From Now On, It’s Not About You Chapter 07

From Now On, It’s Not About You Chapter 07

The smile froze on Willow’s face.

Ryan stood in the doorway without saying a word.

No one knew how long he had been there or how much he had heard.

The bag of chips spilled across the floor.

Willow practically tumbled out of bed.

“Ryan, let me explain. It’s not what you think.”

“I was just joking around with my friend. None of it was real.”

Ryan slowly crouched down, his expression so calm it was terrifying.

“I told you before.”

“If anything happened to my little Phoebe, you’d pay with your life.”

Cold sweat drenched Willow’s back. Her face went ashen.

Suddenly, she wrapped her arms around his leg.

Her hospital gown slipped off one shoulder as she resorted to the same tricks she’d always used.

“Ryan, I didn’t mean for any of this to happen.”

“I only did it because I love you. Please, can you forgive me?”

When he didn’t react, she moved closer.

“If you just forgive me, I’ll do anything-any position you want.”

Ryan laughed. For one brief moment, Willow thought she’d gotten away with it.

Then he peeled her fingers off his leg, one by one.

Cheap. Pathetic. The kind of woman who would sell herself to anyone with enough money.

Yet because of her, he’d forced his little Phoebe to give up her Silver Moon Academy spot.

Because of her, he’d let her walk away with the love token he’d given to Phoebe-the star necklace.

The regret stayed with him and never let up. It weighed on him every moment, and sometimes it

felt hard to breathe.

Ryan stood. He looked down at Willow as though she were something rotten.

“Save your performances for prison.”

The words had barely left his mouth when two officers entered the room.

Ryan handed over the recording device in his hand.

“I have one request. No settlement. Prosecute her to the fullest extent of the law.”

For the first time, Willow truly panicked.

She screamed, threw tantrums, begged, and played the victim-but against the absolute force of justice, none of it meant a thing.

Against real justice, she had nothing.

As the officers dragged her away, tears and snot covered her face. Her voice turned shrill.

“Ryan! You helped kill Phoebe too! You’ll get what’s coming to you!”

Silence returned to the hospital room.

Ryan slid down the wall and sat on the floor.

He knew. His punishment had already come.

The next day, Ryan went live. He confessed everything.

He apologized to the entire internet. He got torn to shreds online.

My name was finally cleared. But it happened after everyone believed I was dead.

The rescue team fished more belongings out of the river. Everything was handed over to Ethan.

Every day, Ryan stood outside my door, begging Ethan to give him just one thing I’d left behind.

Ethan treated him like air-even if Ryan stayed there until he died, Ethan wouldn’t spare him a single glance.

Three days later, Ryan collapsed outside the house.

The pack guards carried him back to the pack house.

Ethan told me everything through our mind link.

The day Ryan left with Willow, our video appeared online. He had lied to me again.

I was cursed and harassed to the point where I was too afraid to even turn on my phone.

Some extremists even came to my house. They smashed my windows and pounded on my doors.

Dad rushed home and drove them away.

But I knew this wasn’t random.

Those who showed up had come prepared-they weren’t going to let me off that easily.

After talking with Mom, Dad made a decision.

They would use this opportunity to get me out of the pack entirely.

The crash into the river was real-but the person inside the car wasn’t me.

Dad had arranged for a professional swimmer to take my place.

The moment the vehicle hit the water, he escaped safely.

By then, I was already on a plane heading overseas, enrolled in the elite academy Mom had

arranged for me.

I thought I’d never see Ryan again. Not in this lifetime.

Less than six months after enrolling, Dad called me. His voice was urgent.

“Phoebe, Ryan somehow found out you’re still alive-that you’re training with the United Packs.”

“I can’t hold him off anymore. He might come looking for you.”

“Yeah, he’s already here,” I said, lowering my phone and lifting my gaze.

The man standing in the distance was Ryan.