyes fixed on their screens, phones, or clipboards. No smiles, no chatter, no contact of human kind. Just functioning mechanical appendages. My heart tightened.I adjusted my crossbody pack and took one foot in front of the other. The receptionist, whom I think was Sade, looked up when she noticed me and blinked, as if she'd just seen a specter."Yuki Roman," she breathed, clearly stunned. "You're back?"I flashed her a half-smile. "In the flesh."The elevator trip up to the third floor was the longest thirty seconds of my life. My heart was pounding. My palms were sweaty. I leaned on the side, eyes closed, trying to breathe. I wasn't ready. Mentally, emotionally, and

Yuki's POVThe city also was too noisy.The streets, the voices, the ringing telephone calls, the bills, the expectations and the guilt—every single thing was a blur in my mind. And I was exhausted. Not the type of exhausted that sleep would fix, but the heavy, deep-seated type of exhaustion that rested deeply inside of you.I scowled at my own reflection in the small temporary guest bathroom I was occupying at the moment. My smudged eyeliner, tangled hair held together in a knot, and ringed eyes weren't from crying, this time around. They were simply from being alive.I'd blown them all. Creed wouldn't even look at me afterwards. I didn't fault him at all. I hated me too. Hated the way I could ruin everything so easily. The way I hurt without even realizing I was doing it. The way everything I did always took me right back where I began—lost and lonely.I would've had to breathe. To think. To run.And so I sprinted.I used the rest of my money on a economy fare ticket to Japan. Don’t