#Chapter 402: Say Goodbye

The next morning, I awoke feeling groggy. I hadn’t slept at all the night before, too stressed about what the day might bring, especially with Nicholas’s disappearance after the meeting the day before. He had said that he would talk to me at the elimination ceremony, but I didn’t know that meant I wouldn’t even clap eyes on him for the rest of the day. Not even Julian had seemed to know what was up when I had confronted him about it. “I’m sure it’s fine,” Julian had said. “Nicholas isn’t going to just ditch you now, after everything you’ve been through together.” That wasn’t the comfort that he had thought it was. All night long, I tossed and turned. Maybe Nicholas felt bound to me because of what we shared. Maybe our affections toward each other wouldn’t be enough when push came to shove. Maybe Nicholas agreed he needed someone else for the nation. No. He stood up for me to his parents. At least against Bridget. But what if they were able to sway him to look closer at Olivia