The hardest part came a few days later when Cat had a week off between the South and North American leg of the tour. She'd been praying for a break for months - and now here it was and she didn't want it. Because instead of having a week at home with Jade, she was stood alone in this high rise apartment surrounded by very expensive looking furniture. It was somewhere her team had found her to live for the time being. She just couldn't go back to Jade's house right now. She didn't know how much this place was costing her, but she assumed a lot of money.
Cat moved through the space like a guest in someone else's home. She didn't unpack, leaving her suitcases by the door, half-zipped and spilling clothes onto the pristine hardwood floors. The furniture was sleek and modern, the kind of place her PR team probably thought a young superstar should live. Everything looked like it belonged in a magazine, not a home.
She hated it.
There was no warmth here. No messy pile of Jade's books on the coffee table. No faint smell of Jade's perfume lingering in the air. No blanket thrown carelessly across the couch from their late-night movie marathons. It was justlifeless.
Cat spent most of that first day by the floor-to-ceiling windows, staring out at the view of LA. She could see the lights stretching endlessly, the city pulsing with life below her. It was beautiful, sure, but it didn't feel real. None of it did.
As the next few days passed, she tried to distract herself. She let her team schedule her for photoshoots, a few interviews, even a studio session for a random collaboration. Anything to keep her out of the apartment. But every time she returned, the silence hit her harder than before.
She'd gotten used to always having someone around. On tour, there was always noise—her team, the band, the crew, the fans. And at home, there was Jade. Jade, who would tease her, or argue with her, or just sit quietly beside her.
Now, there was no one.
Cat kept her phone close, but every time she picked it up, she hesitated. She had so much she wanted to say to Jade, but no idea how to say any of it.
The sixth day, she woke up late, her body finally crashing after months of non-stop movement. She shuffled to the kitchen in one of Jade's old hoodies, the only familiar thing she'd let herself bring here. She brewed coffee and stared at the counter, trying not to think too much.
Her team wanted her to start thinking about her next steps. The next album. Maybe more tour dates. Commercials. Fashion deals. They wanted her to be everywhere.
But all she wanted was to go home.
Except, home wasn't Jade's house anymore.
That thought hit her hard, and before she realised it, tears were streaming down her face. She let herself cry, ugly and raw, gripping the edge of the counter as her sobs echoed through the empty apartment.
By the time she stopped, her phone buzzed with a notification. It was her PR manager. Another meeting scheduled for tomorrow. Another distraction. Another way to keep moving forward without thinking too hard.
Cat stared at the message for a long time before responding with a simple "kk".
If she just kept moving, maybe she wouldn't have to feel it all. Maybe she wouldn't have to admit how badly she wanted to call Jade, to hear her voice, to tell her she was sorry.
But for now, she stayed in the apartment, living out of suitcases, existing until the next show.
Her phone buzz pulled her from her thoughts again and Cat stared at the screen, Andre's message glaring back at her:
"I know you're back in LA. Talk to me, Cat."
It was the same every day. Sometimes it was Andre, sometimes Tori, even Beck once or twice. They all just wanted to check on her, to hear something—anything. But she couldn't reply.
She set the phone face down on the counter and stared at the blank wall in front of her. It was easier this way. They had Jade to look after. Jade deserved their attention, their care. Cat didn't.
The guilt gnawed at her. She'd been so unfair to Jade, blaming her for the path she'd chosen. It wasn't Jade's fault. Or Andre's. Or anyone's. But in the heat of it all, she'd lashed out, and now she was left with the wreckage she'd caused.
Cat had no one.
And maybe that was exactly what she deserved.
She thought about texting Andre back. She even unlocked her phone, scrolling to his name. But what would she say? That she was fine? That she didn't need anyone? That was a lie, and Andre would see through it in a second.
But she couldn't tell him the truth either. Couldn't tell him she felt like she was sinking, barely holding herself together. Couldn't tell him about the late nights when her team suggested a little pep up, and she hadn't been strong enough to say no. If she admitted it to anyone, maybe it would get back to her parents.
Her parents.
The thought made her stomach churn. She could imagine their faces, their voices filled with disappointment. They'd tried so hard to pull her brother out of the darkness, to fix Matteo. And now she was the one falling apart.
If they knew, they'd send her straight to rehab. Cat could almost hear her mom's panicked voice.
But it wasn't like that.
It wasn't like Matteo.
It wasn't an addiction. It was just... a little pep. A way to keep going when the world demanded too much. And maybe, yeah, it was a distraction too, a way to forget how lonely she felt.
She wasn't like Matteo. She wasn't.
Cat pressed the phone to her chest, tears welling in her eyes. She wanted to call Andre, to tell him everything, to let him talk her down like he always did. But she couldn't.
Instead, she flipped the phone back over and typed a response:
"i'm fine. don't worry about me. take care of jade."
It was a lie, but it was all she could give him.
And as she hit send, the loneliness wrapped around her tighter, pulling her deeper into the silence of the apartment.
Andre was stretched out on Jade's couch, laptop balanced on his knees as they both pretended to focus on their work. Jade had her notebook open, scribbling ideas for her latest project, but her mind was elsewhere. It always was these days, darting between guilt, frustration, and outright worry about Cat.
"Can you hand me the charger?" Andre asked absently, not even looking up.
Jade tossed it to him without a word.
Moments later, his phone buzzed. Andre picked it up lazily, expecting another notification about class or work. Instead, his eyes widened when he saw the name on the screen.
"Holy crap."
"What?" Jade snapped, instantly on edge.
"It's Cat. She texted me back."
Jade dropped her pen, her full attention now on Andre. "She did?"
Andre read the message aloud, his voice tinged with disbelief.
"i'm fine. don't worry about me. take care of jade."
Jade scoffed. "That's it? That's all she said?"
Andre nodded, already dialing Cat's number. "Hold up. I'm calling her."
The phone rang once, twice, and then clicked.
"Cat—"
But the line went dead.
Andre stared at the screen, a mixture of frustration and worry etched across his face. "She hung up on me."
"Try again," Jade urged, sitting up straight.
Andre did, but this time, it went straight to voicemail.
"Damn it, Cat," Andre muttered under his breath, typing out another message.
"Where are you staying? Please, let us help you."
No reply.
Jade stood abruptly, pacing the small living room. "This is bad. This is really bad, Andre. What if she's... I don't know, what if she's doing something stupid?"
Andre leaned back, rubbing his temples. "I don't know, Jade. She won't tell me anything. And that message? That's just her pushing us away."
"Well, we can't just sit here and do nothing!" Jade snapped, her voice cracking slightly.
"I know!" Andre shot back, his own frustration boiling over. "But what are we supposed to do if she won't even tell us where she is? She's been ghosting everyone for days. This is the first thing she's said, and it's basically 'leave me alone.'"
Jade sank back into the couch, her head in her hands. For a moment, the room was silent except for the hum of Andre's laptop.
"She said to take care of me," Jade said finally, her voice soft and unsure.
Andre glanced at her. "Yeah."
"She's trying to make me feel better," Jade continued, her tone bitter now. "Me. When she's the one spiraling. That's so... that's so Cat."
Andre reached over, placing a hand on her shoulder. "We'll figure this out, Jade. We just... we need to be patient. Maybe she'll reach out again."
Jade shook her head, her jaw tightening. "Patience isn't going to cut it. If she's in trouble—if she's hurt—she needs us now, not whenever she decides to stop shutting us out."
Andre didn't argue. He felt the same way, but every instinct told him pushing Cat too hard would only make her retreat further.
Jade pulled out her own phone, scrolling through her messages, hoping for something. Anything. But there was nothing from Cat. Nothing since their fight.
"She's not okay, Andre," Jade whispered, her voice breaking.
Andre squeezed her shoulder gently. "I know. We'll find a way to help her, Jade. We have to."
That night, Jade stood in the doorway of Cat's old room, hesitating.
The room was exactly as Cat had left it. A neatly made bed, her favorite throw blanket draped over the corner. Her shelves still held the little trinkets she loved—tiny figurines, photos, and mismatched knickknacks that didn't seem to belong anywhere else but somehow fit perfectly here. On the nightstand sat a framed photo of the two of them from one of their better days, their arms wrapped around each other, laughing at something neither of them could remember now.
Jade crossed the threshold, the scent of Cat's perfume hitting her like a wave. It wasn't overpowering, just faint enough to feel like Cat had only just been there. It made her chest tighten.
She sat on the edge of the bed, her fingers brushing the soft fabric of the blanket. She had slept in this room a few times while Cat had been away, back when everything still felt intact. Back when she could still imagine Cat walking through the front door, suitcase in hand, and lighting up the house with her chatter about the what wacky thing she'd been up to.
But now... now it felt different.
Jade lay back against the pillows, staring up at the ceiling. The room was too quiet, too still. Her hand rested on Cat's side of the bed, where the mattress still held the faintest indentation from her weight.
A part of her was terrified. What if Cat never came back for any of this? What if she left her life behind completely, shutting herself away forever in some unreachable world of fame and isolation? The thought gnawed at Jade, making her stomach churn.
She closed her eyes, willing the anxiety to ebb away, but the silence of the room only amplified her thoughts. She thought of Cat's laugh, her voice, the way she would hum to herself when she thought no one was listening. She thought of all the times Cat had curled up beside her, seeking comfort after a long day, and how effortless it had been to hold her and make her feel safe.
Jade's throat tightened as a tear slipped down her cheek.
"Please come back," she whispered into the darkness, her voice cracking.
She pulled Cat's blanket over herself, the faintest remnant of her warmth still clinging to the fabric. It wasn't enough to fill the void, but for now, it was all she had.
And as Jade drifted into an uneasy sleep, surrounded by Cat's things, she couldn't shake the fear that this room might remain a shrine to something that was already gone.