A Love that Endures 2

by Forrest, Bella

  David probably hadn’t even considered all of those possibilities yet. And that reality would now soon be upon them.

  “Still nothing from the king and queen?” Cassie asked gingerly, clearly knowing how much it would pain Katy.

  Katy shook her head. “Any minute now.”

  And, right on cue, Katy’s phone began to buzz.

  Her chest tightened as she looked down. It was the queen. Cassie looked over and saw.

  “It’ll be okay, Katy,” her cousin said softly in support.

  But Katy knew that she was wrong. She answered the phone.

  “Mama?”

  “Oh, Katerina! How could you? How could you do this to your family? To your people? Katerina!”

  The queen sobbed, her disappointment cutting through Katy like a hot knife.

  “I’m so sorry, Mama,” Katy said lowly. She’d thought she was done crying, but the sound of her mother’s anguish had tears prickling at her eyes again. She tried her best to hold them back. “But it wasn’t what it looked like, I promise. We just—”

  “I knew this would happen in America. I knew that you would betray our morals and values when you went off to university. We gave you the benefit of the doubt, and this is how you repay us!”

  The queen began to cry again, leaving Katy quiet on the other end. What could she possibly say to make any of it better?

  “Mama, it’s not what it looked like. . .”

  The queen scoffed through her tears. “Katerina, when has that ever mattered? It’s the perception that matters. What it looks like matters! And it looks pretty awful! We’re facing years—possibly decades—of damage control over this. And that starts now. You need to get on a plane as soon as possible, Katerina.”

  “But, Mama,” Katy began to protest. What about Harvard? Her degree? Her friends? David?

  The queen cut her off. “How much do we have to suffer for your independence, Katerina? How much damage has to be done to our legacy before you’ll be satisfied with your time among the commoners?”

  Katy swallowed hard, unsure of how to answer.

  “Get here at once, Katerina. We have an entire crisis PR team flying in to help us get through this. As the crisis itself, I expect you to be here.”

  The queen ended the call without a goodbye, leaving Katy’s stomach roiling.

  Cassie looked over at her cousin gently. “Are you okay, hon?” she asked.

  Katy set her phone down beside her on the bed, looking down at her mussed sheets. “She didn’t say anything I didn’t expect, so I guess so. I just don’t know what to do about Harvard. She wants me home immediately.”

  Sitting beside her on the bed, Cassie began to rub Katy’s back sympathetically. “Well, do you think you’d even be able to go to classes after this? If so, maybe your professors will be understanding about you needing some time away.”

  But Katy shook her head. Cassie was right. “I don’t know how I would ever be able to face my professors. Or classmates. Or really anyone on campus. Not after this.”

  But Harvard isn’t the only thing I’d want to stay in Cambridge for.

  At that moment, the door to the bedroom burst open. David stood there briefly, looking shell-shocked, taking in the situation before rushing straight to Katy.

  “Katy. Katy, I’m so sorry,” David said as he wrapped his arms around her.

  For the first time since immediately viewing the photos, Katy let herself go. She allowed herself to be pulled in close to David and then clung to him, letting her emotion pour out of her like a vessel. Cassie could understand what it was like to face a royal scandal. The queen could understand the magnitude of PR crises. But no one else could understand exactly what it had felt like that night, when their passion and joy had been interrupted by camera flashes. No one else could understand the shame and embarrassment of seeing those photos on the internet now.

  No one but David. And now her mother wanted Katy to just leave him behind? How could she do that?

  David held Katy tightly while she cried in his arms. “It’ll be okay. It’ll be okay,” he whispered over and over again, his mouth close to her ear. And for a few long seconds, everything did feel better. She felt less alone, less judged. She felt loved and accepted, which was all she had wanted in the hours since she’d seen that the photos had been published.

  But the feeling was quickly ripped away from her.

  “How can you say that?”

  David and Katy turned together to look at Cassie in surprise. Katy had heard her statement, but she didn’t quite process that yet.

  “How can you say everything will be okay, David? I mean…are you from Lorria? Are you a royal? Have you been raised your whole life under the pretense that you will one day rule a country and you need to be a pillar of morality to do so? I don’t mean to be rude, but you have no idea what this will be like for Katy, so she doesn’t need empty platitudes from you,” Cassie went on, her eyes narrowed.

  “What? No, I didn’t mean . . .” David tried to defend himself, looking a little shocked. But Cassie continued.

  “You just don’t understand, David. At all.”

  “Cassie, he’s just trying to help,” Katy interjected sharply.

  But Cassie was still staring at David, her eyes steely. “Was it you?” she asked after a moment.

  David shook his head slowly in confusion. “I’m sorry. I don’t understand . . .”

  “Was it you who sold the pictures, David?” Cassie clarified.

  David’s eyes bulged as he stared at her, probably coming to the same conclusion Katy had. Katy jumped in, her temper rising among all the other shock and hurt.

  “Cassie, what are you saying? Of course it wasn’t David!”

  Cassie turned toward Katy now, her eyes less hard but her voice just as sharp. “But how do you know that? You said yourself that the paperwork with the pap was incontrovertible. Plus, Marty didn’t even have the memory card! Who else would have pocketed it but David?”

  Katy shook her head and tightened her grip on David, as if Cassie was literally trying to tear them apart. “Cassie! How could you accuse him of this? I know he didn’t do it.”

  David broke in then, his voice just a touch less hoarse than Katy’s. “Cassie, I love your cousin. I love her more than anything. I would never hurt her. Especially not like this. You have to believe that.”

  “Well, then who sold the photos?” Cassie asked, her hands balling.

  “I don’t know!” David replied, a tinge of anger creeping into his tone.

  “Please,” Katy said to Cassie, her voice straining. “Please don’t fight right now. This day is hell enough already.”

  Cassie’s face softened, and she took a step back, losing some of her assertiveness. “I’m sorry, Katy… And I’m sorry to you too, David. I’m just upset and anxious. I hate seeing Katy go through this.”

  “I’m sorry, too,” David added. “But I swear to both of you: I never saw a memory card. I’m just as surprised as you guys that the pictures were published.”

  “I know, David,” Katy said firmly. “Of course you didn’t sell the photos. Cassie didn’t mean that.”

  But Cassie didn’t affirm her statement. Katy looked over at her cousin warily; Cassie folded her arms and looked away, and before Katy could pursue the matter further, David’s voice interrupted her thoughts.

  “What happens next?” he asked wearily. “What can I do to help you get through this, Katy?”

  There wasn’t a good answer to that question. Because, in reality, there was only one thing that David could do at the moment, and Katy didn’t even want to say it.

  Cassie, on the other hand, didn’t hold back.

  “It’d be best if you stayed away, David. No offense, and I’m not trying to start a fight with you. But you should stay away until the firestorm dies down. Your presence would only make things worse for Katy. We need to go back to Lorria. Today, honestly. As soon as we can charter a flight.”

  It physically pain
ed Katy to hear her cousin lay everything out so factually. But it was true. That was the best thing that Katy could do at the moment to preserve the crown’s reputation and mollify her parents. The queen was expecting her home immediately. She probably already had a driver en route. Even if leaving Cambridge was the last thing that Katy wanted, she knew that it was for the best for now. Based on what all of Lorria probably thought of their princess’s stay in America now.

  David looked over at Katy, his eyes heavy with sorrow. But Katy simply nodded in return, her eyes brimming with fresh tears.

  “I’m sorry, David. I wish it wasn’t the case. But I’d be lying if I said she wasn’t right about this. I need to go home to sort things out with my family, and figure out how to proceed. This is a big, big deal to them.”

  David looked pained. “But what about after? Will you come back?”

  “I’m not leaving you, David,” Katy promised. “I would never just give up on us. But I don’t really know what’s happening right now—I don’t know how long it’ll take. But I’ll let you know as soon as I do.”

  “And we need to pack, David,” Cassie added. “I need to get dressed and stuff… Maybe it’d be best if you left us to it.”

  Katy turned back to argue with her cousin, desperate for a few more moments with the boy she loved. But David spoke first, drawing her attention, almost making her forget Cassie was in the room.

  “Okay. I understand.” He paused, and the flicker of uncertainty in his eyes made Katy’s heart ache more than anything she’d seen yet. “As long as you promise me that this isn’t really goodbye.”

  Katy turned back to David, her heart heavy but certain.

  “Of course it’s not really goodbye, David. I’ll see you again as soon as I can. Hopefully just days. A week or so at most. I’ll come back, or I’ll fly you out. I don’t care what anyone says.” Katy meant it. She was willing to go home and try to fix things for her family, but she wasn’t willing to give up David.

  And if any of them had an issue with that, well . . . she was more than happy to stand up for him.

  “Okay, Katy. I guess I’ll see you soon, then. I’ll miss you,” David said gently, stepping toward Katy, closing the space between them.

  “Not for long, David. I promise.”

  “Not for long,” David echoed, looking down at her, his intense blue eyes soft. “I love you, Katy.”

  “I love you so much,” Katy whispered.

  She leaned toward David again, resting her head on his chest, and felt his arms envelop her. For a moment, she could almost forget Cassie watching, her parents’ phone call, how much her whole life had just been altered by a few moments and a person with no sense of compassion. It felt so comfortable and safe being in David’s arms, so right—and she knew from his breathing, from his looks and texts and how he held her, that he felt the same way about her.

  And now I have to leave him behind.

  28

  David

  The walk back to the Wolf Club marked the first time since David had arrived at Harvard that he felt like he didn’t belong.

  It might’ve been because his emotions were so raw and chaotic. Or perhaps it was because he felt like everyone he passed knew him much more intimately than they had any right to.

  Or maybe it was because he was about to be alone again, alone with all of this, missing the person he loved the most. If Katy was going back to Lorria, with no plans yet to come back, then it didn’t feel like Cambridge held much importance for David at all.

  His head down, walking quickly, David made it back to his house and had almost made it to the stairs before he was accosted.

  “Hey, man. There are worse things to be known for.”

  David didn’t turn around. He kept his hand on the railing of the stairs and tried to steady his breathing. He knew Max was just trying to lighten the mood. But Max had always had terrible taste, and if he’d known anything about David, he’d have known by now that his vaguely disrespectful jokes weren’t any comfort to him at all. In fact, David was afraid to turn around and see the dumb smile on Max’s face, lest he say something he’d later regret.

  Seb chimed in from behind David. “But, really. We know that’s a lot to take in, man. Let us know if you need anything.”

  The yin to Max’s yang, Seb managed to calm David’s flaring defenses. But he still didn’t want to face either of his friends. So he merely nodded and ascended the stairs toward his room without another word.

  He was relieved to see Zeke.

  “Hey, David,” Zeke said gently as David walked in and sat glumly on his bed. After a tense pause, his roommate went on. “I talked to Bell. He said to just email him about a makeup in the next few days. I think he, uh, figured out what happened toward the end of class. So I’m sure he understands.”

  David nodded. “Thanks, Zeke.” It was all he could currently muster. He was too shocked about his morning to speak much. And it bothered him that even without him saying anything, everyone seemed aware of his current predicament. He had never experienced anything like it before. His personal business, just . . . aired to the world like public television.

  “How is Katy?” Zeke asked.

  David shrugged. “She’s doing as well as she can be, given the circumstances. But she’s leaving to go back to Lorria.”

  “I’m sorry. I know that’s hard for you. Do you know when she’s coming back?”

  David took a deep breath. “I don’t know if she is, actually.” He hated saying that out loud, as if it would somehow be less real if he kept it to himself. But it was obvious why Katy needed to get away from campus and the scene of the crime as quickly as possible.

  David just couldn’t stand to see her go.

  “Well,” Zeke began, choosing his words carefully, “at least it’s almost spring break. So if she wanted to come back, she’d have the opportunity.”

  David nodded slowly, barely registering Zeke’s words. Then, even though he didn’t want to know, he asked, “Did you see them? The photos?”

  Zeke didn’t immediately answer. But his silence spoke louder than words.

  David sighed again and lay back on his bed. He had messages from Joseph and Cerise that he knew he’d need to answer eventually. And he had Bell’s makeup exam to schedule and attend. But he didn’t want to do any of those things. He wanted to curl up and hide away from everyone who suddenly knew him so well; he wanted to run to Katy and take her away with him, but he knew he couldn’t.

  And, since he had to be apart from Katy, he wanted to get away from Cambridge, somewhere no one would ever look for him, lush and green and warm and . . .

  David’s breath caught. Somewhere like Brazil.

  He sat up again. It wasn’t ideal. He didn’t want to be away from Katy anywhere or for any reason. But if she had to spend time with her family and PR teams in Lorria, David wasn’t going to sit around Cambridge and wallow.

  He needed to get away, too. And what better time to go and meet his father? Even if it went terribly, it’d still be a welcome reprieve from being alone in Cambridge in the aftermath of a terrible scandal.

  “What is it?” Zeke asked, noticing David’s sudden shift.

  “I don’t think I can be here either. Not while this news is still so fresh. I’m going to call my dad and see if I can go to Brazil now.”

  David stood up and walked to his desk, powering up his laptop. Behind him, Zeke shifted uncomfortably.

  “David . . . are you sure about that? I mean, I know that this is a lot to take, but we still have some midterms to attend to before the break. And, no offense, but do you think your best support right now would be someone you don’t know yet?”

  Zeke had a point about Marcos. He knew that his midterms could probably all be pushed back due to the nature of David’s current situation—his professors would be understanding, and he could schedule makeup tests—but was it wise to trot off to Brazil to meet a virtual stranger during a very difficult time?

  Then aga
in, the support that David really wanted would be in Lorria. And he couldn’t go with her. So why not go to Brazil? It was as far away as he could get from everything going on at the moment. And while there was a chance that things would be awkward, unsupportive, or uncomfortable, there was also a chance that he could connect with his father.

  He would be smart about this—he could tell Katy where he was going, make sure his cell phone would still work . . . He could escape from it all for a short while and still keep connections to the things that were important to him. In fact, it felt like he had to.

  David pulled up his email and began to draft a message to all of his professors. He tried to keep things as vague as possible.

  “For reasons that you are probably already aware of . . .”

  David sighed. He hated typing that. But it was true. He was sure all the faculty knew by now.

  After requesting the rest of the week off to handle personal affairs, David closed his laptop and pulled out his phone.

  Nothing from Katy yet. Unfortunately. He realized it would probably be like this for a while, since Katy would be busy with her parents and the crisis team.

  Zeke stood and moved to stand beside David, probably meaning it as a support. But David couldn’t help but wonder if Zeke was also trying to temper David’s sudden impulses.

  If so, good luck. You’d want to jet off too if you’d just had a morning like mine.

  “What about staying here with me? Or maybe we could rent a tent and go camping somewhere! Somewhere far away from Harvard and everyone else,” his roommate offered kindly.

  David looked up at him. “What about Nur? I thought you were meeting her parents over the break.”

  “She already texted me and told me that if you need me more, she would completely understand.”

  It was a sweet gesture, and he appreciated it. But David shook his head. “You still have midterms. You don’t have the same excuse that I do to get out of them.”