Rich Love のすべてのチャプター: チャプター 41 - チャプター 50

The week had been a blur.I spent the remaining days of the week ducking behind lockers, timing my exits from class, avoiding corridors I knew J.J. lingered in. If I saw his silhouette, I turned the other way. If I heard his voice — low and dangerous like a storm cloud about to burst — I held my breath and prayed I was invisible.George became my shadow. A quiet, patient presence I didn’t deserve but couldn’t live without.He didn’t push, didn’t ask too many questions. He just... showed up. Sat with me at lunch. Walked beside me between classes. Took up the seat behind me in every class he could rearrange his schedule for. It should’ve felt claustrophobic. But instead, it felt like a net beneath me. Like something solid holding me up while my world cracked open at the seams.Then came the party.Aunty Pat insisted. She said I needed a proper celebration, a distraction, a reason to smile. I’d argued, but there was no stopping her. She’d invited nearly the entire senior class and decora

The warm fairy lights twinkled above the party like stars stitched into a velvet sky. Laughter echoed across the lawn, mingling with the clink of cutlery and soft music. I tried to stay grounded, to keep my smile wide and convincing, but inside me, a storm brewed. Every time someone hugged me or wished me well, I felt their eyes scanning me, trying to decode something I wasn’t even sure I understood myself.George was beside me, his presence warm and steady, his hand brushing mine now and then like an anchor. Aunty Pat had gone up to the mic again, wearing a bright orange kaftan with gold embroidery. She clapped her hands to get everyone's attention.“Everyone! Everyone, please!” she called out with that cheerful command only she could pull off. “Let’s all go to the garage! Carolyn’s birthday gift is waiting there!”The students cheered. I was puzzled. I hadn’t expected anything extravagant, maybe a bracelet or a new laptop. But the way she said it made my heart hammer against my ribs

J.J's POVShe looked at me like I was a stranger.She looked me straight in the eyes this time, it was as of she was letting know that she was no longer afraid of me or the errand girl I once made her be and then repeated the words she had said earlier. "I’m tired, J.J." She said with a lace of determination in her voice "I don't have think for the love you have for me, to be totally honest I really don't care about your love for me so please... just leave."Those words carved into me deeper than any punch I’d ever taken, deeper than any wound I'd ever had stitched. The way her voice trembled but held firm—like she’d already made up her mind—made my chest tighten until I couldn’t breathe properly. I stared at her, trying to find even a flicker of doubt in her eyes. Something. Anything. But all I saw was distance. A finality that hit harder than anything I’d prepared for.“I stayed,” I said, my voice breaking before I could stop it. “All night, I didn’t even sleep. I—”A knock cut th

J.J'S POVThe drive home was a blur—just trees, traffic lights, and the white noise of my own thoughts howling louder than the engine. My ribs ached where George had landed that punch, and my knuckles were raw, scabbed from cracking against his jaw. Every throb reminded me of him. Of Carolyn. Of the humiliation I’d buried for too long.I pulled into the circular driveway of our estate, the iron gates closing behind me like the drawbridge of a castle I didn’t feel safe in anymore. The house loomed in the dusk, its pristine windows catching the last streaks of sunlight. Home.Except I felt like a stranger in it lately.Why the hell were they always home now? They normally are too engrossed in themselves and work to want to come back home, but these days I always seem to meet them at home. I slammed the car door, slung my bag over my shoulder, and walked up the steps. The double doors opened silently, and I stepped into the cool, expensive air of the foyer. It smelled like lemon polish

Carolyn's POVThe hospital room was quiet, too quiet.The sterile white walls, the soft beep of the machines, and the smell of antiseptic were beginning to suffocate me. My thoughts wouldn't stop racing—thoughts about J.J., about George, about what Emma had said. My heart was still heavy from earlier, and I desperately needed a distraction.I reached for the remote with a sigh, pressing the power button and watching the television screen come to life. At first, it was some mindless soap opera playing, the dramatic music and overacted dialogue more irritating than distracting. I flipped through a few channels until the screen landed on a news broadcast."...Johnson Enterprises has officially pulled out of multiple investment deals with the Thompson Group, causing a notable drop in the latter’s stock prices. Experts say the sudden move has left financial analysts scrambling for answers..."I sat up straighter in bed, clutching the remote tighter.Thompson Group?That was George’s famil