Chapter 101 Betrayal

Chapter 101 Betrayal

Chloe's POV

I didn't feel like listening to Owen's explanation. I retreated to a corner by myself. He called my name a few times. When I didn't respond, he went quiet.

I walked out of the corner. I was still full of questions. Owen was already gone.

I asked a random passerby and found out he'd gone to take photos at the rock formations in the back.

I headed in the direction they pointed. The moment I turned the corner, I saw Stella wrap her arms around Owen.

Stella spotted me. Instead of letting go, she looked over Owen's shoulder at me. Her lips curled into a smile. The kind that belongs to someone who's already won.

Then she cupped his face in her hands and kissed him.

I thought Owen would push her away immediately. But he only froze for half a second. Then he reached up and rested his hand on her waist.

The sight of it turned my stomach. My throat tightened. My vision went dark at the edges.

"Stella…" Owen's voice came out rough. "What are you doing?"

Stella smiled and touched his face. "Exactly what you think."

Owen stared at her. "You sure?"

"Owen, don't play dumb." Stella leaned closer. "You've always known I liked you."

Owen looked down at her. He couldn't hide it. The way his whole face lit up. He guided Stella forward. The moment they came around the rock, they walked straight into me.

The smile on his face froze.

Stella stood just behind him. She slowly ran her fingers through her hair. The amusement in her eyes cut straight into my chest.

"Chloe…" Owen's lips moved. "What are you doing here?"

I looked at him quietly. This person I had loved for so long. Just this morning, he'd shown up with donuts. He'd told me he wasn't there to ask for forgiveness.

His eyes had been red. His voice hoarse. He'd looked so worn down. I'd almost let myself soften.

And yet, just a few hours later, he was hiding behind a rock. Kissing someone else.

"Why did you lie to me?" I asked quietly.

Owen took half a step forward. "Let me explain."

"Explain what?" I kept my eyes on his mouth. "That you didn't kiss her? That you didn't hold her? That you didn't ask her what she meant by it?"

Owen's face went pale. "She made the first move. I didn't—"

"But you liked it." I cut him off. "Owen, I saw everything."

His throat moved. His eyes darted away. "Chloe, my head was a mess. I didn't even know what I was doing."

"The whole thing with Dahlia just came out. I was all over the place. Stella was just trying to comfort me."

"By kissing you?"

He had nothing to say to that.

I let out a small, broken laugh. Tears were streaming down my face. My mouth was still trying to hold a smile. I must have looked like a complete mess.

"If you don't love me anymore, just say so." I said it slowly. One word at a time. "Tell me you like Stella. Tell me you're tired of me. Tell me I'm boring. That I kill the mood. That I'm too sensitive. I can handle it."

Owen's eyes went red. "I never thought any of that."

"But you kept acting like it." I lifted my hand and wiped my face. "You made me wait. You made me guess. You made me come up with excuses for you, over and over. You kept hurting me and just waited. Waited for me to break. Waited for me to give up first."

"That's not what this is!" Owen reached for me. His voice was urgent. "Baby, please don't do this."

I stepped back. Out of his reach.

"Don't call me that." My voice went cold. "It makes me sick."

Owen's expression collapsed. Like I'd slapped him across the face.

Stella pushed off the rock. She let out a short laugh. "Chloe, you're really blowing this out of proportion. It was just a kiss."

I turned to look at her. "This isn't your conversation."

The smile faded from Stella's face. Owen quickly turned to her. "Stella, can you give us a minute?"

"Why should I?" She crossed her arms and looked at him. "Owen, are you seriously going to chase after her right now?"

Owen looked at me. Then at her. He got completely stuck.

I didn't look at him again. I turned and walked away.

Rapid footsteps came from behind me. "Chloe, wait!"

I didn't slow down. Then Stella's voice came through. Flat and cold. "Owen, if you go after her right now, don't bother coming back to me."

The footsteps stopped.

I stopped too. I stood there and waited a few seconds.

Nothing. No one came.

Owen had made his choice.

I finally understood.

My whole body felt weightless. There was a hollow, panicked emptiness in my chest.

I kept walking. The tears wouldn't stop now. Everything blurred into shifting light.

Back at the rest area, the big screen had switched back to a comedy. Tourists scattered across the grass, laughing and talking. A line had formed at the food truck. A few guys sat nearby strumming guitars. They weren't really playing anything in particular.

Everyone else's life had just kept going. Only mine had gotten stuck. Trapped in those messages. Trapped in that kiss behind the rock. With no way out.

Lucas found me quickly. "Where did you go?"

I walked straight into his arms. In that moment, I didn't care who was watching.

I held onto his waist. I buried my face in his chest. I was crying too hard to get a single word out.

Lucas went still for a second. Then he immediately brought his hand up to my back. He walked me toward somewhere quieter.

"What happened?" he asked. His voice was low and careful. "Did someone hurt you?"

I shook my head. I was still crying too hard to breathe properly.

"Did Owen say something to you?"

I shook my head again.

Lucas helped me into one of the camp chairs at the far edge of the area. He crouched down in front of me. He gently wiped the tears from my face.

His fingers were warm. His movements were careful, almost restrained.

"Look at me," he said. "Tell me what happened."

I gripped his sleeve. My voice came out wrecked and uneven. "Lucas, is something wrong with me?"

His expression darkened. "Who said that to you?"

"Am I boring?" I choked out. "Am I just never enough? Not pretty enough? Can't say the right things? Is that why no one ever really cares about losing me?"

"Chloe."

"Am I too much to deal with?" The tears kept coming. "Too sensitive? Too intense? Too hard to handle?"

Lucas put his hands on my shoulders. "Stop."

But I couldn't. Everything I'd been holding back came flooding out at once.

"I loved him so carefully. I tried to understand him. I bent over backwards to make things easy for him. And he still chose someone else." My voice shook. "Does that mean I really am a failure?"

Lucas's face was grim. "No."

"You don't have to say that."

"I'm not just saying it." He held my gaze. His voice was steady. "It's the truth."

He slowed down. "You went to find Owen just now?"

I didn't answer.

"He said something cruel to you?"

I shook my head.

"Was Stella there?"

My shoulders trembled slightly.

Something cold moved through Lucas's eyes.

"What did they do?"

I bit down hard on my lip. I tasted blood. Then I let go.

"I saw them," I said quietly. "The two of them. Behind the rocks. They were kissing."