Gardenias And His Last Goodbye

He left me standing alone in a room full of guests to rush

ing to his family's name, and accused me of

the secret I carried-a terminal leukemia diagnosi

unken mistake, the night he spat on with di

nxiety attack, I was in a sterile hospital room, alone, terminating our

e end of our story, a final, q

party, the scent of gardenias filling the air, just moments be

pte

Clemen

y tightened the knot in my stomach. I knew Franco didn't wan

ncée, but searching. Always searching for someone else. His coldness was a familia

d me, but his eyes never met mine with the same warmth they held fo

gh the polite murmur of conversation. Franco' s face, usually so co

ds the door. His voice was a harsh whisper, fille

grasping his arm. "Fran

s... complicated. Someone needs me. More than you do ri

dible above the music. "Everyone's watching. What will they sa

on. Just a chilling, vacant stare that pierced right through me. "You always make everythin

ld spread through my veins, numbing me. I couldn't move. Couldn't speak.

I turned to face my guests, my smile a brittle shield against the world. "Franco

ess her heart, gave me a small, encouraging nod. I knew they saw through my charade, bu

my arm. "Elana, honey. Is everything alright with Franco? H

reassuring smile. "Just pre-wedding jitters." I

He was the boisterous boy who' d pull my pigtails, the brave knight who' d chase away imaginary dragons. He promised me the moon and stars, a c

a changing economy. His family' s wealth soared, cementing the Mayer name as a titan of indust

y I knew was gone, replaced by a cold, driven man, his eyes hollowed by grief. Ellsworth, Franco's father, pulled the old promise from the dusty shelves of family hist

ape. He saw me as an obstacle to his true devotion – Katina. She was the one he truly loved, the one he b

sneered, his fingers digging into my arm. "You and your mother, clinging to our name, our money. You're nothing but a gold-digger, Elana. A parasite." He

ty was the first time we' d really seen each other, really been together, in a l

hoes of his words still ringing in my ears. The

n my mouth. My head swam. The room tilted. Somethi

ut of here. Befor