~Violet's POV~
"If I'd known heartbreak would be waiting behind my birthday door, I would've blown out every candle before I walked in."
As soon as I stepped into my apartment, the sweet fragrance of candles and freshly plucked roses filled the air, wrapping around me like warmth after a long day. My exhaustion melted instantly, replaced by anticipation and joy.
A wide smile stretched across my face as I hurried toward the sitting room, only to stumble to a stop when my foot nearly crushed a candle on the floor.
"Whoa…" My hand flew to my mouth, eyes widening as I followed two glowing trails of red and white candles leading up the stairs. Between them, rose petals lay scattered in a delicate path.
The sight tugged at a memory of our first anniversary.
Sebastian had given me three hundred and sixty-five roses, one for every day of the year. I'd teased him then, saying, "Next time, I want a million petals."
"I can't believe he took that seriously," I murmured with a soft laugh, stepping carefully onto the petals. After all this time, I hadn't imagined he'd remember such a silly conversation.
My heart swelled when I saw the balloons and flowers decorating the walls, glowing softly under the candlelight. Every corner felt touched by thought and affection. For a moment, all I could think about was kissing him breathless for this.
"I'm coming for you," I whispered with a playful grin, tossing my handbag carelessly onto the couch and rushing toward the stairs.
Halfway up, I paused to read the gold banner strung across my bedroom door:
"On this day, Queen Violet was born, and I am lucky to be her one and only King."
My cheeks flushed. He could be such a sweet talker sometimes. I giggled and pushed the door open, completely unaware that behind it waited the moment that would ruin not just my birthday, but a part of me I'd never get back.
"Why go through all the stress when we could've just…"
The words died on my tongue.
There he was.
Sebastian. Naked.
Standing by the corner of the room, his body slick with sweat, golden hair clinging to his forehead, chest rising and falling rapidly. He looked like he'd been running a marathon, except he wasn't running.
He was thrusting mercilessly.
My heart stopped. My breath caught in my throat.
I froze, watching in horror as his body moved against another woman's, their moans echoing faintly through the haze of candlelight.
For a heartbeat, I couldn't speak, couldn't breathe. My lips trembled, my fingers twitched uselessly at my sides.
I wanted to look away, but I couldn't.
He didn't even notice me standing there, watching him, the man I loved, make love to someone else in our bed on my birthday.
All the warmth and excitement I'd felt minutes ago evaporated, leaving only a hollow ache spreading through my chest. I wanted to scream, to tear the room apart.
But then, a voice echoed in my head, a cruel one I'd tried for years to forget.
"Your mother fucked my married father countless times. That's how you came into existence. Someone like you doesn't deserve to demand faithfulness from anyone. Never forget that."
Valerie's words. My stepsister's venom.
She had said it after I'd discovered Sebastian cheating for the first time. I had caught him through leaked photos and a video someone sent me. That night, I had stormed out, ready to end it, until Valerie's hateful eyes and those words stopped me cold.
Since then, they had never stopped echoing.
No matter how hard I tried to erase them, they always found a way back.
And yet I had forgiven him. I had believed him when he said he'd changed. I had believed us.
But now, seeing him like this, what hurt most wasn't the betrayal itself. It was that he had chosen today. My birthday. And our bed.
Tears blurred my vision. My throat tightened. I turned to leave, but then I caught sight of her face.
The woman beneath him.
My breath hitched. My legs buckled.
No. It couldn't be.
"S–S–Savannah?"
Her name broke out of me like a wound splitting open.
My best friend. My only friend.
The room spun. I stumbled backward, colliding with the doorframe. I rubbed my eyes hard, as if clearing my vision would make the nightmare disappear. But when I looked again, she was still there, moving beneath him, whispering, moaning.
Her voice was unmistakable.
I clutched my head as the sound of their bodies filled the air, flesh against flesh, cruelly rhythmic. I wanted to claw the noise out of my ears and rip the memory from my mind. But it only grew louder, feeding on my pain.
"How could you…" My voice cracked. My chest burned as I choked out the words. "How could you do this to me, Sebastian?"
He didn't stop. Not even then.
He kept moving, harder and rougher, as if to punish me for a sin I never committed.
"Sebastian!" I screamed, slamming the door with all my strength. Finally, they froze, her wide eyes meeting mine in shock.
And still, he didn't let her go.
"It's not what you think… uhh," he groaned, grabbing her hips and forcing her back into motion.
That was it. The dagger twisted deeper.
My vision tunneled. I pressed a hand against my chest, feeling it ache like something was breaking inside.
"I trusted you, Savannah," I whispered. "You were my sister. Why?"
She opened her mouth to speak, but her answer dissolved into another moan as he thrust again.
I lost it.
"I regret ever knowing either of you! Thank you for ruining my birthday!"
My voice shook, but I didn't care. I slammed the door shut so hard the sound echoed through the hall.
Tears poured freely now, hot and endless. Every memory, his laughter, our silly fights, the way he'd hold me after long days, flashed before my eyes. I felt like I was breaking in half.
I stumbled down the stairs, gripping the golden rail as my knees wobbled. I nearly slipped and would've fallen if I hadn't clung to it for dear life.
"I should've known," I whispered bitterly. I kicked at the rose petals. "I should've known better than to believe his lies again."
Rage boiled up, mixing with pain. I kicked a candle, sending wax splattering across the floor.
"I'm done with him. I'm done being fooled."
I hit my chest hard and shouted up the stairs, my voice raw and trembling.
"I can live without him!"
Maybe if I said it loud enough, I'd start believing it.
I grabbed my bag and stormed out of the apartment before the tears could pull me under again.
Outside, the night air hit my skin like ice. My breath came in shaky gasps as I waited for a cab, wiping tears that refused to stop.
When a white car finally pulled up, I muttered, "Your Paradise Club," and climbed in without even glancing at the driver.
The moment I turned off my phone, it felt final, like I was cutting myself off from the world.
Inside the club, music thundered like a heartbeat gone mad. Lights flashed, bodies swayed, and for the first time that night, I could scream silently without being watched.
The air reeked of sweat, tobacco, and cheap perfume. My stomach churned, but I ignored it and found an empty chair in the corner. I didn't want to dance. I just wanted to disappear in the midst of the crowd.
My hands fumbled through my bag and I nodded after I confirmed I had enough cash for drinks. Enough to drown.
The waiter brought a bottle. I skipped the glass entirely and pressed it to my lips. The liquor burned down my throat, searing and almost comforting. I welcomed the pain.
Within half an hour, two bottles sat empty before me.
"Fuck them…" I croaked, and choked mid-word. I coughed violently, pounding my chest as my throat seized.
"Miss, are you alright?" a voice called out nearby, deep and concerned.
Without lifting my head I waved weakly, trying to signal I was fine, but the fit wouldn't stop. Tears blurred my eyes as I gasped for air.
"You're a terrible liar," the man said softly as he walked closer. He crouched beside me, steadying the bottle before it slipped from my hand. His voice cut through the chaos of the club, calm and low, familiar somehow. "If you keep drinking like that, you'll fry your insides."
I barely caught the words. My head spun, the world tilting slightly.
"It's my birthday," I slurred, brushing his hand off. "I'm… celebrating." I pushed up from the chair and immediately dropped back into it with a thud.
"Miss, you're drunk," He cautioned and tried to steady me on the couch.
"No, I'm happy," I protested with a wobbly smile. "Happy I'm a year older and a year more… fucked up." I laughed, the sound brittle and hiding the tears threatening again.
"A happy person doesn't sit alone in a club burying themselves in alcohol on their birthdays. Instead they hang out with friends, lovers and family," He pointed out.
He watched me quietly, his eyes unreadable.
Maybe it was the alcohol or the exhaustion, but I started talking, to him, to myself, to anyone who'd listen.
"I caught my best friend fucking my boyfriend tonight," I said, my voice trembling between laughter and sobs. "So yeah. No lover. No friend. And I'm pretty sure my mother and sister forgot my birthday too." I gave a weak chuckle. "Guess I'm the whole party tonight."
His expression softened. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said anything earlier."
"It's fine," I whispered. "You didn't cheat on me nor did you fuck my boyfriend," I mumbled, reached out my trembling hand and grabbed the bottle of liquor.
The next thing I remembered was crying into his shoulder. He didn't say a word. He just let me. Let me pour out my heart and pains to him.
Then everything went black.
When I woke, the light was soft, too soft. The sheets beneath me were smooth and strange. My head throbbed, my mouth dry. I blinked, disoriented.
The scent of mint and whiskey lingered in the air faintly.
And then warmth beside me. Solid. Breathing.
My stomach twisted. I turned my head slowly.
A man lay next to me. Broad shoulders. Bare skin. His face partly hidden in the pillow.
I froze.
Panic clawed up my throat. My hands shook as I looked down and saw I wasn't wearing my clothes. Just my legs, tangled in sheets that weren't mine.
My pulse thundered in my ears.
"Oh God," I whispered, my voice barely a breath. "What… what happened?"
The dull ache between my thighs, the soreness of my body, it all told me what I didn't want to believe.
"What have you done, Violet Thompson?" I murmured, pressing a trembling hand to my head as guilt crashed over me.
And just like that, the birthday I thought couldn't get any worse, did.