Chapter 26

twenty-six

. . .

Hillary paced Julius’s apartment, her bare feet sinking into the plush carpet with each anxious step. Julius’s words from last night never left her thoughts, a discordant chorus she couldn’t silence. She wrung her hands, replaying the hurt in his eyes, the accusation in his voice.

“It’ll be okay,” she whispered to herself, a desperate mantra. “He’ll come back. We’ll talk it through.”

She knew Julius, knew the depth of his feelings for her. A first fight was always bound to be dramatic. And she’d been so convinced Ethan hadn’t meant any harm on set, it made sense she hadn’t accused him of anything.

“Didn’t it?”

With a sigh, Hillary’s gaze darted to the door for the hundredth time, willing it to open. Julius just needed time to cool off, to realize she wasn’t the deceptive person the tabloids made her out to be. They would get through this, stronger than before.

A sudden knock shattered the tense silence. Hillary froze mid-step, heart leaping into her throat. He was here, knocking at his own apartment to not intrude on her.

She smoothed her hair with trembling hands and crossed the room, hope and apprehension warring within her. Taking a deep breath, Hillary reached for the doorknob, rehearsing the speech she’d been crafting for hours.

The door swung open, and there he was. Devastatingly handsome even in his disheveled state. But something was different. His eyes, usually so warm when they fell upon her, were distant. Guarded.

“Julius, I?—”

He brushed past her without a word, his shoulder grazing hers in a cold whisper of contact. Hillary’s carefully prepared words died on her lips as she watched him stride into the apartment, a sinking feeling settling in her gut.

She closed the door with a soft click, the sound deafening in the heavy silence. Steeling herself, Hillary turned to face the man she loved, desperate to bridge the chasm that had opened between them.

He threw a newspaper onto the coffee table and kept his back to her, forcing her to see what he brought.

The first page was a photo of her and Ethan’s kiss. And even looking at it, she couldn’t deny that even if she’d felt nothing, she’d leaned into it, responded to it because she was annoyed at Julius.

“Can we talk about this? Please?” Her voice wavered, the vulnerability she tried so hard to hide laid bare in the scant space separating them. “The kiss was a childish response. One I’m not proud of.”

Julius kept his back to her, his broad shoulders taut with tension. The seconds stretched into an eternity condensed into a handful of heartbeats.

“I don’t know if there’s anything left to say.” His words were flat, devoid of the warmth that usually suffused his tone when he spoke to her.

Hillary’s vision blurred, hot tears pricking at the corners of her eyes. This couldn’t be happening. They were supposed to be the couple that defied the odds, that proved love could conquer all.

She took a step forward, hand outstretched, aching to touch him. To remind him of what they shared. “Julius, please. I love you.”

He turned then, his gaze meeting hers, and the pain she saw there stole the breath from her lungs. At that moment, Hillary knew their story had reached its final chapter.

His eyes, usually so vibrant and alive, were now filled with a heart-wrenching mixture of sadness and frustration.

“I can’t trust you anymore, Hillary.” His voice was low, the words heavy with the weight of his disappointment. “There will always be other people in our lives, trying to come between us. I need someone who can handle that, who can be honest with me no matter what. I understand I threw you into a huge new world, and that leaving the bubble of filming was bound to be hard on us, but you left out that another man touched you. Kissed you. Even if you hated it, thought it was nothing, you kept it from me.”

Hillary’s heart sank, the gravity of the situation hitting her like a physical blow. She’d never meant to hurt him, never wanted to be the source of his pain. But the relentless media scrutiny, the constant pressure to be perfect, had taken its toll.

“I won’t be something you see as a mistake. Not after spending my entire life trying to be perfect for everyone else.” Her words were barely above a whisper, the lump in her throat making it hard to speak. “You were right. I’m not used to this world, to the spotlight and the gossip and the endless judgment. I’m not used to someone loving me so deeply they push me to do things that feel like controlling me, but I know you weren’t doing that.”

She looked down at her hands, her fingers twisting together in a futile attempt to steady herself. How had everything gone so wrong? Just yesterday, they’d been happy, wrapped up in each other and the promise of a future together.

Julius sighed, the sound weary and resigned. “I know you didn’t mean for this to happen, Hillary. But it did.”

He ran a hand through his hair, the gesture so familiar it made her chest ache. How many times had she watched him do that, marveling at the way the strands slipped through his fingers like silk?

“I just...I don’t know if I can do this anymore.” His words were a knife to her heart, twisting deeper with every syllable. “I love you, Hillary. I know I do, but I’ll constantly be wondering what else you aren’t telling me. I’m not saying I need to know every detail, but if an asshole comes onto you, I want to know.”

“And if I don’t want your protection?”

“Then you won’t get it, but I’ll at least know to watch the ass. Your life is about to get insanely different. This isn’t my attempt control, but at boundaries. I’ll still be here for you every step of the way on this film, but I don’t think I can let the secret go. Not when it was that type of a secret.”

Tears spilled down her cheeks, hot and full of bitterness. She wanted to argue, to fight for what they had, but the defeat in his eyes stopped her cold. He’d already made up his mind, and nothing she said would change that.

“So, what now?” Her voice was small, broken. A far cry from the confident, driven journalist she’d once been.

Julius looked away, his jaw clenched tight. “Now, we go our separate ways. Try to pick up the pieces and move on and be ready for the rest of the tour together. Outside of the set, no one knows we were ever anything to each other. And now the world thinks you are with Ethan and I’m a jealous jackass.”

Hillary nodded, the motion mechanical, automatic. She felt numb, like she was watching someone else’s life unravel before her eyes. “I don’t belong to anyone.”

“Sadly, this world has a habit of making women property. We’ll fix this, but I need to be alone for a bit. You need to figure out how to handle this and maybe we’ll find our way back to each other when you’re more grounded in this world.”

“I’ll always love you, Julius.” The words were a plea, a desperate attempt to hold on to some small piece of what they’d shared. “No matter what happens, that will never change.”

He smiled then, a sad, wistful curve of his lips. “I know, Hillary. I’ll always love you, too.”

Julius moves closer, his hand lifting as if to caress her cheek, but he hesitates, letting it fall back to his side. The small gesture, the aborted attempt at comfort, sends a sharp pang through Hillary’s heart. She searches his eyes, hoping to find a glimmer of the warmth that once filled them, but all she sees is a profound sadness and resignation.

“Hillary, I...” Julius started, his voice cracking with emotion. He took a deep breath, but never finished.

The words hit her like a physical blow, knocking the air from her lungs. She wants to argue, to plead with him to give her another chance, but the finality in his tone stops her. This isn’t a decision he’s made lightly, and she knows, deep down, that there’s no changing his mind.

Julius runs a hand through his hair, his gaze drifting to the floor. “I’ve arranged for a car to take you to the airport. But I need to be alone when we’re not on the press tour. I hope you can understand.”

Hillary nodded, not trusting herself to speak. A thousand things she wanted to say swirled around like water going down a drain. A thousand apologies and promises, but she knew they’d fall on deaf ears. She’d lost him, lost the one person who made her feel like she belonged in this glittering, unfamiliar world.

As Julius stepped back, putting physical distance between them, a profound sense of emptiness settled in her chest. She watched him turn, his broad shoulders slumped under the weight of their shared pain, and walk away from her, from their future.

The sound of his footsteps fading into the distance. Hillary stood there, frozen, as the reality of their breakup settled over her like a suffocating blanket.

Now, she had to find a way to go on, to rebuild her life from the shattered remnants of their love, a dangerous press mistake and god-only-knew what else before she could run away from this world she didn’t belong in from the start.

The click of the door closing behind him echoed through the apartment, offering a resounding finality. Hillary sunk to the floor, her legs no longer able to support her, and buried her face in her hands as hot tears spilled down her cheeks.

She’d known from the moment she stepped into Julius’s world, that she was out of her depth. But she’d never imagined it would end like this, with her heart in pieces and her dreams of a life with him crumbling to dust. How could she have been so na?ve, so foolish, to believe that their love could conquer all?

As sobs wracked her body, Hillary curled in on herself, her arms wrapping tightly around her knees as if to hold herself together. The plush carpet beneath her was a cruel mockery of the comfort she craved, the comfort she’d found in Julius’s embrace.

She thought back to the first time he’d held her, the warmth of his strong arms around her, the way his heartbeat had thrummed steadily beneath her cheek. She’d felt so safe, so cherished, like nothing could touch her as long as she was with him.

But now, the memory of his touch only served to deepen the ache in her chest, the knowledge that she’d never feel his skin against hers again. She’d never wake up to his sleepy smile, never share lazy Sunday morning trading gentle kisses and whispered confessions.

Hillary’s tears fell faster, blurring her vision until the elegant lines of Julius’s furniture became nothing more than a hazy smear of color. She’d thought this place could become her home, a sanctuary where she and Julius could build a life together, sheltered from the chaos of the outside world tucked away from Hollywood in the UK.

Instead, it’d become a monument to her shattered hopes, a reminder of everything she’d lost.

As minutes ticked by, Hillary’s sobs gradually subsided, leaving her feeling hollow and drained. She lifted her head, her eyes red-rimmed and puffy looking back at her in the clean glass window, and took a shuddering breath, trying to steady herself.

With a shaky hand, Hillary reached for her phone, her fingers hovering over the screen as she debates who to call. Her mind flickered briefly to Ethan to confront him, but she dismissed the thought almost the second she had it. She couldn’t turn on him, not after everything that happened.

No, she has to do this on her own, had to prove to herself that she’s strong enough to survive this heartbreak without blaming anyone else. She would go back to her old life, back to the small, simple world she’d left behind, and try to forget the magic and the pain of loving Julius Theon.

Slowly, Hillary pushed herself to her feet, wincing as her stiff muscles protested the movement. Taking a deep breath, she straightened her shoulders and lifted her chin, determined to face this new reality with as much grace and dignity as she could muster.

She moved through the apartment gathering her few belongings, fighting back a fresh wave of tears as she tucked them into her bag and zipped it closed.

With one last look around the apartment, she tried to steady herself. The sunlight streamed through the windows like a ray of hope that wasn’t there. The faint scent of Julius’s cologne lingered in the air to taunt her. She would carry pieces of him forever, bittersweet reminders of a love that had burned too bright to last.

With a heavy heart, Hillary walked to the door, her hand trembling slightly as she reached for the handle. She paused, closed her eyes and took a deep breath, steeling herself for the journey ahead.

“Goodbye, Julius,” she whispered, her voice barely audible in the stillness of the apartment. “I hope you find the peace we both deserve before the tour.”

Stepping out into the hallway, the door clicked shut behind her with a loudness that echoed through her very soul. She knew the road ahead would be hard, that there would be days when the pain would be too much to bear. But she also knew that she was stronger than she realized.

She did her best to hold her head high as she called the elevator and waited for it to take her down, back to her original reality.

The future was uncertain, but Hillary was ready to face it, ready to discover who she was without Julius by her side. And though her heart may be bruised and battered, she knew that someday, it would heal, even if she had to face him a million times before then.

The shrill chime of Hillary’s phone pierced the heavy silence of the elevator she’d gotten into, jolting her from her thoughts. With a furrowed brow, she reached for the device, her heart skipping a beat as Ethan’s name illuminated on the screen along with a text message.

“I heard about what happened with Julius directly from him. I know you’re probably feeling lost and confused right now, probably really fucking pissed at me, but I want you to know that I’m here for you. I can help you navigate this mess, help you find your way in this crazy spotlight. Julius was never going to be able to handle the pressure, but I can show you how to thrive in it. Let me know if you need anything.”

Hillary’s grip on the phone tightened, her knuckles turning white as a surge of anger courses through her veins. How dare he? How dare Ethan reach out to her now, after everything that’s happened? And how dare he be right about Julius? He didn’t even apologize.

Part of her wants to ignore the message, to delete it and pretend it never existed. But another part of her, a small, insistent voice in the back of her mind, wondered if Ethan might be onto something. He could help her put up a shield and deal with the mess they made together.

“He’s manipulating you,” she mutters to herself, shaking her head. “He just wants to use you, to control you.”

Even as the words left her lips, Hillary couldn’t help but consider the possibility that Ethan might be her best chance at surviving in this new world. Julius had promised to be there for her, to help her navigate the challenges of fame, but she didn’t really believe that. Not after this.

“Maybe Ethan’s right,” she whispered, her voice barely audible as she stepped out of the elevator. “Maybe I do need someone to show me the ropes, to help me stay safe in this crazy spotlight.”

Starring at the phone in her hand, her thumb hovered over the reply space. It would be so easy to give in, to accept Ethan’s offer and let him guide her through this new chapter of her life. But something holds her back, a nagging sense of unease that she can’t quite shake.

With a heavy sigh, Hillary put the phone in her pocket, the screen still glowing with Ethan’s message. She knew she couldn’t make that decision now, not when her emotions were raw and her heart so broken.

But perhaps there was something to let the villain help write the end of the story.