All Chapters of Pause, Rewind, Play: Chapter 11 - Chapter 20

September 2026,Ovzdusia, Soare-Luna Kingdom KaterinaShe didn't come.Despite all my efforts, Alya didn't deem it fit to grace us with her presence. Maybe she didn't get my invitation. Maybe she didn't hear about the wedding. That seemed almost impossible because I had literally announced it to the world. Everyone knew. Maybe she just decided not to come.What was even the point of having such a big, flashy wedding then? I had thought that at least one good thing would come out of marrying Felix. That I would reunite with my best friend who I thought was dead. It almost made me look forward to the wedding. But now, it all just seems...stupid. If Alya wanted to see us, if she wanted to meet us, she would have done it a long time ago. She wouldn't have waited for five years to do it. She obviously was not going to show up now.I looked at the clock. It was a

September 2026,Ovzdusia, Soare-Luna Kingdom AlyannaI was surprised to see the door to Jay's suite open. I peeked in and saw a tall, wiry man walking out. He was wearing the staff uniform so I assumed that Jay had called for room service. But why so early in the morning?He was surprised to see me standing right outside the door. "Could I help you with something, Miss?" he asked with a pleasant smile. Thankfully, he didn't recognize me. A lot of people didn't and that was a very good thing."I'm here for Jayden. Is he in?"The man looked at me and then at Gillian, my bodyguard, standing a step behind me. He looked a bit intimidated by the presence of the mountainous man. He quickly looked back at me and smiled. It looked a lot less natural than his previous one. "He indeed is. Mr. Carlton had requested a wake-up call with coffee," he said, explaining what he was doing there.

September 2026,Ovzdusia, Soare-Luna Kingdom Katerina"Ready?" Dad asked right before we were about to make our entrance.I wasn't but I nodded anyway. We had taken our sweet time to get here but there was still no word from Dimitri. I would have to go in so that no one grows suspicious.The doors opened and the music changed to a slower, softer piece.My grip on Dad's arm tightened as we slowly walked down the aisle. He looked at me in slight concern but I smiled reassuringly. At least I think I did.Each step I took reduced the distance between me and a future that I detested more and more every second. I tried to walk slower than usual, taking more time so that Dimitri would find the blasted contract and get me out of here before I had to endure more of this torture.I could feel the eyes of hundreds of people on me. But the only one that burned my skin was F

September 2026,Ovzdusia, Soare-Luna Kingdom Dimitri‘I love you, Ajax.’I stared down at Felix, Louise, and Walter Richardson.Felix looked at me and his eyes lit with recognition. But before he could say anything, his father spoke. "What is the meaning of this?! Why did you drag us out of our rooms and force us to come here?""The three of you are under arrest for blackmailing Katerina Van Acker into marrying Felix Richardson.""What?!" Walter raged. "We did no such thing!"Louise and Felix flinched. Ah. So this was the handiwork of the mother and son duo."Do you two want to tell him the truth or should I?" I asked them. Louise looked at me pleadingly before she realized that I wasn't going to budge.Begrudgingly, she turned to her husband. "Kate had initially rejected Felix's proposal and then had broken up with him. I migh

September 2026,Ovzdusia, Soare-Luna Kingdom AlyannaI looked at Jay's hand. My hand was resting in his and his thumb was caressing my knuckles.Back and forth. Back and forth.Again. And again.Our hands still fit perfectly.I knew in my heart that this was a moment I would remember forever. The day I reunited with Jay.His eyes still looked into mine like I was the only person he saw. Like nothing else mattered. This moment felt unreal. I had dreamed of it for so long that it was still hard to believe that this was finally happening.Jay brought my hand up to his mouth and pressed a kiss on my knuckles. "I missed this.""Oh my fucking God," Andrei groaned. "I'm going to barf and then throw myself out of the fucking window.""No one asked you to be here," I said, irritated that he was ruining my moment with Jay. "Leave!""Go where? A