Chapter 149: The Ice Cold Shoulder

Cassian's POV

Milo's hands grabbed my shoulders, pulling me back before I could throw another punch. Landon grabbed Silas from behind while Silas fought to get away. Everything was loud and chaotic, but I wasn't paying attention. I was breathing hard as I twisted against Milo's grip, trying to get one more shot at Silas. My knuckles hurt. My jaw ached. None of it mattered.

Then I saw her.

Daphne was standing in the doorway staring at me. My body went completely still. I stopped fighting Milo. I looked at her face, waiting for something anger, fear, or any worry. But there was nothing. She looked at me like she did not know who I was anymore.

Instead of coming toward me, she turned around. She walked back into the diner. My stomach dropped. I watched her through the glass as she picked up her bag from the booth. Reed stood beside her. She did not look back at me. He just walked out the front doors with her, his hand near her shoulder, leaving me standing there while the guys held me back.

The weight of her face stayed on my mind for the rest of the night. I could not sit in my room, and I could not sleep either; the guilt came crashing in.

By nine o'clock, I was standing on Daphne’s front porch. I knocked on the door, my bruised knuckles hurting.

The door opened slowly. Daphne stood in the entryway, wearing a big, dark sweater. She did not invite me in. She did not move out of the doorway. She just stood there, blocking the entrance. Her face still had that same dead look from the diner.

"Daphne, please," I said, my voice rough. "You don't understand. You have to let me explain what happened."

"I don't think there is anything to explain, Cassian," she said. Her voice was flat.

"Yes, there is," I said, taking a step closer. I wanted you to know that. "Silas is a liar. You know how he talks. He was just saying whatever he could to make me look bad because he was angry I cornered him. You can't believe a word he says."

Daphne did not move. She just stared at me. "Then answer me honestly."

"I am trying to..." "Did you see Silas hit Asher?" she asked, cutting me off.

I hesitated. My throat felt dry, and the words got stuck.

"Answer me," she said. Her voice did not rise, but it felt heavy.

"Yes," I whispered.

"Did you stop him?"

I looked down at the floor. Silence filled the space between us. I could not look her in the eyes.

"Cassian," she said again.

"No," I muttered.

Daphne took a slow breath, her shoulders tightening under her sweater. "How many times?"

"What?" I asked, looking up.

"How many times did he hit him?"

I looked away, my chest tightening. "Daphne, it was a mess that night. Everyone was tense and rushing around, and I was just.."

"How many times, Cassian?" she asked again. "You remember, don't you?"

"I don't know," I lied, my voice cracking.

"You stood there long enough to remember," she said.

The denial broke, and I tried to justify it. I leaned against the doorframe, my hands shaking. "I was angry, Daphne. You know what Asher's lies did to my family. Every morning I help Oliver out of bed. Every single night I hear him pretending he isn't in pain when he thinks I'm asleep.

Every time I looked at Asher last year, I saw the person I believed stole my brother's future. You don't understand what Oliver became after that night."

"I understand," Daphne replied. "What I don't

understand is how watching someone suffer made you feel better."

A wave of frustration hit me, and the anger came right back into my throat. "You're always defending him! Why are you taking his side over mine? I am the one who has been drowning in this case for a year. I am the one taking care of a brother who can't even walk anymore.

You're supposed to be my girlfriend, Daphne. You're supposed to back me up when things get ugly, not stand there judging me like I'm the criminal!"

"This stopped being about Asher the moment you admitted you watched someone being beaten and walked away," Daphne said. Her voice was steady, hitting me right in the chest.

I froze. The words cut straight through my anger. I opened my mouth to say something, but the words died. I looked down, the guilt finally breaking through.

"You're right," I whispered, my head dropping. "It didn't. It only made me hate myself."

I looked up, my voice sounding small. "I'm so disgusted with myself, Daphne. I know I should have stopped Silas that night. I know it was wrong. I stood there, and I watched him hit Asher, and I didn't do anything to stop it. I just turned around and walked away. I've been carrying that in my head every single day, and it's eating me alive."

I tried to find any sign of softness in her face. I dropped all the pride, moving into raw honesty. "I was a coward. I was afraid that if I stepped in, I'd get dragged into their mess, or maybe... maybe a part of me just wanted to see Asher get hurt because I blamed him for Oliver. I hated him so much. But keeping my mouth shut didn't fix anything."

Daphne swallowed, but she stayed completely still in the doorway.

"You used to tell me I wasn't like everyone else," I whispered, the memory hitting my chest.

"Because I believed you," she said softly.

"Believe me now," I begged, taking a step closer.

"I'm trying to," she said, her eyes wet. "That's the problem."

I took another step forward, entering her space, my voice cracking as I looked down at her. "Please, Daphne. Do not look at me like this. I know I messed up. I know I broke my promise to you, and I know I am a disaster right now. But I need you. You are the only person who actually knows me.

You're the only thing keeping me from completely losing my mind. Just give me one more chance to fix this. I'll do whatever you want."

Daphne looked at me, her face completely still. "Do you need me... or do you need someone to tell you you're still a good person?"

The question hit me hard. I froze, my mouth opening, but I didn't have an answer. The words wouldn't come. I reached out my left hand, my fingers shaking as I tried to hold her hand, begging for her touch.

Daphne looked at my bruised face. She stepped back before I could touch her.

"You told me I see the things other people don't see in you," Daphne said. Her eyes filled with tears, but her voice never shook.

"Well... now I do."

"And I don't like what I see."

She pulled the door shut right in my face. I heard the lock turn, and then the house went completely quiet. I was just standing there by myself on the porch in the cold.