A weekend tucked away in a mansion with no one other than your significant other is exactly the kind of medicine the doctor ordered.

Alexander meant it when he said that he will be giving me his full, undivided attention. This is a bubble that I don’t want to leave but I unfortunately have to.

Being with him for three nights has been amazing.

And the fact that I got to play with Saba yesterday afternoon was just an added bonus. I’m not a dog person, I actually like cats.

But Saba the Tibetan Mastiff has stolen my heart. As big as she is, she has a space in my heart that is large enough for her alone.

There is no time to let the depression of being back to the apartment sink in because once again life does not give me a break.

Bryce and Gigi ambush me the moment I set foot into the apartment. The looks on their faces are complete opposites .

Gigi looks like she’s a child on Christmas morning. The excitement is oozing out of her. Bryce on the other hand looks like the naughty kid who got a clump of coal instead of the present he was expecting.

“Uh..hello” I say dropping my purse on the couch.

“Hey, how was your week-”,

“What the hell is this?”, Bryce asks, cutting Gigi off. He holds up what looks like an entertainment newsletter.

It would not have been a major deal if it was just a normal issue with some celebrity doing something crazy. What makes me stop in my tracks is the fact that my face was on the front page of The Scoop. One of the biggest papers in town... in the country.

A clear image of Alexander and I walking out of Le Petit Chateau on Friday night. There’s a box in the corner with a zoomed in picture of us holding hands.

The bold headline reads:

Of course, the paparazzi.

My heart races and it feels like it wants to claw its way out of my chest, not because of the paper but of the look in Bryce’s face.

He looks both sad and angry.

“Bryce, I can expl-”

Anger dominates in his eyes, “Explain?”, he scoffs. “How? How do you explain this?”.

The paper is flung angrily onto the counter, the sound of the impact, makes me flinch. Bryce has shown a lot of emotions over the years but I have never seen him like this.

It scares me, but I also feel guilty that I am responsible for him being this way.

“I was going to tell you. I was waiting for a proper time”, tears threaten to fall down my cheeks.

He frustratingly runs his fingers through his hair. “Him? Alexander freaking Cain! Why him?”.

“I-I-Don’t” my voice trails off and fades into a whisper. I don’t know how to make this right.

I watch him move past Gigi, towards me. He stands in front of me not looking at me. He looks past me to the door.

“What hurts the most is that I dared to hope. I hoped for me. I hoped for us”. The sound of his voice is so low. The hurt is so raw that you can feel it.

He opens the door and walks out, slamming it closed. The sound makes me jump a little.

Staring at the door for what seems to be an eternity , I will him to come back. But he doesn’t.

I don’t even realise that I am sobbing, Gigi’s comforting hands pull me in for a hug. Her palm moves in a circular motion on my back as I cry.

Why am I even crying?

Bryce is the broken one...right?

“Shh...give him time sweetie. He’ll be okay”, Gigi’s soothing words calm me down.

This is not how I wanted to spend my morning. This is not how I wanted Bryce to find out.

I keep replaying his words in my head the whole time Gigi holds me.

He had hope for us? Hope for a relationship? Could we even become more than friends if Alexander was not in the picture?

Probably but I’d also blame it on the undeniable physical attraction I had for him.

now it’s in past tense.

Having my face on the front page of a tabloid newspaper has exposed me to what is the constant nagging of paparazzi wherever I go.

They are camped outside the apartment building, I take a peek at the window and all I see is cameras pointed at our balcony.

How do they know where I live?

Is this what it’s like to be famous?

I spoke to Alexander about this and he said to pay them no attention. That they would eventually get bored and leave me alone.

I wish the lingering sadness would also be able to pack up and leave like the paparazzi.

Bryce has not spoken to me in four days, since he had his outburst. I tried calling him a few times and he has sent all of my calls to voicemail.

So he’s ignoring me. And when someone does that to you, you must be able to be ignorable.

I’m giving him all the space he needs.

To not let this get to my head so much, I have been focusing on my studying. I had two tests yesterday and they were so hard, I felt like crying and giving up. But then life would not let me give up so easily so I soldiered on and finished both of them.

To relax my mind I have been going on more jogs. My body is slowly starting to get used to exerting itself. It's been good for my soul, mind and body. I am not seeing big results yet but I can tell it’s working.

I’ve been chubby for too long. Not that I have a problem with my body. This is all about keeping fit and not heaving every time I go up a flight of stairs.

My craving for a properly made cup of coffee prompts me out of bed. I quickly get dressed. Walking into Gigi’s room I grab her car keys.

She is sprawled on the bed, facing the ceiling.

“I’m getting coffee from Brewed, you want any?”

She turns her head towards me, “Yes please . Caffeine will help me fight off this writer’s block I’m having”.

Walking out of the building, the questions start popping up again and I just ignore them as I get into the car.

Some of the media people try to stand in front of the car, blocking my way with their camera flashes.

Gosh these people are such pests. I could just run them over but I don’t want to have a murder charge on me.

I would not survive jail. That I am sure of.

I take my time driving to the mall. It kind of sucks that this is the only location Brewed has. They need to have more branches.

Peace of mind settles as I drive and listen to Katy Perry. I even sing along. I’m not gassing myself up but I can hold a note.

When I was younger I was always in choir, and I sang lead in our fifth grade musical of ‘High School Musical’. My mom always said that I should pursue a career in music. But that has never been my thing.

I have never seen myself as a professional singer, I still don’t. That does not mean that I don’t sing once in a while. It feels good and relaxing.

Walking into the mall, I bolt for my destination. I get our two coffee cups and walk back to the parking lot. What I don’t expect is to see a crowd of people near the parking lot.

Why are they here?

What’s happening?

Curiosity wins me over as my feet shuffle forward to the scene. I realise it’s just a bunch of people wanting photographs of Belle Walker.

I have not seen her in a while , so the moment I catch a glimpse of her face, I move back and walk towards where I parked. Just before I reach the car, I hear her voice call me.

“Rosalie!”. How did she even see me?

I awkwardly turn around with the two coffees in my left hand and the car keys on the other hand. I plaster a smile on my face as she approaches me, with a few paparazzi snapping pictures.

I don’t need this right now, I’ve had too much exposure already.

She looks cute, in balc skinny jeans, a knitted oversized jersey and a pair of high heeled ankle boots. Her strawberry blonde hair falls in waves on her shoulders.

“Belle, hi”.

Stepping closer to me she pulls me into a hug.

Well this is not what I expected.

Why is he holding on to me like we’re old friends?

My thoughts are interrupted by the words she whispers to my ear as she still embraces me.

“You little witch. You think you can keep my Alexander for yourself?”.

My breathing becomes shallow from the malice laced in her voice.

“You’re going to regret ever coming into our lives.”

Is that a threat?

She then pulls away from me with a smirk.

‘It was nice seeing you, toodles” she says loudly for everyone around us to hear.

I watch her sway her hips as he walks into the mall. Leaving me with shock all over my face and the cameras that have gotten footage of the exchange between us.

Quickly getting into the car, I drive home to tell Gigi about what just happened.