Chapter 13 Chapter 13
Chapter 13
Honk! Honk!
Still, no one came out to open the tall fancy gate. Amelia’s eyes twitched in annoyance. She hit the horn again, harder this time. Nothing.
“Unbelievable,” she muttered, stepping out of her car. The sound of her heels echoed on the pavement as she stormed toward the gate post.
“Are you all blind here?” she snapped. “Didn’t you hear me honking since?”
The gatekeeper stood straight, nervous. “Sorry, ma’am. Mr. Castellan said we shouldn’t let you into the company anymore.”
Amelia froze. “What did you just say?”
“Mr. Castellan gave strict orders,” he repeated quietly.
“Me?” She pointed to herself, laughing mockingly. “Do you even know who the hell I am?”
The man swallowed hard. “I’m sorry, ma’am. I don’t mean any disrespect, but… we were asked not to allow you in again.”
Amelia’s lips curved into a cold smirk. She blinked slowly, anger and disbelief flashing in her eyes. “Hmm. Fine.”
Without another word, she dragged herself back to her car, slamming the door harder than necessary.
As she drove through the evening road toward Castellan Villa, her grip on the steering tightened.
Her thoughts were burning. Ethan blocking her from the company? After everything she did for him?
The gate of the Castellan Villa opened automatically when she arrived. She didn’t even greet the guard. Her heels clicked sharply against the marble as she marched toward the mansion door.
The butler opened the door before she even knocked. “Good evening, ma’am. How may I help you?”
“Tell Mrs. Maria Castellan that Amelia is here,” she said flatly.
The butler nodded and left quickly. A few minutes later, Maria came down the wide staircase wearing a long house gown and her reading glasses.
“Oh, Amelia,” she said softly, smiling. “You’re here. Please, have a seat.”
Amelia didn’t sit. “I didn’t come to sit, Maria. I came to tell you what your son just did.”
Maria frowned a little. “What’s wrong?”
“Your son humiliated me today,” Amelia said sharply. “He told the security guards at Castellan Enterprise not to let me in. Can you imagine? I was standing there like a fool at the gate while they told me I’m banned.”
Maria’s face changed. She adjusted her glasses slowly. “Wait, what? He said that?”
Maria’s smile faded slowly. She inhaled softly before speaking. “Hold on, Amelia. I know he’s been passing through things lately. I’ll talk to him, I promise.”
“You say that every day,” Amelia snapped. “After everything I’ve done for your mentally unstable son, he still wants to dump me?”
“Amelia, don’t say that,” Maria said firmly.
“I’ll say it because it’s true!” she shouted. “Yes, I helped him when he was shaking every night, when he couldn’t sleep, when he couldn’t even look at his reflection without feeling disgusted. I stayed! And now he wants to act like I’m nothing?”
Maria sighed. “You’re misunderstanding him. He just—”
“I’m not misunderstanding anything!” Amelia cut in, her voice breaking. “He used me to cure his anxiety and now that he’s back to himself, he wants to pretend I never existed!”
Before Maria could answer, the heavy door opened from upstairs. Ethan stepped in. His steps were firm, his eyes cold.
“Shut up, Amelia,” he said flatly, cutting her short.
Amelia froze for a second before turning to him. “What did you just say?”
“I said shut up.”
Amelia’s lips curled slightly. “Oh, look who finally decided to show up,” she said coldly.
Ethan didn’t answer. He only walked closer, his eyes on her. “You don’t get to talk to my mother like that,” he said quietly but firmly.
.
“Oh please,” Amelia said, rolling her eyes. “Don’t act like the perfect son now.
You told those guards to humiliate me. Why, Ethan? After everything I’ve done for you?”
“I had my reasons,” he said simply.
“Reasons?” she scoffed. “You’re unbelievable. You think you can just erase me from your life like that? You wouldn’t even be standing here if not for me!”
Ethan’s jaw tightened. “Stop,” he said again. “You’re crossing the line.”
Maria turned to her. “Amelia, let’s calm down. I’ll handle this.”
“Handle what?” Amelia yelled. “He’s ended everything between us, hasn’t he? He stopped replying to my messages, blocked my number, and threw me out like garbage!”
Maria sighed again. “Amelia, please.”
“You’re even lucky someone like me decided to settle for a mentally unstable man like him!” Amelia screamed, her voice cracking with anger.
Ethan looked at her, his face expressionless now, his tone cold. “You’re right about one thing,” he said quietly. “You stayed. But you also made things worse.”
Amelia froze.
“I didn’t tell those guards to keep you out because I hate you,” he continued, his voice steady. “I did it because I don’t ever want to see you again.”
“Ethan…” Maria whispered in shock.
He didn’t look at his mother. His eyes stayed on Amelia. “You used my weakness against me,” he said.
“You called me names. You reminded me of things I was trying to forget. You didn’t help me heal — you made sure I never did.”
“That’s not true!” Amelia shouted. “I helped you—”
“No,” he cut her off. “You helped yourself. You liked having control over someone broken.”
The silence that followed was heavy. Amelia’s face trembled with anger and disbelief.
“You can’t do this to me,” she said finally, her voice shaking. “You can’t just end things like this. Not after everything.”
“I already did,” Ethan said quietly. “That’s why you weren’t allowed into Castellan Enterprise today. And from today onward, I don’t want you showing up here either.”
Amelia blinked. “You’re throwing me out?”
“I’m asking you to leave,” he said simply. “And not come back.”
Maria looked between them, helpless. “Ethan, maybe you should.”
“No, Mom,” he interrupted. “I’ve made my decision.”
Ethan clenched his jaw, his fists tightening. His breathing grew heavier. “You’re done talking,” he said quietly, almost shaking.
Maria stood up quickly, sensing the tension. “Both of you stop this right now!”
But Ethan didn’t listen. He walked past Amelia, his body trembling. His head pounded as if every sound in the room echoed directly inside his skull.
He didn’t want to explode in front of his mother. He didn’t even want to look at Amelia anymore.
He went straight upstairs, ignoring their voices calling after him. He slammed his door and leaned against it, breathing hard.
For a moment, everything around him felt distant. The walls, the sound of the clock, even the faint chatter downstairs all blurred.
He reached for the drawer beside his bed and pulled out a small white bottle. His hands shook as he opened it.
The pills. The same ones his doctor had told him to take when he couldn’t handle the noise in his head.
He stared at them for a
while, then took two tablets, swallowing them dry.
His body fell weak onto the bed. He covered his face with his hands, breathing unevenly.
He could still hear Amelia’s voice ringing in his ears. Her words stabbed him like knives “mentally unstable.”
He hated that word. It reminded him of the past. The mistakes. The memories he couldn’t erase.