CHAPTER 30: CHAPTER THIRTY: GOLD DIGGER

Christy’s POV

The moment Kendrick’s back disappeared down that hospital path, something inside me caved in. I stood frozen behind the flowers, too numb to move, too broken to breathe properly.

My heart wasn’t just hurting, it was shattering into pieces sharp enough to cut through my chest.

How could he?

How could he look me in the eyes barely an hour ago and confess feelings that felt so real... only to walk away now like none of it ever mattered?

I pressed a trembling hand to my mouth to stifle the sob clawing its way out of my throat. No sound escaped, only a harsh gasp.

My knees threatened to buckle. For a terrifying second, I thought I’d collapse right there in the dirt, surrounded by flowers and cigarette butts.

Instead, I forced my body to move. One shaky step after another until I finally staggered back into the hospital.

The fluorescent lights stabbed at my swollen eyes. I must have looked like a ghost because a nurse glanced at me, then quickly looked away as if afraid she’d catch my misery if she stared too long.

At the reception desk, Gary stood waiting. The instant he saw me, his brows furrowed, and his easy smile fell away.

"Christy?" His voice was soft but urgent. He scanned my face like he was searching for clues.

"What happened? You look... pale. Did something... " He asked me with a frown.

"I’m fine," I lied, cutting him off before my voice betrayed me. My throat still felt raw from holding back tears.

Gary’s sharp eyes told me he didn’t believe a word. But, mercifully, he didn’t push. He simply stepped closer, placing a steadying hand at the small of my back like I might collapse any second. "Come on. I’ll drive you home. The last thing you need right now is to be seen falling apart in public."

Home?

That word stung deeply, Kendrick’s villa had never truly been mine, and after today it felt less like a home and more like a gilded cage where I was trapped as a placeholder until Celeste officially replaced me.

Still, I nodded. I didn’t have the strength to argue.

The ride was silent except for the low hum of the engine. Outside the tinted windows, life in the capital bustled on, bright lights, laughing couples, people busy with their own worlds. I envied them. For them, happiness seemed so easy.

My phone buzzed relentlessly in my lap. I tried to ignore it, but curiosity gnawed at me. Finally, with trembling hands, I unlocked the screen.

Twitter exploded before my eyes.

#Fakegirlfriend

#Golddigger

#BlackMartinezWedding

#PerfectUnion

#CelesteAndKendrick

I clicked on the first one and saw a picture of me and Kendrick at an auction we had attended last month.

Under it was filled with insults and hate comments. I always thought I was strong and nothing could get to me except I allowed it.

But nothing prepared me for cyber attacks, I had always heard how people end up taking their own lives because of cyber bullying and now I was experiencing it first hand.

My stomach churned as I scrolled, Comment after comment, each one another dagger:

"Guess the plaything served her purpose. Now he’s marrying real money."

"Did anyone actually believe Kendrick would fall for a nobody? Please."

"Imagine thinking you’re the main dish when you’re just the appetizer. Embarrassing."

The words blurred as tears filled my eyes. I dropped the phone onto the seat like it had scalded me. My hands flew to my chest, clutching at the sharp ache spreading through me.

Gary glanced at me from the driver’s seat. His jaw tightened, but he didn’t say a word.

Maybe he’d already seen the news too. Maybe he pitied me. The thought of anyone pitying me made me sick.

I turned my face toward the window and forced myself to swallow the sob threatening to break free.

When we finally pulled into the villa, the sight of those tall iron gates and manicured gardens felt surreal. Just weeks ago, I thought I’d found a sanctuary here. Now, it was just another stage where I’d been forced to play a role.

On getting Inside, I collapsed onto the bed in my room. My body trembled with exhaustion, but sleep wouldn’t come.

Every time I shut my eyes, Kendrick’s face appeared. His smile, his warmth, the rare softness in his voice when he told me I mattered...

All lies!

Fucking lies!

"Why did you lie to me?" I whispered to the empty room, as if the walls could answer.

I sat up and grabbed my phone again, my fingers shaky as I scrolled further down the endless pit of insults and hate.

There were a lot of comments and many reposts.

Some even went as far as sending me direct messages, all filled with insults while some kept dropping pictures of snakes. I stopped opening the messages and scrolled through the insults.

This time, I stumbled upon fan accounts dedicated to Celeste. They posted pictures of her in dazzling gowns, flawless makeup, every angle perfect. The captions were worse,

"Finally, a queen worthy of standing beside Kendrick Black."

"This is what power couples look like."

"Goodbye, fake girlfriend. You won’t be missed."

Fake.

That word seared into me. It didn’t matter that Kendrick had offered me the contract, that he had begged me to play his girlfriend.

To the world, I was a fraud. A desperate gold-digger clinging to a man far above me.

A sob broke free before I could stop it. I buried my face in the pillow, muffling the sound. My chest heaved violently as I cried until no more tears came.

I had thought I ran out of tears earlier, but it turned out I just needed an even more painful trigger to bring them out.

But when the tears dried, the pain didn’t go away. It lingered, a hollow weight in my chest.

At some point, I dragged myself into the shower. Hot water cascaded down my skin, but instead of comfort, it only magnified the emptiness inside me. My reflection in the foggy mirror startled me, red-rimmed eyes, hollow cheeks, lips trembling.

I didn’t look like myself anymore.

I looked like a girl broken in half.

And the worst part? I let him break me.

That night, I lay awake, staring at the ceiling. Memories filled my head, Kendrick pulling me into his arms the first night we kissed, Kendrick’s voice when he told me I was more than a contract to him, Kendrick’s soft laughter in the middle of the night when he thought I was asleep, his touches on the night he was drugged.

Each memory stabbed deeper.

I curled up on the bed, whispering to the darkness,

"Maybe I was stupid for believing a man like him could ever love a girl like me."

The clock ticked past midnight, but sleep never came. My pillow stayed damp with tears.

By morning, I was a shell of myself. My body ached with fatigue, my eyes felt raw, but I dragged myself out of bed anyway. Pretending to be fine had become second nature.

A knock came at my door.

"Christy," Gary’s voice called.

"You’ve got mail," he said with a hesitant voice.

I frowned and opened the door. He stood there with a sealed white envelope, the Black family crest gleaming in gold wax.

His expression was unreadable, but his eyes flickered with something, pity or maybe guilt.

"What is it?" I asked, my voice hoarse.

He handed it over carefully. " This came straight from headquarters."

The paper felt heavy in my hand, heavier than it should. My stomach churned as I broke the seal and slid out a card.

Gold edges and elegant calligraphy greeted my eyes .

The Black Family cordially invites you to a banquet celebrating the union between Kendrick Black and Celeste Martinez.

The words swam before my eyes.

I blinked severally to avoid crying, I didn’t want Gary to pity me.

My fingers trembled so hard the card nearly slipped.

This wasn’t a rumor.

This wasn’t some tabloid lie.

This was official.

And they invited me.

"Christy, he asked me not to say anything but I just want you to know that Kendrick always keeps his words. Just don’t give up on him" Gary said with a sigh.

I raised my head to look at him but he quickly avoided my eyes and I chuckled.

" If you were in my position, would you trust the person that has hurt you in such a way? " I asked him but he just remained mute.

It is always easy to talk when you are not the one affected.

I sometimes wonder how I still haven’t ended my life, after experiencing so much betrayal and heartbreak.

Was I that bad or hateful that my biological parents abandoned me?

Everyone I have ever loved and genuinely cared about always end up betraying me.

First it was Piper, then Callie and Mark, Kara and now Kendrick.

I will attend this banquet and it will be my goodbye to Kendrick and this contract.

I am done.