Her fingers slipped from his hand as she straightened, an uneasy smile on her lips. "Audrey, I’m so sorry. Jasper asked me to take him to school. Do you want to do it instead?"
Before I could utter a word, Jasper tightened his grip on her hand and shot me a glare.
"I don’t want you to take me. You don’t deserve to."
His words cut deep, but I met his gaze without hesitation. "Are you sure?"
"I’m sure."
"Alright. Then hear me clearly: I swear, for the rest of my life, I will never take you to school again."
Jasper faltered. He hadn’t expected me to be so resolute. A flicker of uncertainty crossed his face before he threw out a final challenge.
"You better not regret it."
Neither of us backed down. The tension crackled between us until Ava quickly stepped in, her voice dripping with forced lightheartedness.
"Oh, come on! No need to argue like this. Let's just talk things through..."
I didn’t give her the chance. I saw right through her, and this time, I made sure she knew it.
"Stop pretending. Isn’t this exactly what you wanted?"
Her face drained of color. Without another word, she tightened her hold on Jasper’s hand and hurried him away.
Once they left, I sat down for breakfast, though the food tasted like nothing. My mind was elsewhere.
Afterward, I returned to my bedroom, reached under my pillow, and pulled out the sleeping pills.
Ever since Ava moved in, my nights had been endless battles with insomnia, my thoughts gnawing at me until morning. Anxiety coiled around my chest like an iron grip. The doctor had prescribed these pills months ago, and over time, I had collected more than enough.
Crossing the room, I placed my miscarriage diagnosis report on Hugo’s study desk. A quiet statement left for him to find.
Then, without hesitation, I swallowed them all.
Lying down, a strange calmness settled over me as drowsiness took hold. My body felt heavy, the edges of my mind blurring.
Just as darkness began pulling me under, my phone screen lit up.
A message from Ava.
[Guess what? Tonight, is he spending it with you or with me?]
Five seconds later, the message vanished. Deleted.
My fingers slackened, and my phone slipped from my grasp.
My body felt weightless as if I had become a bird soaring through the endless sky, drifting effortlessly without the need to flap my wings.
I had no sense of time. The blinding white around me stretched endlessly, swallowing everything until it didn’t.