Chapter 575 Stupid Ideas
“Then just say you’ve got cancer! Tell her you’re dying or something!”
The room fell dead quiet.
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Brogan, who was usually the calmest of the three, had finally hit his limit. He grabbed a pillow and chucked it straight at <i>Alex</i>. “Jesus, shut up already. You’re giving me a damn migraine.”
“I’m just trying to help! Come on! Use your brain for once! You need to think too!”
Silence took over again.
Most of those ideas would just shove her even further away.
Ethan didn’t say a word. He rubbed his forehead, fingers dragging slow and uneven like something inside him had snapped. The overhead light cast shadows that drowned out his expressionpletely.
“Brogan.”
His voice came low and tired. “Get him out of here.”
Brogan, who was the least trashed, gave him a look. “You sure? Want me to call Tony to pick you up?”
“No.”
Ethan’s voice was raw, like it hurt just to speak. “I just need to be alone.”
Brogan paused, then gave a nod. “Alright. He’s wasted anyway. I’ll get him out. Call me if anythinges up.”
Alex kept muttering under his breath while Brogan dragged him out. The door shut behind them with a dull thud.
The lounge went still.
Only low, background music yed from the corner speaker.
Ethan leaned back into the couch. His eyes stayed open. The overhead lights spun across his pupils, colors twisting like he was stuck underwater.
“Dawn…”
The name slipped out of his mouth before he even realized it.
A tear trailed down the side of his face. Something deep inside him caved in.
The next morning, Dawn jolted awake to her phone ring beside her.
She sat up fast, blinking at the unfamiliar ceiling, then remembered she was back in Eastcrest Regency. She turned her head and saw the bed next to her was still untouched.
Her phone kept ringing.
<b>5:04 </b><b>pm </b>
Chapter 575 Stupid Ideas
She picked up just in time to hear Anna’s voice, loud and panicked.
“Dawn, finally! I’ve been calling you all night. Do you have any idea how worried I was?!<b>” </b>
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Hearing Anna’s voice made her chest ache in a good way. She smiled. “Come on. If I really wanted to scare somebody, I wouldn’t waste it on you.”
“Don’t joke around.”
Anna huffed, clearly ticked. “Where the hell are you?”
“I’m at…”
Dawn paused, slid into her shoes, and walked to the window. Morning light poured across the yard. The grass practically glowed under the summer sun.
She suddenly remembered the first time she and Ethan came to Northville. It had been snowing. They spent hours outside building snowmen and pelting each other with snowballs.
A small smile tugged at her lips.
She wasn’t thinking about Ethan. She was thinking about how far gone those days were.
“I’m at Eastcrest Regency Residence.”
She took a slow breath, then said quietly, “But I might not stay long.”
“And where to next?”
‘Just… somewhere.”
She still didn’t have a n.
Anna didn’t push. She didn’t try to talk her down either. Maybe she knew there wasn’t anything left to say.
‘Alright. Lunch. Then I’ll take <i>you </i>wherever you want.”
Dawn agreed. They chatted a little longer, then she hung up to get ready.
When she came downstairs, she found <i>out </i>Ethan hadn’te home.
The guards were gone too.
It really did seem like he was done with everything.
Hannah told her all that with a strange look on her face, waiting to see how Dawn would react. But Dawn didn’t flinch. Not once.
“Hannah.” Dawn finished thest bite of her breakfast, wiped her lips with a napkin, and looked up. “I don’t think I’ll be staying here. Please take care of yourself<b>, </b>okay? Really.”
The second she said that, Hannah’s eyes turned red. “Sweetheart… why won’t you give him one more chance? You two used to be so perfect. You were…”
Her voice cracked and trailed off.
<b>5:04 </b><b>pm </b>G Pppp.
Chapter 575 Stupid Ideas
She swiped at her eyes, trying to stayposed.
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Then she reached over and held Dawn’s hand. “Take care of yourself out there, alright? Eat well. Sleep well. Don’t let what already happened–or what might–mess with your head. Promise me.”
Dawn’s nose stung. “I promise.”
Goodbyes from someone older always hit the hardest.
It took a long time before Dawn finally stepped out of the Eastcrest gates and slid into the car she’d called.
She headed straight for Anna’s. They talked. They had lunch. They found a quiet town where she could disappear for a while.
Right before Dawn climbed into the car, Anna asked, “You think you’lle back?”
“I don’t know.”
Same answer. Same honesty.
Anna didn’t respond. She just let out a deep sigh and pressed harder on the gas.
They’d already bought her ticket earlier. At the airport<b>, </b>check–in and security went quick.
It all took five minutes.
The priorityne was empty. Anna wrapped her in a tight hug. This time, she couldn’t hold back the tears.
Her voice broke. “I don’t care where you go. You better be okay. And you better text me the second something happens. Got it?”
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<strong>Olivia Harris</strong> is an emerging author celebrated for her captivating romantic and steamy novels. With a talent for crafting deep emotional connections and fiery chemistry between her characters, Olivia’s stories offer readers an escape into worlds filled with passion, intrigue, and heart-stopping drama.