Chapter 4

Natalie Evans POV

"Alright, stop picking on Natalie."

With reddened eyes, Serena interrupted his friends.

Her gaze fell upon my neck and suddenly froze.

"Natalie, your necklace is so pretty." Serena bit her lower lip, her voice dropping. "I used to have a similar one, but sadly, I lost it in the car crash back then."

It was a pink diamond necklace, the only heirloom my mother had left me. I never took it off.

Julian's gaze followed Serena's words, landing on my collarbone.

"It's just a necklace." Julian turned to look at me, his tone indifferent. "Take it off and let Serena wear it for a few days."

I froze, my eyes widening in disbelief.

"Julian, you know what this is." Clutching the necklace against my chest, my voice finally trembled uncontrollably. "This is the only thing my mother left me!"

I had shared the story behind this necklace with him, word by word.

Back then, he had kissed the corner of my eye tenderly, promising he would always protect me.

"I know." Julian looked at me, a flicker of impatience crossing his eyes, as if baffled by why I was making a fuss over something so trivial. "Serena likes it. What's the harm in letting her wear it for a few days?"

Softening his tone, he tried to placate me, "Things are inanimate, but people are alive. The living matter more, don't they? If you like jewelry, I'll get you something even better later."

I stared at him, my eyes red enough to bleed.

In Julian's logic, as long as it made Serena happy, I should hand everything over with both hands.

"No." I stepped back, tears welling in my eyes, but I clamped my teeth together to keep them from falling.

Julian's expression finally hardened into ice.

He stood up and stepped in front of me.

"Natalie, don't make me repeat myself." He glared at me. "Take it off."

I held tightly onto my neck, refusing to move.

Just then, Serena threw off the blanket and walked over.

"Julian, don't force Natalie. I don't want it anymore." Serena cried as she reached for my hand, seemingly trying to pull me toward Julian. "Natalie, don't be mad at Julian, it's all my fault."

Her tugging was rough, and her fingers accidentally snagged the delicate chain.

Suddenly, the clasp snapped with a sharp crack.

The pink diamond hit the floor, bouncing crisply twice before rolling under the hospital bed.

My mind went completely blank.

"Ah! I'm sorry, I didn't mean to..." Serena gasped. Her footing slipped, and she stumbled backward, crashing heavily into a nearby medical cart.

"Serena!"

Julian shoved me aside and lunged forward to scoop Serena into his arms.

His push sent me crashing hard against the door handle, the pain in my waist knocking the wind right out of me.

While checking Serena for injuries, Julian shot a glare at me, his eyes freezing cold.

"It was just a necklace. Did you really have to make such a scene?"

His voice dripped with disappointment and blame. "Serena can barely even stand! Why didn't you just move out of the way?!"

Gripping the doorframe, I watched the way he shielded Serena, my gaze falling to the broken chain lying at my feet.

That was the last piece of my mother I had left.

And now, it was snapped in two.

The tears finally spilled over, but a laugh slipped from my throat instead.

It turned out that when your heart truly dies, you really stop feeling the pain.

"You're right, Julian." I straightened my posture and wiped the wetness from my cheeks, keeping my voice barely above a whisper. "It's just a necklace. I overreacted."

Turning on my heel, I walked out of the hospital room without looking back once.