Chapter 128
Chapter 128
Violet
I pushed open the dorm room door and was hit by a wave of warm air from the heater.
Lily sat cross-legged on her bed, MacBook balanced on her lap, munching from a bag of chips.
At the sound of the door, she glanced up. Her eyes landed on my face.
She immediately hit pause and shoved the laptop aside. "What happened to you? You look awful—like you've seen a ghost."
I slipped off my coat and hung it up, then walked over to my desk and set down the phone with its shattered screen.
Lily gasped and practically jumped off the bed.
"What the hell happened to your phone? Who did that? Was it Niamh again?"
"No. It was Ethan." I pulled out my chair and sank into it, feeling completely drained.
I told her everything—running into Ethan downstairs, the way he'd lost it and smashed my phone. Every detail.
By the end, my voice had dropped to barely a whisper, my hands twisting together in my lap.
"And then he said Julian's been carrying a torch for someone he could never have. His 'white moonlight.' That I'm just a substitute."
The room fell silent for a few seconds.
"Bullshit!" Lily rolled her eyes so hard I thought they might get stuck. She stormed over and gripped my shoulders. "Violet, please tell me you don't actually believe that loser."
I bit my lip and said nothing.
"Ethan is a full-blown psycho right now." Lily looked at me like I was breaking her heart. "He knows he can't win you back, so he's resorting to the lowest, dirtiest tactics to mess with your head. He's trying to drive a wedge between you two. He's gaslighting you! He wants you to doubt yourself, to walk away from Julian on your own. If you fall for it, you're playing right into his hands."
"I know he's trying to manipulate me." I took a shaky breath, my voice rough. "But Lily, Julian's fourteen years older than me. He's brilliant, he's perfect. There's no way he's been alone all this time. What if… what if Ethan's telling the truth? What if there really is someone Julian couldn't have, someone still in his heart?"
Lily dragged another chair over and sat down directly in front of me.
She looked me straight in the eye, her expression serious.
"Violet, listen. Even if Julian did have some 'white moonlight' in his past, that's exactly what it is—the past. Everyone has one. Are you really expecting a man in his thirties to have zero romantic history before meeting you?" She squeezed my hand, her tone firm. "What matters is the present. Right now, you're the one he calls every day. You're the one he took to Disneyland last weekend. You're the girlfriend he went public with on Instagram. That so-called white moonlight, even if she exists, is nothing but a shadow. Why would you let a shadow make you doubt a real, flesh-and-blood man who's standing right in front of you, treating you like a queen?"
Her words were like cold water dousing the shapeless anxiety burning inside me.
"The worst thing you can do in an adult relationship is let suspicion poison it." Lily patted the back of my hand. "If you really can't let this go, just ask him. Talk to him. Julian's not the type to hide things. Asking him directly is a hell of a lot better than sitting here torturing yourself with what-ifs."
I stared at the cracked screen on my desk, my mind a tangled mess.
Ask him? How?
"Did you love someone before me?" "Do you have a white moonlight in your heart?"
Those questions sounded so childish, so unreasonable.
Julian spent his days on Wall Street handling billion-dollar mergers, navigating the tangled web of corporate power plays. He was already exhausted.
How could I drag some lunatic's baseless accusations into our relationship and interrogate him with them? How could I add to his stress?
I didn't want him to think I was some insecure, paranoid little girl who threw tantrums over nothing.
"I'll sort it out on my own," I said, forcing a smile at Lily.
She sighed but didn't push. She just reached over and pulled me into a hug.
That night, I barely slept.
My dreams were full of Ethan's twisted face, his words echoing over and over: "You're just a substitute."
The next morning, Lily shook me awake.
"Violet, get up! Your capitalist boyfriend is downstairs waiting for you!" She yanked open the blinds, practically shouting with excitement.
I bolted upright and grabbed the battered phone from my desk.
There was a message from five minutes ago.
Julian: Downstairs.
I threw off the covers, raced through my morning routine, pulled on a beige turtleneck sweater and jeans, grabbed my coat, and ran.
The morning air in Manhattan was freezing, the wind biting at my face. Outside the dorm building, along the tree-lined path, the black Maybach sat quietly by the curb.
Julian stood leaning against the car door, dressed in a tailored charcoal suit beneath a black cashmere overcoat.
The pale winter sunlight caught the sharp line of his jaw.
When he saw me, he straightened, a warm smile softening his expression.
"Don't run. You'll fall." He stepped forward and pulled me into his arms without hesitation.
The familiar scent of cedar wrapped around me instantly.
Pressed against his chest, feeling his warmth, all the confusion and doubt from last night suddenly felt absurd.
"Why are you here so early?" I looked up at him.
"Wanted to see you." Julian released me, reached into the car, and pulled out a brown paper bag. "Breakfast from Balthazar. Your croissant and hot latte. There's also an iced Americano in there for Lily."
I took the bag, warmth radiating through the paper.
He was always like this—taking care of me, and somehow always thinking of my friends too.
"Thank you." My heart melted.
Julian reached into his coat pocket and produced a small black velvet box.
He opened it. Inside was an exquisite diamond bracelet, minimalist in design but unmistakably luxurious.
He took my hand and fastened the bracelet around my wrist himself.
The cool metal against my skin warmed quickly under his touch.
"I'm flying to London this afternoon." Julian looked down at me, a trace of reluctance in his gray eyes. "There's a merger in Europe that needs closing. I'll be gone four or five days. I won't be able to come see you while I'm away."
So he'd come to say goodbye.
That's why he was here so early.
"Work comes first. I'll be fine," I said softly, brushing my fingers over the bracelet.
"I already texted Lily. She'll keep you company while I'm gone. If you want to eat out or buy anything, use the card I gave you." Julian lifted his hand and brushed his thumb gently along my cheek. "If anything comes up—if anyone bothers you again—call me. Anytime. No matter how late. I'll answer."