Chapter 303
Chapter 303:
From above, Ryan could only see the top of her hair, a posture that looked meek and compliant, while hidden beneath, her knuckles had turned white.
There it was again — that same fragile stance.
“Kailey, are you scared of me?” He gritted his teeth, his voice hoarse with restraint. “Answer me p>
The sharp command cracked through the air. Kailey squeezed her eyes shut, then slowly opened them. She drew in a steady breath and lifted her chin to face him.
Only then did she truly register his appearance — stubble shadowing his jaw, skin drawn with exhaustion, eyes rimmed red as if sleep had abandoned him for days.
“What exactly do you want me to say?” Her gaze settled on his face, calm to the point of indifference. “Do you want to hear that I was happy? I was — earlier today. But not now p>
So her mood had soured the moment she saw him.
A humorless laugh slipped from Ryan’s lips, his piercing stare deep enough to feel suffocating. “Are you really planning to cut me out of your life p>
ո𝗼𝘃е𝗹𝗌 𝗂𝘯 t𝗿е𝗻𝗱 𝘰ո
Sharp nails pressed into the flesh of her palm, the sting barely keeping her steady. “No p>
“Then how much longer were you going to keep pushing me away p>
He lifted a hand, meaning to smooth the loose strands of her hair — yet she instinctively stepped back, leaving his gesture suspended awkwardly in midair. Drawing in a quiet breath, Kailey forced herself to meet the darkness in his gaze. “I wasn’t pushing you away. I just have a life of my own now p>
Those words were meant to be spoken long ago.
Bewilderment stirred in her chest. Ryan, who once resented her dependence, now clung to her presence with unsettling persistence.
He acted as though nothing had reached him at all, his bloodshot eyes lingering on his outstretched hand for several heavy seconds before he slowly drew it back to his side. His lips parted, then closed again as hesitation weighed on his tongue.
Something about his hollow expression stirred a tangled, uneasy emotion deep in Kailey’s chest.
“So when you talk about living your own life — you mean walking away from the Owen family?” Ryan finally broke the silence, his voice hoarse and strained, as if the question scraped his throat raw. “Kailey, what does family even mean to you? And what am I p>
The rest of the sentence died before it ever reached the air.
Tension flickered along his clenched jaw as he lowered his gaze, carefully hiding the storm brewing behind his eyes.
After several quiet seconds slipped by, Kailey answered in a low voice, “Everyone grows up and ends up choosing their own path. You didn’t stay glued to your mother forever, did you? Family matters deeply to me. The Owens will always have a special place in my heart. But if I don’t learn to care for myself first, I won’t have anything left to give anyone else. I’m sorry. Kyson’s still waiting. I have to go p>
When her shoulder brushed past him, a sudden, needle-sharp ache stabbed through Ryan’s chest.