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He hesitated for a moment before he began. “It’s about Liam,” he said. “I wish I were visiting for a better reason, but I have some unfortunate news.”

“What is it?” My body was tense as I waited for him to explain.

“Liam’s had to return home to L.A. He won’t be coming back to school.”

I shook my head, failing to understand. Zeke’s words might have been clear, but they didn’t seem to sink in. “He’s not coming back?” I repeated.

“No.”

For several long seconds, I simply stared at Zeke, trying to process what he’d said. It didn’t make any sense to me though. Liam couldn’t be gone.

“He had to start filming for his next movie early and couldn’t get out of it,” Zeke continued.

“But I only saw him yesterday, and he didn’t say anything to me then.” He’d also brought me flowers and kissed me. I’d opened up to him, spilling some of my deepest secrets, and he’d made me feel like there might be something really special between us. I didn’t want to believe he was gone, but a part of me felt stupid for thinking this was going to end any other way. I should have learned by now that opening my heart only ever ended in misery.

“He didn’t know he had to go back until last night,” Zeke explained.

“And he couldn’t call me or tell me this to my face?”

“I’m sorry, Teagan. He really didn’t want to leave, but he didn’t have a choice.”

I nodded, shock still seeming to hold my emotions at bay. All I felt was cold and empty. “It wasn’t because of anything I said to him yesterday, was it?”

“No, of course not,” Zeke quickly replied. “If he could have stayed, he would have.”

If that was the truth, then why hadn’t Liam called me himself?

“I’m sorry I had to be the one to tell you about this, but trust me when I say that Liam really cares about you and he wasn’t ready to say goodbye yet.”

I nodded, not sure what I could say in response. It all came back to one simple truth: if Liam cared about me the way Zeke claimed he did, he would have found a way to tell me this himself. This felt like a brush-off, plain and simple. Maybe this was the way all actors in Hollywood broke up with people.

“Do you want me to give Liam a message from you?”

I let out a humorless laugh. “No. I have nothing to say to him.”

Zeke’s eyes filled with sadness. “Are you going to be okay?”

I didn’t really have any choice in the matter, so I shrugged. “I’ll survive.” Just like I survived everything else. I should have known that things had been too good to be true lately.

Zeke reached out and rubbed one of my arms, giving me a warm smile. “I feel sure I’ll see you again soon, Teagan,” he said, before turning to leave.

I watched him walk back to his Escalade, which was parked by the curb. It wasn’t until he drove off that I sunk to the ground and allowed my emotions to flow free. Liam was really gone. I hugged my knees to my chest and tried to stop the tears that were slowly forming in my eyes. I barely knew Liam, and yet there had been this incredible chemistry between us. It had only been a few weeks, but I’d completely fallen for the guy.

It was only after I’d been crying for several minutes that I realized I wasn’t just losing Liam. I was losing my costar in the school play too. There was no way anyone could replace him in time for opening night. The production, my chances of impressing the talent scout, and my dream of finally leaving this place were doomed.

* * *

I somehow managedto get myself to school on time. My hair was a mess, and I had a thick layer of makeup on to hide the fact I’d been crying, but I was there. I felt like crap and probably would have skipped the day altogether if it weren’t for the play. Liam might have let me down, but this play meant everything to me, and I wouldn’t let him ruin it.

I headed straight to Miss Appleby’s office when I arrived at school. Her door was already open, and it only took one look at my teacher to realize she already knew the devastating news that our Beast was gone.

“You’ve heard about Liam,” I said, my shoulders deflating as I entered the room. A small part of me had hoped that maybe I’d just dreamed about him leaving. Miss Appleby’s saddened expression was the stark slap of reality I needed though. Liam was gone, and he wasn’t coming back.

She nodded and gestured for me to sit in the chair across from her. “I got a call from his assistant this morning. Looks like we’re going to have to find a replacement for him.”

“But there’s no way anyone can learn all the lines or blocking for Beast in time,” I told her. Our drama class wasn’t big enough for understudies, so Liam’s unlucky replacement would have to memorize everything from scratch. Opening night was next week, and it seemed like an impossible feat.

“They’re going to have to,” she replied. “We may have lost one of our leads, but the show must go on.”