Chapter 44 A Chance Encounter
I started to panic, grabbed my phone, and made a bunch of calls. I tried everyone around Brad whose numbers I had, but no one picked up.
I kept calling James and Matthew, but still no answer.
"Did they all just vanish? Did something happen to Brad?" I freaked out, sprinting through the rose arbor to the art institute, and burst into the studio.
The studio door was locked tight, and no one answered no matter how hard I knocked.
It was over. I couldn't find Brad. My world fell apart.
I went back to my dorm, too upset to eat, and went straight to bed.
With no classes in the afternoon, I slept until almost five, waking up starving.
Brad always said he wanted to fatten me up and wouldn't let me skip meals.
I admit, I did it on purpose. I wanted to starve myself. Brad said he wanted to feed me, but I had skipped two meals already, so I must have lost weight. Brad wouldn't just let me go hungry.
So, with an empty stomach, I waited for Brad to find me. Or, if he told me where he was, I'd go to him, no matter how far.
By nightfall, after sending dozens of messages on Facebook and making countless calls, Brad was still silent.
Was I abandoned for no reason again?
After lights out, I hid under the covers and cried alone.
I really didn't get why Brad was ignoring me or what I did to make him so mad.
Brad had abandoned me too. Now it was just me again, so lonely.
I thought back to my senior year of high school that late autumn, when I shifted from trailing Daniel every day to solitude. During that time, I felt empty inside, like the whole world had abandoned me.
On those nights when the sadness was so deep it hurt my bones, I cried myself to sleep countless times.
Now, it felt like I was back in that time, silently enduring everything alone.
I told myself it was nothing. It wasn't the first time I had been abandoned. After crying this time, I wouldn't cry again.
I cried for a long time until I fell asleep in a daze.
I woke up before six, not disturbing Mia and Isabella. I quietly got up, washed up, and sat at my desk to read.
At six-thirty, there was movement in the hallway, and Mia and Isabella rubbed their eyes and got up.
I smiled at them, "I'm going to the cafeteria in a bit. Want me to bring you breakfast?"
Isabella, with her messy hair, came over and touched my forehead, then checked her own, "No fever. Jane, what's up with you?"
I felt a pang of sadness. Nothing was up. No one was taking care of me anymore, so I had to fend for myself.
"Nothing's up. I'm just going to the cafeteria to eat. I didn't eat anything yesterday, and I'm really hungry."
"Jane, have you been crying?" Mia asked, staring at my puffy eyes.
"Yeah, but I won't cry today. I can handle it on my own." With that, I opened the dorm door and walked out.
I was already on the second floor when I realized I had forgotten my phone and went back to get it.
Mia and Isabella were in the bathroom, chatting while washing up, and the topic was me.
"Did you notice? Jane seems off today."
"She's clearly heartbroken but is pretending like nothing happened."
"Yeah, her forced bravery makes me feel a bit sad."
"Should we help her? Seeing her like this makes me feel bad too."
"Some things she has to figure out on her own. Besides..."
I accidentally stepped on something, making a noise that startled Mia and Isabella, who stood there with foam on their faces.
"I just came back to get my phone. I'm leaving now. Mia, Isabella, I'm fine. You don't need to worry," I said calmly with a smile.
Brad ignoring me didn't actually hurt that much; it just left an empty spot in my heart.
But it was okay, really.
This was just a repeat of the past. I survived the first time, and I could survive the second.
Besides, this was Brad, with whom I had no promises.
I figured Brad must have called home and found out that Zoe was their real family. As an outsider, he had taken care of me for so long, which was already very kind. I shouldn't expect too much.
I didn't blame Brad, really. This was my fate.
There were four student cafeterias at the Northern Institute of the Arts, each five stories high, offering a variety of cuisines from all over the country, so there was no shortage of food.
But there were also many students at Northern Institute of the Arts, and during peak times, long lines form at the food stalls. Many favorite dishes were usually gone if someone didn't get there early.
By the time I got to the cafeteria, it was already bustling with people.
I obediently lined up at the breakfast stall, moving forward step by step with the students ahead of me.
It took about fifteen minutes before it was my turn. I took my tray and sat down at a nearby empty spot, starting to eat my bread and porridge seriously.
"Are you Jane?" I was eating intently when a hesitant voice came from across the table.
I looked up and saw it was Jenny.
My heart skipped a beat. What a coincidence.
I thought, "What a lousy cafeteria. I can't see the person I want to see, but I can't avoid the person I want to avoid."
"So, Jane, did you give my letter to Brad? What did he say?" Jenny put her tray down and sat directly across from me.
If Jenny hadn't asked, I could have pretended nothing had happened and that I was always alone.
But when Jenny asked, everything that happened the day before yesterday flooded my mind. Thinking of Brad's deliberate neglect and coldness made my heart ache, and tears welled up again.
I never thought of myself as a weak girl, but the Pitt brothers both had the ability to make me cry. This must be my ill-fated relationship with them.
For their sake, I felt like I was no longer the straightforward Jane but a foolish girl who kept going back and forth.
It took a lot of effort to swallow my tears. I looked up and forced a smile, "Jenny, I gave the letter to Brad, but he didn't say anything. If you want to know the result, ask him yourself. I've been busy with classes these days and haven't had a chance to see him."
I finished all my food, and as I was returning my tray, I caught a glimpse of a familiar tall figure out of the corner of my eye.
When I looked carefully, there was nothing there.
For three consecutive days, Brad and his friends seemed to have vanished into thin air, not a single trace of them.
He had withdrawn from my world.
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