Chapter 116
Aria’s POV
I stayed standing there for a long time after Enzo left.
The room was quiet, but inside me, everything felt loud
my heart, my thoughts, the pull I hated and wanted at the same time.
I wrapped the towel tighter around me, as if it could protect me from the way he made me feel.
I got dressed slowly, pulling on soft leggings and an oversized sweater. I needed comfort. I needed something simple. Something that didn’t make me feel like my skin was too tight.
I was brushing my hair when there was a knock at my door. A soft one.
I stiffened for a second, half expecting it to be him again. But when I opened it, it wasn’t Enzo.
It was her.
The woman from earlier
–
the one who had laughed so easily, the one who had stolen the air from my lungs for a little while.
Now, standing in front of me, she didn’t look like the threat I had imagined. She looked… tired. Sad, even, though she smiled when our eyes
met.
“Hey,” she said softly, holding a shopping bag in her hand like a peace offering. “You must be Aria.”
I nodded, my throat tight.
“I’m Chiara.” She shifted the bag in her hands. “Enzo’s sister. Matteo’s too. And Dante’s.”
She smiled wider, but there was something behind it, something fragile.
–
“I brought you these.” She held out the bag. Inside, I saw a bottle of fancy lotion, a candle, and a book a real effort gift, not a random one.
“I wasn’t sure what you liked,” she added quickly. “But I thought maybe… we could hang out? Go shopping? Or just get some air?”
I hesitated.
My heart was still raw. My pride was bruised.
But I saw it the loneliness in her eyes. A mirror of my own.
And maybe I needed this too.
A reason to breathe. To laugh. To forget the way Enzo’s voice still echoed inside my head.
I nodded slowly. “Okay.”
Her face lit up in a way that made her seem younger, lighter. She reached out and grabbed my hand like we had already known each other forever.
“Come on. I’m dying to get out of this place before I start crying over my ex all over again.”
I let her pull me along.
1/2
Chapter 116
Maybe I needed to escape too.
લસણ ક
The streets were busy, the sun hanging low and warm above the buildings.
Chiara walked like she owned the world
confident, easy, the way I wished I could be.
We wandered into shops, laughing over ridiculous shoes and picking out clothes we would never actually wear.
Chiara held up a glittery pink jacket at one point and said, “This is so you.”
I wrinkled my nose. “I’d rather die.”
She burst out laughing, loud and free, and for the first time all day, I smiled without feeling like it hurt.
We got smoothies from a tiny place tucked between two giant boutiques.
Sat on a bench outside, watching people go by.
Chiara told me about her ex
–
– about the heartbreak, the dreams they had made that all crumbled.
And without meaning to, I told her about mine-
–
about loving people you weren’t sure would ever really be yours.
She listened.
She didn’t judge.
And when she looped her arm through mine and leaned her head on my shoulder, it felt natural.
Like I hadn’t lost everything.
Like maybe I had gained something too.
It was late by the time we got back to the penthouse.
The sky was purple, the city lights just starting to glow.
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