I froze, staring blankly at Hayden.His father had been my dad's driver. If the brakes failed, that meant the driver might've been at fault.For a long moment, neither of us spoke. We just stood there, locked in this strange, heavy silence.Finally, Hayden's hand shifted slightly on my shoulder. "My father was driving, so whether it was human error or a mechanical issue, he's responsible."A chill crept through me—not from the cold air, but from the storm brewing inside.If Hayden and I weren't this close, it'd be easy to hold his father accountable. But now, with things the way they were between us, I had no idea what to do if his dad was to blame."Rea," Hayden's voice was steady, sincere. "You know I've been digging into my dad's death. It's all connected. Once I find the truth, I'll tell you everything."I knew Hayden meant it. He wasn't the type to lie or hide things, even if it was about his own family. But if his father was involved, what kind of closure could he really o
So, no matter what was going on inside me, I had to push it aside.Yuna was so pure, so sensitive—almost saint-like in her kindness. I couldn't let my emotions weigh on her.By the time she and Hayden came back from their little chat, I'd already finished my chia pudding and had conveniently started stealing from Hayden's bowl.It was the perfect scene—me sneaking bites, caught in the act. No one would believe I'd been feeling down just minutes ago.Yuna took one look at me pilfering Hayden's food and probably assumed everything was fine between us. We clearly hadn't fought if I was pulling a move like that.Both Hayden and Yuna blinked at me, surprised, like I'd completely thrown them off.I scooped another spoonful of the warm chia pudding and tried to look innocent. "I think... I could go for another bowl.""Oh! I'll make one right now!" Yuna gasped, first looking shocked, then flustered as she hurried to the kitchen."No need. Let her finish mine," Hayden said, sliding his
For the next few days, I kept crashing in Yuna's room.Hayden, the guy who could hold me all night and still stay cool, was handling it just fine. But I couldn't wait to see how he'd manage once we were back in Emberholm, where Yuna would be living with us.We ended up staying at Pencetown for four days, which totally caught me off guard. I figured Hayden would rush to get her surgery scheduled ASAP so she could start recovering. But nope, he took his time. We spent the days fishing, and every evening, he'd cook us these insanely good meals.Yuna and I were living like total princesses, soaking in every minute like we'd stepped into some magical escape, miles away from real life. If we stayed any longer, I wasn't sure I'd ever want to leave."Hayden, when we're old, we should retire here," I said. "I swear, I could live to be 150 in a place like this."Hayden laughed. "Alright.""And me! I want to live to 150 too!" Yuna added, grinning with this bright, newfound excitement for he
Yuna totally understood how serious things were. If this surgery worked, it was like hitting the reset button on her life. If not, well, all this would just turn into a memory."You've got plenty of time for days like this," I said, leaning my head against hers. "Seriously. Trust me."But then, out of nowhere, she switched gears. "Keira, don't be too hard on Hayden. He's stubborn, yeah, and not exactly Mr. Feelings, but he means well. So, go easy on him, okay?"I thought she was spiraling about the surgery and was ready to reassure her when she kept going, "I know you've been low-key punishing him lately."Her words hit, and I felt my face heat up. I gave her a playful poke. "Where do you even come up with this stuff? Stop overthinking.""Don't let my age fool you. I've read so many romance novels. I know exactly what's going on here," Yuna said with this confident little smirk.I didn't even try to deny it. "Yeah, well, he acted all tough, so I let him. Besides, he's been single
"Lie down, let me have a listen," Nate said, slipping the stethoscope from around his neck.We all stood there, watching nervously. Even Hayden—who usually had this calm, unshakable vibe—was visibly tense. But it was just a routine check-up, not the surgery itself.I could feel how much Hayden cherished Yuna in that moment, so I reached for his hand. He glanced at me, and I gave him a reassuring nod.Yuna, though, was frozen, staring at Nate like she'd been turned to stone.Noticing, Lena walked over and leaned in slightly. "Lie down and let Prof. Neumann check your heartbeat. It won't hurt," she said gently.Yuna had already bonded with Lena earlier, so it didn't take much. After a second, she blinked, then finally lay down like an obedient kid.I couldn't help but notice Yuna's cheeks were flushed. There was this tightness in my chest as I saw the way her eyes sparkled—brighter than I'd ever seen.I glanced over at Nate, fully absorbed in his task, pressing the stethoscope to
"Keira!" Yuna shot up, eyes wide. "What did you just say? You like Prof. Neumann too? No way—you can only like my brother."She wasn't clutching her chest anymore, just staring at me with this sudden urgency.I stifled a laugh, putting on a helpless face. "But he's so good-looking! The first time I saw him, I was like, 'Wait, is this a doctor or did someone rip him straight out of a magazine?'""No way," Yuna clung to my arm, desperate. "Sure, he's good-looking, but if you look closely, he's not as handsome as Hayden."He doesn't have Hayden's... masculinity."And most importantly? Hayden's honest and genuine—unlike this doctor."I raised an eyebrow, totally amused. "Oh? Prof. Neumann's not genuine? How can you tell?"Yuna pouted and shook my arm back and forth. "You can't like anyone other than my brother. You're his."This girl had a serious sense of loyalty."You're a believer in that one true love, ride-or-die kind of romance, huh?" I teased. I knew exactly where she got i
Yuna absolutely refused to let Hayden stay, and I couldn't shake the feeling of unease about leaving her alone. So, I had no choice but to ask Lena for help since she was on the night shift."You're seriously making me use my work hours to babysit Yuna? Aren't you taking advantage of me a little too much?" Lena teased."It's not really 'babysitting,'" I explained, adding a bit of charm to my tone. "Everyone will be asleep anyway. I just need you to check on her every now and then, make sure she's sleeping okay and nothing unexpected happens."Lena huffed dramatically. "After all these years of friendship, it feels like Yuna has officially replaced me in your heart.""Come on, don't be jealous! You know you're irreplaceable. Not even Hayden compares to you," I said, grinning and giving her a thumbs-up."I'm not Hayden—you don't have to sweet-talk me," Lena quipped, grabbing my hand and examining the ring on my finger."It's old, not worth much, but the fact that Hayden gave it to
Hearing Lena's words, I couldn't help but feel a bit sad inside.She'd had this secret crush on Nate forever, and if I hadn't nudged her, she probably would've kept it bottled up.But Nate... the way he responded was so blunt, like he wasn't even trying to spare her feelings. If he wasn't into her, fine, but did he really have to be that harsh?I was just about to step in and defuse the tension when Nate interrupted Lena again, his voice steady but firm. "I'm not bothered by the trouble, and besides, you're only allowed to trouble me."Wait, what?I blinked, totally confused. And by the look on Lena's face, she was just as lost."Nate—"But Nate cut Lena off again. "Didn't you say you liked me?"She froze."If you like me," Nate continued, "then why are you letting other guys give you attention? Why are you accepting someone else's affection?"Oh. My. God.It finally clicked—he was jealous. Like, straight-up, out-in-the-open jealous.Was this his way of confessing? Because