He Didn’t Kidnap Me. Not Exactly novel Chapter 40

Chapter 40

(Daisy’s POV)

The laughter didn’t stop.

It didn’t fade into the background. It didn’t soften out of politeness. It stayed, loud and layered, echoing through the auditorium like it had found a place to live there.

And it wasn’t just laughter.

There were other sounds mixed into it now. Camera clicks. Notification pings. The sharp, almost rhythmic tapping of people posting, sending, sharing.

“Edit it so it can be posted,” someone said.

Nathan.

I didn’t even have to look to know it was him.

“This one’s going to blow up.”

He said it casually, like he was talking about a joke that had landed well. Like it didn’t involve me at all; Like I wasn’t standing right there.

My chest tightened further, but my body didn’t move. I just stood there, stuck in the exact spot where everything had gone wrong,

like moving would somehow make it more real.

But it was already real. That was the problem.

I could feel it settling in now, piece by piece.

Meanwhile, this wasn’t staying here. It wasn’t going to be contained in this room or buried under the noise of the moment. It was already spreading, slipping through phones and screens and conversations, moving faster than I could ever catch up to.

I swallowed, my throat suddenly dry.

I really did that.

My eyes stung me now but I didn’t cry. I wasn’t going to do that, not in front of them. But I could feel it sitting right behind my eyes, waiting. And then, because I couldn’t seem to stop myself, I looked at him.

Nathan.

He was laughing now and it was enough to show that this had never been serious to him. Enough to make it clear that whatever moment I thought we had shared didn’t exist outside of my own head.

This was the worst part- he didn’t hesitate moving on.

Meaning this was planned, properly and deliberately… and I had walked straight into it.

“Come on.”

The voice came from beside me, firm and urgent.

Lillian.

Her hand wrapped around my wrist before I could react, pulling me out of the space before I could process anything else.

I didn’t resist. I couldn’t.

My legs moved automatically, following her lead as we pushed through the crowd, past the laughter, and past the eyes that still

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