𝐀𝐑𝐈𝐀𝐍𝐀 ||The Sequel||

CHAPTER 40

Tristan

My rage pulsed harder. It leaked from my veins and spread into my chest, hollowing it out until nothing else remained. 

Half of it was directed at Justin for even existing. The other half...

Breathe. 

I hurried to the parking lot and tossed the hotdogs inside a trashcan on the sidewalk. Questions clouded my mind and no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't summon an ounce of warmth.

My blood had iced into one solid, painful pool, and I was afraid any movement would crack it. Splinter it into a thousand icicles that would shred me open from the inside.

"Tristan!" I paused in my tracks and slowly turned around.

She abruptly halted her run and stood in front of me, guilt written all over her face, making my fists clench involuntarily.

"How easy was it?" I blurted out a thought that had been gnawing at my mind just moments ago.

A solitary tear traced a path down her face, but I made a conscious effort to keep my composure and not be swayed by it.

"It's not what you're thinking," she muttered, her voice barely audible.

"Then tell me that I heard it all wrong. Tell me! You've been messing around with that guy, keeping it a secret from me. And to top it all off, you lied about losing the necklace that I gave you."

My jaw tightened as I glared down at her. The sight of her standing there, tears and mascara streaking down her cheeks as she struggled to find words, unleashed an irrational surge of anger within me.

"Did you ever plan on telling me, or were you just going to let me look like an idiot until we graduate and move on with our fucking lives?"

She sobbed and took a step closer. I instinctively stepped back, shooting her a fierce glare. Being too close to her was pushing the limits; I felt like I might snap.

"Tristan—"

"Did you do anything else besides making out? Be honest. Did you?"

I attempted to control my tone, but keeping my cool was a real challenge as my tolerance had been breached, and anger festered from her betrayal.

Every puzzle piece that shaped our relationship into what it was now, tainted.

It wasn't about the secret or the lie that she told me. I didn't give two fucks about those.

It was about trust.

All I'd ever wanted was honesty and commitment, and all I'd ever gotten was deception.

Tension knifed through my gut and tears pricked the back of my eyes as I clenched my jaw and forced myself to see her, waiting for her to say something.

"I don't remember anything."

Confusion suddenly clouded my face and she wrapped her arms around herself while staring at me through teary eyes.

"We only made out and it was a stupid mistake. I just got wasted that night a-a-and I woke up.....not remembering anything else that we did."

A long pause stretched out between us. A sudden scoff escaped from my lips before it turned into a full sarcastic laugh.

"You're telling me, that you don't remember if you had fucked that night?" She visibly flinched under my tone but I couldn't care less.

I was on the verge of madness of trying to piece all the pieces together one by one to at least try and understand the situation, but anger had already clouded my judgment. There was nothing else I could do about it but be mad.