“You’re getting married?” Six months since she last saw him and she thought it would be going very different. She made sure she looked perfect and that she was on her best behavior. This was to get him back. It was all for him.
And he was getting married.
His eyes casted down as she started to cry. He hated making her cry. She hated crying in front of him. They sat silent as Nicolette’s eyes stayed glued to him. He was cutting off ties. She was just another loose end. Something he had to take care of before he could go and live his happy life with his wife.
“Who is she?” He didn’t look up at her and it angered Nicolette. “Look at me while you break my heart, Elliot.” She demanded of him and his eyes looked up at her again. Tears stained his eyes. “No. You don’t get to cry. You don’t get to weep over our lost love. Be a man. Tell me who she is. Who was good enough for your love, months after you leave me?”
He seemed at a loss for words. This isn’t a side of Nicolette that he got to experience. She was never this angry with him or spiteful. She was soft and sweet, but he hurt her. “Elizabeth. It’s…Lizzie.” His voice broke as he admitted to her that it was his partner at the Dragon Center. The girl that took Nicolette under her wing and introduced her to Elliot in the first place.
“How long?” She demanded of him. “A week after we stopped dating? Two weeks?” Her voice was filled with venom as she practically spat at him. “Two years. We’ve been together for two years, Nicolette. I cheated on her with you.”
Everything began to fall around Nicolette. She shook her head looking at him. The anger subsided and it was only pain. Pain Nicolette had never felt before. “You used me.” She backed away from him and he stepped towards her. “No, Nicolette. It’s not like that.” She pushed him as he got closer to her. He wanted to hug her and she would be damned if he comforted her.
“You used me, you bastard! You used me as a last romp around before you got married! How long have you been engaged to her? No wonder why you demanded I never told anyone. You disgusting, cheating bastard. I fell in love with you. I loved you more than I thought I could ever love another person. You made me believe in love and now I can never have that back.” Her tears flowed down her face slowly and she backed away from him making her escape.
“Never speak to me again. Get the hell out of my life. If you ever come near me again, I will hurt you. You forget — I am a Gatsby.”
She left him alone and ran. Her feet couldn’t take her fast enough as she grabbed powder out of the small bowl next to the fireplace, jumping in and screaming “Gatsby Manor!” As soon as she made it to her own fireplace, she fell to the floor in tears. Her sobs shook the house.
She promised herself to never feel this pain again. She would not be someone’s toy again. He was the last man to ever use her, she swore it.
Eventually Sam ran to her, the sound of her cries echoing in the hall. He picked her up gently, quietly her down, and taking her to her room. Charlotte trailed close behind him, practically gnawing at her bottom lip. He laid her gently in her bed and Charlotte crawled in after her. She held her twin tightly as Nicolette continued to cry. Matt entered shortly after and sat on the bed. Sam stood stoic next to the bed. The Gatsby children stayed in her room all night.
Each sibling made a vow to destroy Elliot Hayes. Few things brought the siblings this close, and that night it was pain.