Stay away from me

Stay away from me
#NEXT DAY #
#THE WEDDING#

VIOLET’S POINT OF VIEW

I didn’t think it was possible to feel this empty in a place that was supposed to be filled with so much joy, yet as I sat there watching everything unfold, it felt like I was somewhere else entirely, like my body had shown up for my mom but my mind and heart had been left behind somewhere between last night and this morning.

The music was soft and elegant, floating gently through the air, blending with quiet laughter and the low murmur of voices, and everything about it was beautiful in the way weddings are meant to be, carefully arranged and glowing with happiness, yet none of it reached me because all I could feel was the weight sitting in my chest, heavy and unrelenting, making it hard to even breathe properly without remembering.
I hadn’t slept.

Or maybe I had, but not in any way that mattered, because the moment I closed my eyes all I saw was that screen, that video, those words, his voice, and the way everything I thought was real had shattered so easily in front of everyone.

Even now, sitting here dressed as a bridesmaid, with my hair perfectly styled and my makeup carefully layered to hide the swelling around my eyes, I knew I didn’t look like myself, not really, because there was something dull underneath it all, something hollow that no amount of powder or gloss could fix.

My gaze drifted toward the front where my mom stood, radiant and smiling in a way that made something inside me ache differently, because she looked happy, genuinely happy, like she had finally found something steady and good, and I wanted to hold onto that, I wanted to let that moment mean something, but it felt distant, like I was watching her happiness through glass.

At some point, without even realizing it, my eyes moved across the crowd, slow and unfocused, until they stopped on him........Dylan.

He was standing there among the guests, dressed perfectly like he belonged in this world of polished smiles and celebration, and the moment my eyes met his, it felt like something inside me twisted painfully because he was already looking at me, not casually, not by accident, but like he had been searching for me this entire time.
For one brief, dangerous second, my heart reacted before my mind could stop it, a small, familiar pull that I hated instantly because it reminded me of how easily I had believed in him.

Then everything came rushing back, sharp and unforgiving, and whatever softness had tried to surface disappeared just as quickly.My expression hardened before I could even think about it, my jaw tightening as I turned my face away from him completely, refusing to give him even a second longer, because looking at him felt like reopening something that hadn’t even started to heal.

If it wasn’t for my mom, I wouldn’t have been here at all.I would have locked myself in my room, shut the world out, ignored every message, every call, every attempt anyone made to reach me, because right now the idea of facing people felt exhausting, overwhelming, unbearable.

The ceremony eventually came to an end, and the sound of applause filled the air, bright and celebratory, but it felt distant to me, like something happening far away, something I wasn’t fully part of, and as people began to move, to stand, to gather and talk and laugh, I took that as my chance.
I needed to leave.

Not dramatically, not in a way that would draw attention, but quietly, carefully, just slipping away before anyone could stop me or ask questions I didn’t want to answer.
So I moved, weaving through the crowd with small, controlled steps, my eyes fixed ahead as I made my way toward the exit where I knew the cars were waiting, where I could finally breathe without feeling like I was being watched.

I was so close,Just a few more steps and I would be out.

“Violet.........”My name stopped me instantly, my entire body going still before I even turned, because I didn’t need to look to know who it was, I would recognize that voice anywhere.Slowly, against every instinct telling me to keep walking, I turned around and nd there he was.

Closer than before, his expression nothing like the confident, composed version of him I had always known, because now there was something else there, something unsettled, something desperate, something that might have meant something to me once but didn’t anymore.

“I’ve been trying to reach you,” he said, his voice low and urgent, like he was afraid I would disappear if he didn’t say everything quickly, “you blocked me everywhere.”
Good.

The thought came immediately, sharp and cold, but I didn’t say it out loud, I just stood there, looking at him without responding, because I didn’t trust what would come out if I opened my mouth too soon.

“Please,” he continued, taking a small step closer, his eyes fixed on mine, searching, almost pleading,

“just hear me out, Violet, please, I need you to understand, it’s not what you think........”

“Stop.”The word came out steady, cutting through everything he was trying to say, and the way he froze instantly told me he hadn’t expected that, hadn’t expected me to shut him down so completely.

“Don’t,” I added, my voice quieter now but even firmer, my gaze unwavering as I held his,

“you don’t get to explain anything to me.”

“Violet, please......”

“Who’s he?”The interruption came from beside me, and I didn’t even need to turn fully to know it was Zack, his tone protective and sharp, with Zoe right there too, already watching the situation unfold with narrowed eyes.

“And why does it look like he’s been following you all day?” Zoe added, her voice carrying that same edge that told me they weren’t going to ignore this.I let out a slow breath, my patience already worn thin, my chest tightening again as I looked back at Dylan, who still hadn’t stepped away, still standing there like he wasn’t ready to let this end.

That was when something inside me snapped into place, not loudly, not dramatically, but firmly enough that I knew I wasn’t going to hesitate anymore.

“If you take one more step closer to me,” I said, my voice low but dangerously steady, every word deliberate as I held his gaze without flinching,

“I swear to God, Dylan, you’re going to regret ever knowing me.”The silence that followed was heavy, thick with everything unsaid, and I saw it in his face, the way the words landed, the way something in his expression faltered like he hadn’t prepared himself for this version of me but I didn’t wait for him to respond.

I turned away from him completely, my movements controlled even though everything inside me felt anything but, and without giving him another chance to speak, I walked straight past him toward the car, my siblings immediately falling in step beside me without question.

I could feel his presence behind me, like he wanted to follow, like he was fighting the instinct to come after me again, but he didn’t, or maybe he knew better this time.
Either way, I didn’t look back.I got into the car, shutting the door firmly behind me as I stared straight ahead, my chest rising and falling a little too quickly, my hands clenched tightly in my lap as the car began to move and still… I didn’t look back.

The ride from the ceremony to the reception felt longer than it actually was, not because of distance but because of the silence that settled inside the car, the kind that pressed gently against your chest without anyone needing to point it out, and I was grateful for it because I didn’t have the strength to pretend, not now, not after everything that had already happened.

Zack and Zoe didn’t push, even though I knew they had questions, even though I could feel their glances shifting toward me every now and then, trying to understand what they had just witnessed without making things worse, and for once I appreciated that they stayed quiet, because explaining anything right now would have meant reliving it, and I wasn’t ready for that. They came back from the boarding school yesterday because of the wedding and because of my mood last night I didn't even know.....it was this morning they both came to my room.




By the time we arrived at the reception venue, the atmosphere had already shifted into something livelier, something brighter and louder, with music playing more freely, laughter spilling into the open space, and guests moving around in clusters of conversation and celebration, but even stepping into that environment didn’t change the way I felt, because the heaviness followed me in like a shadow I couldn’t shake.

The party has been going on, so many guests had arrived and I notice mom has been smiling non stop,it was so obvious that she's happy.I stayed close to my siblings at first, using their presence as a shield more than anything else, allowing myself to blend into the movement of the crowd without really engaging, nodding when necessary, offering small, polite smiles that didn’t quite reach my eyes, and hoping that would be enough to get through the evening without drawing attention.

It almost worked......almost because no matter how much I tried to avoid it, I could feel him.Not physically, not always in sight, but there in that way you just know someone is watching you, that quiet awareness that sits at the back of your mind no matter how much you try to ignore it, and every time it surfaced, it made my chest tighten just a little more.

I moved again, this time toward the edge of the reception space where it was slightly less crowded, where I could breathe a little easier, where the noise softened just enough for me to think without everything crashing into me at once but I should have known it wouldn’t last.

“Violet…”His voice was closer this time and I turned sharply, already feeling the frustration rise before I even saw him, and there he was again, standing right in front of me again......his expression more desperate than before, like whatever patience he had been holding onto was slipping away.

“I told you to stay away from me,” I said immediately, my voice low but firm, not giving him room to start explaining again.

“I can’t,” he replied just as quickly, his voice strained in a way that made something flicker inside me despite everything,

“not when you won’t even let me explain.”

“There’s nothing to explain,” I shot back, my chest tightening as the memory of last night pushed forward again, sharper this time,

“I saw it, Dylan, I heard everything, I don’t need you to twist it into something else.”

“I’m not twisting anything,” he said, stepping closer despite my warning, his eyes locked onto mine with a kind of intensity that would have undone me before,

“yes, it started as a bet, I’m not going to lie to you about that, but it didn’t stay that way, Violet, it didn’t.......”

“Stop talking.”My voice came out louder this time, enough that a few people nearby started to glance in our direction, but I didn’t care anymore, because something inside me was cracking open again and I couldn’t hold it down the way I had earlier.

“You don’t get to say that,” I continued, my words sharper now, my control slipping just enough for the hurt underneath to show,

“you don’t get to stand here and tell me it ‘changed’ like that makes it better.”

“It does matter,” he insisted, his voice rising slightly as well, not in anger but in urgency,

“because everything after that was real, every moment, every feeling, every........”

“I told you to stay away from me!”This time my voice carried.It cut through the music, through the conversations, through the laughter that had been filling the space just moments ago, and just like that, everything slowed, people turning, attention shifting, the atmosphere changing in a way that made it impossible to pretend this was private anymore but I didn’t stop......I just couldn’t.

“Do you not understand that?” I continued, my chest rising and falling faster now, my hands trembling slightly at my sides as everything I had been holding in finally pushed to the surface,

“I don’t want to hear anything from you, I don’t want your explanations, I don’t want your apologies, I don’t want you anywhere near me.”A hush fell over the immediate area, the kind that spreads quickly without needing to be announced, and I could feel it, the eyes on us, the whispers starting, but none of that mattered compared to the way he was looking at me.Like I was slipping out of his reach,Like he didn’t know how to stop it.

“I swear I’m sorry,” he said, his voice breaking slightly now, the words coming out more raw than anything he had said before,

“I haven’t been able to eat, I haven’t been able to sleep, I can’t even think straight without you, Violet, please, just listen to me, just once, that’s all I’m asking.”For a split second, something inside me wavered and I hated it because it reminded me of how easily I used to believe him.

“I trusted you,” I said, quieter now but no less heavy, my eyes holding his as the words settled between us,

“and you made a joke out of that in front of everyone.”

“I didn’t........”

“You did.”The interruption was immediate, final, leaving no room for argument, no space for him to soften it, no way for him to take it back.

“I've told you to stay away from me,” I repeated, my voice steady again, colder now, like something inside me had locked into place and that was when another voice cut in.

“Dylan.”It wasn’t loud,It didn’t need to be.The authority in it was enough to shift everything instantly.The murmurs quieted, the tension sharpened, and even without turning, I knew exactly who it was.Dylan’s father.......The governor.

“What’s going on here?”The question hung in the air, calm on the surface but carrying enough weight to demand an answer, and f
or the first time since this started, Dylan hesitated completely, his voice gone, his confidence gone, his words nowhere to be found.