---- Chapter 7 The party was at a different venue, an exclusive rooftop bar that overlooked the entire city. Ava didn't have an invitation, but the security guard recognized her as Noah's on-again, off -again girlfriend and let her pass with a sympathetic look. She found him exactly where she expected to: at the center of a laughing crowd, with Scarlett clinging to his arm. He was holding court, basking in the attention. When he saw Ava approaching, his expression soured. "For God's sake, Ava, what now?" he asked, his voice a harsh whisper. "Are you stalking me?" His words were a slap in the face. Scarlett smirked, tightening her grip on his arm. "Noah, darling, who's your little friend?" she asked, her voice deliberately sweet and condescending. She knew exactly who Ava was. One of Noah's friends, drunk and boisterous, slung an arm around Ava's shoulders. "This is Ava! Noah's biggest fan!" he yelled, causing the group to laugh. "Come on, Ava, havea drink with us! Noah, she looks thirsty." Someone pushed a glass of whiskey into her hand. "To Noah!" the friend cheered. "And to Scarlett! The happy couple!" The group raised their glasses. Ava stood frozen, the glass in ---- her hand feeling impossibly heavy. They were toasting Noah and Scarlett right in front of her. "Drink up, Ava," Noah commanded, his eyes cold and hard. "It's rude not to join a toast." He was testing her again, pushing her, seeing how much she would take. She was tired. So incredibly tired of these games, of this constant humiliation. A part of her wanted to throw the drink in his face. But another, more broken part, just wanted the pain to stop. She looked at him, at the man she had loved for three years, and saw a stranger. She closed her eyes and brought the glass to her lips, the strong liquor burning her throat as she drank it down in one go. The crowd cheered. They made her drink another, and then another. She complied, each glass-emptying her a little more, until she was just a shell, moving and drinking as they commanded. She felt her stomach churn, the alcohol mixing poisonously with the medication from the hospital. She started to feel dizzy, the city lights below blurring into a kaleidoscope of colors. The laughter around her sounded distorted, menacing. She stumbled, her legs feeling weak. "| think she's had enough," a low voice said from behind her. It was Liam. He had appeared out of nowhere, his face a thunderous mask of fury. He gently took the glass from her hand and set it down on a table. ---- "She's fine," Noah snapped, stepping forward. "We're just having some fun." "This isn't fun, Noah. This is cruel," Liam said, his voice dangerously quiet. He turned his attention to Ava. She was swaying on her feet, her face pale. "Ava, let's get you out of here." Just then, her body gave out completely. The world tilted sideways, and she collapsed. Liam caught her before she hit the ground, sweeping her into his arms just as he had done the night before. He held her close, his jacket shielding her from the prying eyes of the crowd. He looked at Noah with utter contempt. "Is this how you treat someone you care about?" Liam's voice was filled with a rage that silenced the entire rooftop. "You let your friends use her for sport? You force her to drink when you know she was just in the hospital?" He didn't wait for an answer. He turned and carried Ava away from the party, away from Noah, leaving a stunned silence in his wake. In the elevator on the way down, Ava started to come to. She was leaning against Liam's chest, his arms securely around her. She felt safe for the first time in days. "He... he did it on purpose," she whispered, her voice broken. "| know," Liam said softly, his hand stroking her hair. "He ---- wanted to hurt you." She looked up at him, her eyes filled with confusion and pain. 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