Hi guys, sorry this is late. But i hope you enjoy it.
NB: Since our gang is in Italy, all conversations are in Italian. I felt that since this is an English book, its best to write all the dialogues in English. Enjoy ♥️

The chatter of the party quietened, the music went dead silent, the world as she knew it, stopped rotating at that moment. People froze, some drinking wine, some eating something, some dancing. Everybody around her froze. Her sight darkened, there was pitch black all around her. A deafening tone made her ears ache.

Cassy's hands rose to cover her ears and she crouched to the ground subconsciously.

"Cassy" a singsong voice sang her name like a stuck melody on a cassette tape.

Cassy!

Her eyes shot open, the darkness slowly fading away to reveal the beautiful evening of the party at her place. Uncovering her ears she slowly came back to the music playing in the distance and the chatter of the crowd which was gradually becoming more evident.

She was crouched on the grass, of the yard a couple of meters away from the nearest invitees group. It was then thats she noticed two pairs of feet, sandaled lady's feet and a pair of sneakers. She was gently being shaken too. She faintly heard somebody calling out to her.

But He was dead.

P. Murphy is Pete... was Pete Murphy.

Her Pete.. Francesca's Pete... Pete who cheated.

But it was also the same Pete that she loved. Who had held a large part of her heart. Now he was dead.

"Cassy!"

She snapped back to her senses, lifted off the ground into a standing position. In front of her stood her sister Sofia and Luca who were speaking to her but she heard nothing. Her mind was overwhelmingly clouded with thoughts of Pete.

Abruptly something cold dropped on her head, followed by several others in succession. Instinctively looking up she saw rain drops began falling on her hard and fast. The people around them started running for shelter clutching various things.

But Cassy's body stood frozen, her muscles feeling stiff and hard, until Luca and Sofia gently guided her towards shelter. They had come into the kitchen which was now empty. Luca pulled out a wooden chair, it's legs scraping sound against the stone floor and sat her on a it.

Outside, the rain had intensified, drumming hard on the glass windows as Cassy sat on the wooden chair. Sofia was shaking her gently, trying to bring her out of the numbness that had engulfed her.

"Cassy, what's wrong? We're here for you." Sofia pleaded, her voice full of concern.

Sofia's plea and the eerie silence of the empty kitchen beckoned the dark secrets that Cassy had vowed to keep locked away. However she couldn't hold it in any longer. Cassy finally gave in to laying her heart out bare.

Cassy took a deep, shuddering breath, trying to find strength to speak. Sofia unlike Luca who stood patiently beside her, was fidgeting impatiently.

Cassy lifted her face, revealing her red, swollen eyes. She looked grief-stricken and miserable.

"He's... he's dead.." Cassy finally managing to chock out, her voice barely above a whisper. "Pete.. Pete is dead."

Sofia's eyes widened with shock, and let out an audible gasp, her hand flying to her mouth simultaneously. "Oh my god Cassy!"

Luca's face was just as bewildering, his expression unreadable." What happened?"

"He was in a car accident.. this evening" Cassy's voice trembled as she continued. She still couldnt believe the reality of it. Despite everything that had happened, Pete was gone.

Luca and Sofia exchanged concerned looks before swiftly moving to Cassy's side.

"Oh baby I'm sorry." Sofia whispered gently stroking Cassy's hair, holding her sister close to her.

"I can't believe that he's...he's gone." Cassy murmured, "He was a part of my life for so long. But now he's gone" she continued.

Sofia felt her sister sob softly in her arms, "I know it's alot Cassy, I'm here for you" she assured her little sister as she kissed her hair.

Cassy's eyes began to pool with tears again, Pete's death has also reminded her of his recent betrayal.

"Sofia" Cassy began again. "There's something else... about Pete."

Sofia nodded, her expression softening as she realised her sister's need to unburden herself.

"Of course Cassy, You can tell me, Im here for you."

Luca felt a pang of sympathy as Cassy prepared to share her burden with her sister. He had witnessed first hand the struggle Cassy went through the aftermath of discovering Pete's betrayal. Seeing Cassy in this situation reminded him of the journey they had taken together to get to this point.

Having to relive a terrible thing is always tough when you decidee to open up. But it always helped to talk about it. It always made things a little better, Luca thought to himself.

Deciding to reveal the Pete-Moretti situation to her sister, was a brave of Cassy, no matter how difficult: he reminded himself.

Cassy trembled slightly, vivid images of seeinh Pete and Moretti in an intimate position became clearer in her mind, their entanglement stabbing at Cassy's heart. She felt the same powerless misery that had engulfed her in her apartment that day.

Cassy's heart pounded hard in her chest as she struggled to weigh the gravity of the situation she had uncovered.

Her voice trembled, tears now streaming in thin, glistening lines over her cheeks as she recounted, "I caught him cheating... with Francesca, my boss." She managed to choke past the evolving lump in her throat.

As Cassy's painful confession hung heavy in the air, Luca's heart ached for her as he recalled the day Cassy had first discovered Pete's betrayal. He had been by her side since that day at the cliff's edge, standing by her side.

"Cassy," he said softly, his voice tinged with empathy, "I'm so sorry you had to go through that. You've been incredibly strong."

Sofia was in shock from Cassy's confession, she had been quiet for some time. She was devastated at the situation her baby sister was put in, she also felt a spike of energy from all the hate that was building up for Pete.

"Oh, Cassy," she gasped, tears welling up in her own eyes. "I had no idea..."

Cassy nodded slowly, tears flowing from her swollen eyes. "I didn't know how to tell you both," she admitted, feeling a mix of relief and vulnerability.

"It's been eating me up inside."

Luca reached out, gently squeezing Cassy's shoulder in silent support.

"You've come so far, Cassy," he assured her, his gaze steady and reassuring. "You're not alone in this."

As the rain continued to drum against the kitchen window, the three of them sat in a shared moment of sorrow and solidarity. Cassy's confession had opened a door to healing, however slow and painful it might be.

Hey guys,

Thats it for today. Thank you all for being patient with me. Today's chapter is shorter than the others but i hope you like it. Take care.

As always, don't forget to vote and comment. Everything is much appreciated and means so much.
Love ya ♥️
XO Ama