Chapter 2

After what felt like forever, Celebrities and guests of the event started leaving the hotel entrance, walking the red carpet as paparazzi and reporters followed their every move to snap pictures and ask them questions.

A sense of nervousness and anxiety suddenly engulfed me and I looked around frantically as I desperately tried to find Luke amongst the many people walking past me, hoping that I would spot him in the distance.

It was late, and the cold air from the wind made my tears feel warmer against my cold skin and I shivered lightly, hugging myself tightly and sniffing my nose, wiping away any remaining wet droplets that escaped from my swollen eyes.

"Luke! Michelle! Over here! Can I ask you about your sudden confession tonight that you guys are more than just co-stars, but lovers?" A lady's voice snapped me out of my thoughts as I turned around slowly and raised my eyebrows, blinking several times as I stared at Luke.

He was holding Michelle tightly by her waist, and then he leaned forward to whisper something in her ear which caused her to giggle and nod. 

A smile lit up his beautiful face as he pulled back and gaze into her eyes with so much adoration, causing my heart to ache painfully.

I just froze, my hand clutched to my chest as my eyes burned with fresh tears. Why would he do this to me? Why now after everything that has happened between us? How could he do this to me? It's unfair! It's completely unfair! 

"Luke!" I shouted, tears streaming down my face, my breathing uneven.

I didn't know what I was thinking by doing so, and soon Luke and everyone else gaze at me, stopping their conversation for a few seconds as the paparazzi and reporters stopped talking to focus solely on my direction.

A look of horror crossed Luke's features as my eyes met with his, and I noticed his brown orbs widening slightly.

Without hesitation, the cameras flash, and flashes go off nonstop as lights heightened the night as everyone focused on us.

Guilt was writing all over his face like he knew what he had done, that he had hurt me, that he had betrayed me... it hurt so much, and I knew that there was no way I was going to forgive him.

Then fear s***** in his hazel eyes as they landed on mine, and his expression dropped further, his grip on Michelle getting even tighter, and I desperately wanted to know what was going through his head.

"Babe, do you know her?" Michelle asked in a soft tone, glancing over at me and then staring at Luke with a hint of confusion written on her face as well.

This was it, the moment for him to finally redeem himself, for him to prove to me that he meant it when he said that he loved me, this morning and that this is all just a misunderstanding.

"No," Luke coldly said, looking into my eyes, and I felt all hope leave my system.

My body shut down and my feet refused to move as I stood rooted to my spot and watched on in horror as Michelle smiled softly at Luke, and my world began to crumble apart. 

My knees weakened as my feet seemed to be made of lead and it was as if I was underwater, unable to move a muscle.

"What an attention seeker. He doesn't even know her and she's calling his name like that! She obviously has some serious crush on him, I'm sure of it," A lady voice behind me sneered. 

When I eyed them, another lady nodded, agreeing with her, saying, "Yeah, look at her standing there, all by herself, crying over a man who doesn't know her. I bet Luke's relationship announcement took a toll on her. Look at those tears rolling down her cheeks, she looks like she's about to throw up at any moment. It's pathetic,"

They were just a foot away from me, and I bet that they knew that I could hear every single word they were saying, but both women didn't care about the words they were spewing. 

"Luke!" I shouted again, looking back at him and pleading, trying to figure out why this was happening, why he was doing this to me.

Mumbling began to echo through the crowd, and everyone started pointing towards me, as I was still frozen in place.

His eyes narrowed, the anger that he held inside burning brightly as he glared at me harshly, letting me know what he was thinking with his cold gaze... I shouldn't ruin such a huge moment for him.

I shook my head, fighting back the lump in my throat as I stared down at him, clenching my fists and fighting back the urge to cry. 

"Congratulations, Luke. I am happy that you have won the award for Best Actor... Umm... I have always been your biggest fan since your first audition and I am proud of you, I mean, you're a very talented actor, really..." I stuttered, forcing my words through my trembling lips.

It was better to be a pathetic fan in the eyes of the public than to be the secret lover of a man that is dating a famous A-list actress, so I swallowed my pain and my pride and forced myself to stand tall and keep smiling, even though it was killing me internally.

After gathering my strength, I turned away from him and walked out of the crowd, shoving my cold fingers into my jacket and heading for the road.

When I finally got home an hour later, I walked over to my bed, and collapsed onto it, covering my face with my pillow as tears streamed down my cheeks.

It sucked that I spent four years of my life with a man, and just like that, I was thrown aside, and another woman was able to replace me in his heart. The thought of it made my heart sink and I was so angry at myself.

Memories of us, the nights and days we would spend together, laughing, kissing, bare against each other's bodies, our hearts beating fast and strong... I missed all of it so badly, and now he was with Michelle instead.

Just as I was about to fall asleep, my phone vibrated once again, causing me to let out a groan, and then reach under my pillow for it.

"My love," blinked on my screen, and I knew that it was Luke.

It annoyed me that he was calling after what he just did to me, after ruining everything. I wanted to talk to him, and hear his voice, but I was way too heartbroken to answer or to even think.

So, ignoring his call, I rolled onto my side and went to sleep as silent sobs racked my entire body.

But a few seconds later, I heard my doorbell ring, and I forced my eyes open slowly, feeling heavy to wake up.

My eyes sore and my eyelids heavy, I finally climbed out of bed and made my way out of my room.

When I got to my front door, I glanced into the peephole and saw Luke outside my door with a face cap as he stared at the ground while gripping both sides of his coat in a tight fist.

Honestly, I felt too sad and upset to see him, but I forced myself to open the door and look at him.

"What do you want?" I asked, crossing my arm in front of my chest as he looked up at me with bloodshot eyes, looking almost depressed.

I could tell that he was drunk as hell by the amount of alcohol in his breath, but I also saw that he still had a tint of sadness in his brown eyes.

"Can I come in?" Luke mumbled quietly.

I frowned, looking up at him and shaking my head in disbelief, my eyebrows furrowing together angrily, "No, you can. Now, tell me what do you want?"

"A breakup..." Luke spoke, his deep voice raspy from drinking, and my anger was instantly provoked by his words, my eyes turning into slits.

"A?! What the heck, Luke?! This isn't a joke! You are seriously leaving me for her! What about us? What about all these memories that we've shared?! Don't you realize how important you have become to me!" I exclaimed loudly.

"You don't understand. I can't be with you anymore! I am sorr-"

"Don't say it! Don't tell me you are sorry when you know what you are doing to me... that you are hurting me this much! Four freaking years, and for what?! This!! You are literally the worst!" 

My tears were flowing again as Luke stared at me in shock, blinking at me as if unsure of whether or not to speak.

He opened his mouth to say something, but closed it without uttering a sound, his eyes shifting from mine, and I swallowed hard as my bottom lip quivered, feeling completely broken.

"Okay, so we are clear that it's over between us, right?" Luke asked, looking directly into my eyes, a hint of worry hidden in the depths of his brown orbs, which were filled with guilt.

The audacity of this man was unbelievable, he had no idea how hard it was to keep my feelings in check, how I was holding back every emotion that was threatening to spill out of my soul as I stared him straight in the eye, my breathing hitching as I tried to stop myself from crying because I needed to remain strong.

"Yes. We are over Luke," I replied, staring at him sternly, and he slowly nodded, his hands releasing their grasp around his coat and falling to his sides limply. "I hope that this is what you want because once you turn your back to me, you will never get another chance again."

Luke stared at me, looking deeply into my eyes, and I could tell that he wanted to say more to me, but he couldn't, and he just nodded, turned his back to me, and quickly made his way towards his car, driving off in one swift motion, and I remained standing there in silence, watching as his car left the driveway and disappeared from my sight.

It was over between us and for the first time in my life, I didn't feel any sense of peace. Instead, I felt empty, numb, and broken.

My entire being felt dead, and everything within me wanted nothing more than to lie in my bed and just let the whole world go away.

"What now?" I whispered, shutting my front door, sniffing the air as I caught a whiff of my favorite scene of us in my head, of him tracing my hair behind my ear, of us cuddling on his couch, talking about everything and anything, of the way he laughs, his smell, his touch...

My stomach churned, and I bit down on my lip so hard that I tasted blood at the thought that he cheated on me.

Once I slammed the door shut, I leaned heavily against it, sliding down until I was seated on the floor, burying my face in my hands as fresh hot tears spilled down my cheeks.

"I am never falling in love again," I said as if speaking to someone who was listening to me. "Never again."