Chapter 2

 I had an ice pack on my eyes, making the swelling go down from three days worth of crying. I skipped my college classes now for a few days, only receiving a few messages from concerned professors wishing me well. I constantly heard my phone buzz every so often, probably Amanda and Sylvia messaging me to see if I was okay.

I felt awful, not just because of the story, but for not even having the energy to message them back. My student apartment had clothes on the floor, and I had only managed to get enough food and water in me, before guilt and sadness filled me once again. I hate being this way…

I heard the sound of my front door jingle and open. My muddled mind was confused for a bit, until I remembered that Sylvia had the spare key to my apartment. I must have really made them worry this time for them to come over…

“Rose?” I heard Sylvia’s voice ring as she opened the door to my room. When she saw me curled up in my bed in a blanket, her eyes watered slightly. “Oh Rose… Are you okay?” She sat on the corner of the bed, her hand running against the blanket in a soothing motion that felt calming.

“We got you some food. Rice, orange chicken, and some fried squid. We also got you some boba tea, Taro, your favorite.” Amanda said as she held up the bag and shook the drink in her hand.

I nodded my head. It felt almost surreal how disconnected my mind felt to my body right now. Like it wasn’t my own.

Sylvia’s eyes, though, went straight to the ice pack, then my curled up posture. “We were worried. You hadn’t gone to school in a few days, and you weren’t responding to our messages either. We thought… Maybe Edward’s anniversary hit you harder this year.”

I flinched. They didn’t know why? Have they not finished ‘His Amour’ yet? It was odd of them not finishing the book the same time I did. They were just as excited about Amor’s next book as I was. “Something like that,” I muttered.

They unpacked the food, coaxing me into eating. For a few minutes it almost felt normal, eating the food I loved so much, drinking the tea I always ordered. They were silent the entire time, making sure I ate, making sure I was feeling comfortable. I could tell from their expressions I looked worse for wear. Like I was a piece of glass ready to shatter at a moment's notice. Amanda tried talking about some of the things the professor in our Mythology teacher said about Krono.

“Professor Crawford was so stunned by Henry’s comment.” She snickered. “‘Do you know why Krono ate his children?’ Then this guy had the audacity to say ‘Uhh because he just wanted a midnight snack! So why not get something close by?’ You should have seen his face, he looked so done with class. What killed me was he was silent for a bit before going, ‘Yum’. Can you believe that?”

I couldn’t help but smile faintly at Amanda’s dramatic retelling of today's class. Professor Crawford's class was one of our more chaotic classes of the bunch. It felt good to know that class was the same old same old.

When I was done eating, Amanda spoke out a bit of hesitation gnawing at her face. “So… have you read the book yet? I’m sure reading it would make you feel a bit better.” I grimaced, spooking Amanda out. “Or…. not..”

Once again, the silence fell in the room, Sylvia patted my shoulder. Her eyebrows lifted slightly, and her kindness shining through. “Do you want to talk about it, Rose? You don’t have to. We just want to make sure if there’s anything we can do for you.”

I felt the words prickle my throat, and I finally felt them come through. “Did you guys.. Not read ‘His Amour’?” They looked at me a bit perplexed, like they couldn't find a reason for me to be sad.

“Yeah… We did.” Amanda said. “Are you upset that Estel ended up marrying Rosaria?” Rosaria. The character that had an eerily similar name to mine. She used to be a side character in ‘Historia’s Ever After’, but she became a more prominent figure this time around. What’s crazy is that she’s Darren’s half sister. She was given to a Baron the King was friends with during his student years to protect her since Darren’s mother, the current Queen, was trying to assassinate her since she was an infant.

“It’s not that.” I said. “Did you guys not read the ending?”

When they looked even more confused, I felt my heart thump louder. Were they being ignorant since they didn’t want me to be hurt? No… their expressions are genuine. Sylvia and Amanda wouldn’t joke this way about Estel. They knew just how much I adored him.

“Rosie…. Somehow I get the feeling we’re talking about two separate things.” Sylvia said. “Why don’t you show us what you read?”

I got out of the comfort of my blanket, going to my bag where I had placed the book after I finished it. They seemed surprised when I showed them the book, Sylvia picking it up and inspected it.

“Uh-hold on. Rose, what’s this? I didn’t know there was a special edition.” She moved around the volume delicately, her brows rising at the dragon-and-rose sprayed edges. “This wasn’t in the boxes when we got ours.”

“The security in front said he gave that to me because I was the first one to get my copy.” I said, drinking the last of my Boba tea. They leafed through some of the pages, their expressions hardening as they skimmed over it a bit.

“Rosie… This looks completely different than my copy.” Sylvia said.

“Same here. I didn’t have any scene about Historia leading on both Darren and Estel. He was with Rosaria ninety percent of the time in my version.” Amanda said.

Now I was confused. “What? But… okay… something off.”

Amanda furrowed her brow. “Off how?”

The story poured out of me, unspooling fast and frantic. “The novel… It was set in a magic academy this time. Modern, but not quite our modern. Old cars, uniforms, little pieces of our world bleeding into theirs. Estel and Historia were childhood friends again… engaged, even. It should’ve been perfect.”

I swirled the boba cup in my hand, the ice clinking as they collided with one another. “But then Darren appeared. He intruded… like he always does. Historia didn’t just drift this time, she fell. Harder. Crueler. She looked at him like… like the way people look when they’re already halfway gone.”

Amanda blinking rapidly, the confusion growing on her face. “Wait-Historia actually cheated? That doesn’t sound like her.”

“It doesn’t matter what she sounded like before,” I shot back, too quickly, regretting it. “Sorry… It’s just…This was who she became. She betrayed him. And Estel… he couldn’t let go. Rosaria was there, waiting, ready to love him, but he couldn’t forgive himself. He clung to Historia, even while she slipped away.”

Sylvia’s gaze softened, realizing the familiarity. “Rosie….”

Her tone made something inside me crack. My throat tightened. “It’s familiar… Too familiar. I know what it looks like when someone can’t let go. When they want so badly to move forward but something keeps dragging them back.”

The room tilted a little. I gripped the book harder, its edges cutting into my palm.

“Years passed. “Historia… She got pregnant. And Estel… he wanted so badly to be happy, to believe it was his. But I could see it in him. The way doubt… just eats someone alive.” He smiled, but it was hollow. Like he was apologizing for things he couldn’t say out loud.”

Amanda made a face, muttering, “That’s… darker than anything in my copy, Rose.”

I barely heard her. “Rosaria tried to protect him, but everything fell apart anyway. Historia broke, cursed him, wished she’d never loved him at all. She was gone, and still Estel clung to what was left. He wore the crown. He looked happy.” My voice faltered on one word... Happy.

“But then…” I pressed a hand to my mouth. “Then the epilogue.” Amanda and Sylvia both leaned closer, huddling over me, feeling the warmth from their protection.

“Rosaria wakes up. She thinks he’s still beside her. She smiles. She rolls over.” My chest tightened. “And finds the bed empty. His side was cold. And then-” My voice broke. “He was gone. Just like that. One moment there, the next… nothing.”

The silence that followed was unbearable. Amanda reached across the table, grabbing her own copy of the book from her tote. She flipped quickly through the final chapters, her brows knitting. “Rose, mine doesn’t say that. Estel’s alive. He’s fine. Look.”

Sylvia skimmed hers too, then held it open for me. “Rosie, in mine he and Rosaria rule together. They’re happy.”

“That’s impossible!” I lurched forward, snatching Amanda’s copy. I scanned the page, but the words blurred and rearranged themselves in front of me. For a second. Just a second… I swore I saw the ending I remembered. Then it was gone, replaced by neat lines about a peaceful kingdom. I shoved it back, clutching my own edition like a shield. “No. No, you don’t understand. He was gone. I know he was. I’ve seen a room go silent like that before. The air heavy, the clock ticking too loud… Once was already too much.”

Sylvia’s hand found my arm, steady and warm. “Rose… maybe you misread. You’ve barely slept. You’ve been… carrying so much lately."

“No!” The word tore out of me, raw. “I…” My breath hitched, my chest tightening as panic surged. “I know what I read!”

Amanda and Sylvia exchanged a look over my bowed head. Amanda tried to keep her voice calm. “Or, maybe it’s simpler than that. Maybe you got some special draft edition by mistake. We could ask the bookstore about it.”

Sylvia nodded quickly. Her gentle voice chiming in. “Or even Amor. There could have been some mix up with what staff were supposed to hand out. It happens all the time.”

Their voices felt like lifelines, tugging me toward sanity. But I couldn’t shake the truth burning in my bones. I’d seen this kind of loss before. Once in my world. Now in his. Always the same ending.

Amanda took a breath, her hand gently soothing me. “Come on, why don’t we go to the bookstore right now and put your mind at ease, okay? We’ll get you the copy we got, and we’ll have a sleep over where we read everything together. That's okay with you?”

I slowly nodded my head. Anything to get my mind off this awful story. To think Amor would write something like this and give it out to the first person who got their copy… Any Estel fan would find Amor and toss it back at her, possibly yelling untasteful things at her face as they confront her.

“... Are you sure it’s okay for her to go out now?” Sylvia said to Amanda in a hushed voice. “She seems really distressed.”

Amanda shook her head as she shrugged. “If we leave her this way without closure, it's only going to get worse. It’s better if we both go with her to get it all situated.”

Sylvia sighed, and got up, picking out some stuff from my closet. “Come on Rosie. We’ll go with you and maybe, we can get some snacks on our way for the sleepover.”

I took the clothes from her hand, my heart feeling lighter knowing they were being patient with me. And also, guilt that they had to experience me breaking down again. I didn’t want to rely on them like this. I should be able to stand on my own two feet, and help them with their own struggles.

Once I got dressed, I put the book in my bag. It felt heavy in my bag, like it would pull my shoulder down I could topple over. Taking a breath, I went out of the Student apartment with Sylvia and Amanda. The sun bathed us in this gentle warmth, a big contrast to my closed and freezing apartment.

Amanda and Sylvia made small talk, trying to distract me from the story’s horror. “What snacks should we get Rose?” Amanda said suddenly.

I felt myself snap back to the conversation. “Um… The usual, I guess?”

Truth be told, some barbeque chips and cheddar popcorn sounded nice for the sleepover. It has been out going ever since Amanda hooked me on those. I would have lived a tasteless life eating only plain potato chips if these two didn’t convince me to try new things. They knew I was a creature of habit.

“Oooh~ how about, we spurge out a bit and try some of that Freezies Ice cream! It's a bit more expensive, but I've just been dying to try it out with you guys.” Amanda said dramatically, as we got to the crosswalk. Sylvia and I laughed as she put her hand up in a dramatic sigh.

As we got halfway down the crosswalk, we heard some loud honking close by and my body almost locked up. A car with dark tinted windows was coming our way, and continuously kept honking. Amanda froze mid-step, Sylvia’s hand shook against mine, and in that split-second I knew neither of them would move..

As I finally felt some rush of adrenaline, I shoved both of them out of the way hard enough from harm's way, but what came next, I couldn’t explain.

Just a rush of pain.

…

Until everything went dark.