Not Alone Any More {Chase Elliott || Sequel to Only the Lonely} ✔️

vii.

kathryn claire glanced down at her uber app, trying to will the person to come faster. after her confrontation with chase, he had stormed off and she figured that it probably just best to get her own ride to the apartment. she wasn't sure how she was going to get to chicagoland, but she reassured herself that she'd figure it out later.

her stomach hurt as she replayed chase's words, the hard edge in his eyes that she had never seen before, the anger. it was like they had been strangers, there was no trace of the trust that kathryn claire thought they had built.

maybe her thoughts that chase had lied about being in love with her to get himself out of trouble hadn't been based in anger. maybe there had been some truth to it.

she glanced at her phone again as the doubts started to creep into her mind. she squeezed her eyes shut, trying to ignore them but one echoed in her mind, refusing to be silenced.

maybe all of this was too good to be true.

it made sense, really. why would somebody like chase elliott ever take an interest in her? sure, he had gotten her this internship. but that could've been pity, maybe he had felt bad about lying to her about his identity. but to go so far to lie about being in love with her? she would have never guessed. she had let her guard down for him.

she should have known, she should have expected this to happen. this was how her life went. and yet she felt like she had been floating in a bubble that had burst, leaving her broken on the ground.

she was always broken. she would always be broken. always alone.

"kathryn claire?" chase's voice cut through the silence. "what are you doing?"

"waiting for my uber," kathryn claire didn't bother to look up at chase. she didn't want him to see the pain in her eyes, she didn't want him to know that she had figured the charade out.

"can we talk?" his voice swung low. "cancel your uber, i will take you home."

kathryn claire found herself nodding as she pulled up her uber app. after a few taps, she looked up at him. "so?" her heart pounded in anticipation of what was to come. she knew this very well could be it, the end of them.

chase let out a sigh, shoving his hands in his pockets. but before he could say anything, kathryn claire cut in. she knew that she had to say something before he did, to get everything off of her chest before he used his charm to disarm her.

"i don't know why you think it's okay to talk to people like that, much less the person you're supposed to be in love with." she shook her head. chase opened his mouth to talk but she waved him off. "i should've known it was too good to be true. god, i was so stupid to believe that you were in love with me. it was just a lie to cover up another lie." she looked up at chase, his liquid brown eyes watery.

"is that what you really think?" he choked out, running his hand through his curls.

the vulnerability in his voice, the wet around his eyes made kathryn claire question her anger. this was the effect chase had on her. she hated it but at the same time, she could feel herself forgiving him for everything. she shook those thoughts away, trying to stay focused. "i don't know, chase. but why else would you push off a conversation defining us? or talk to me the way you did in the shop?" her hands found her hips as she tried not to crumble in front of him.

he let out an exasperated sigh, "damnit kathryn claire." he shook his head. "maybe the first time i put it off, i was so numb from the pain medication that i could barely think. and this morning..." his voice cracked as he paused. "maybe i'm a little scared."