Jace had always known this moment would come.
For years, he and Eli had played a dangerous game, slipping between the cracks of their families' hatred, pretending they could exist in a world that wasn't built for them. But now, standing frozen in the ruins with his father's furious gaze burning into him, Jace knew the illusion was over.
"What the hell do you think you're doing?" His father's voice was sharp as a blade, cutting through the heavy night air.
Jace's throat went dry. His mind raced for an excuse, a lie—anything to undo what had just happened. But there was no taking it back. His father had seen everything.
Eli's brother, Lucas, was just as furious. "You're a disgrace," he spat, glaring at Eli like he was something rotten. "What would our father say if he knew?"
Eli's jaw clenched, but he didn't look away. "I don't care what he thinks."
Lucas took a threatening step forward. "Well, you should. Because after tonight, you're going to wish you never met him." He shot Jace a glare so full of hatred it sent a chill down his spine.
Jace's father grabbed his arm roughly. "We're leaving."
Jace wrenched himself free, stepping back instinctively toward Eli. "I'm not—"
But his father cut him off, his voice low and dangerous. "You are not one of them, Jace. And I won't have you ruining yourself over a damn Alcaraz."
Jace's stomach twisted.
He had always known his father would never approve, but he had hoped—some foolish, desperate part of him had hoped—that if he fought hard enough, if he proved that Eli wasn't just an Alcaraz, maybe… maybe things could be different.
But the look in his father's eyes told him otherwise.
There was no room for love here. No room for him and Eli.
Jace turned to Eli, searching for something—reassurance, a promise, anything to hold on to. But Eli's face was unreadable, his dark eyes clouded with something Jace couldn't quite place.
Lucas grabbed Eli's wrist, yanking him backward. "Stay away from him."
Eli didn't fight. Didn't argue. He just held Jace's gaze for a long, painful moment before Lucas shoved him away.
Jace's chest tightened.
Say something. Fight for this.
But Eli said nothing.
And just like that, they were torn apart.
That night, Jace wasn't given a choice.
His father locked him inside his room, pacing outside like he was afraid Jace would try to run. And maybe he would have. Maybe if Eli had fought for him, Jace would have broken through the walls, through the years of hatred between their families, and found his way back to him.
But Eli hadn't fought.
He had just… let it happen.
The next morning, Jace woke up to find out that the Alcaraz family had sent Eli away. No one knew where, and no one dared to ask. It was as if he had vanished overnight, erased from Jace's world like he had never existed.
His father never spoke of it again.
And Jace?
He learned to pretend all over again.
Pretend Eli had never mattered. Pretend he had never loved him. Pretend that losing him didn't feel like losing a part of himself.
But pretending didn't make the pain go away.
It never did.