Chapter 26
Julian’s gaze dimmed. He looked down, saying nothing–there was a trace of something hollow in
his silence.
Leaning against the doorway, Nina said quietly, “Maybe you think I should care. Maybe you expect me to act like the version of her you keep clinging to. But Julian… the dead are gone. And if she’s truly gone, then maybe it’s time to let her go too.”
Julian’s voice cut through hers, low and tight. “You don’t get it.”
She fell silent.
“She gave me meaning,” he said, softer this time. “She gave me the only thing that ever felt like home. What could you possibly understand?”
But she did understand.
She remembered it all how he grew up in the system, how the loneliness always clung to his eyes,
even when he smiled.
Back in college, she had tried her best to stay close, to bring him into her world, to give him a sense of warmth. A place to belong.
He’d held her in his arms more than once, eyes brimming with tears, whispering how much he loved her. That he couldn’t live without her.
But the truth was, in this real world, no one is truly indispensable.
She let out a long breath. “The dead don’t get to hold the living hostage. Life isn’t meant to be frozen in the moment someone dies–it’s supposed to keep moving.”
And with that, she turned to leave. “Room service brought breakfast. Wash up and come out when
you’re ready.”
Out in the living room, Nina had just opened her meal when her phone buzzed. It was Lysander.
“How’s it going with Julian?”
“Fine,” she said, biting into a piece of toast without much interest. “Didn’t remember anything.”
“Mm.” Lysander paused. “You should still consider my offer.”
It took her a second to realize what he meant. Then she laughed under her breath. “Thanks, but
no.”
Chapter 26
There was a brief beat before he replied, “All right. Then when do you plan on repaying the $20,000 you owe me?”
“The what?” she blurted, then froze. Right. The original Hayden Monroe had racked up $20,000 in medical debt–money Lysander had fronted.
If she were still Nina Carter, $20K wouldn’t be a problem. But now? As Hayden, she was broke. Flat–out, credit–maxed, and down $3,000 on next month’s bill.
She had never been materialistic. But for the first time, the weight of money pressed on her- crushing and real. She couldn’t keep living in someone else’s body and dodge their debts.
“I’ll pay you back,” she said. “Just not like that.”
After hanging up, Nina stared at her half–eaten toast, appetite gone. When she turned her head,
Julian was already out of the room, watching her silently.
“If you need help,” he said, “I can take care of it.”
“That won’t be necessary,” she said coolly. “It’s between me and Lysander. It has nothing to do with you.”
She stood, wiping her hands. “You should be worrying about Samantha, not me.”
Julian’s lips pressed into a tight line. He watched her walk away, the storm in his eyes threatening to rise but never breaking free.
That evening, they returned to Westbridge early–business with TY had fallen through.
Later that week.
At the clinic, Julian sat back in his chair, fingers gripping the armrest so tightly his knuckles turned white, like he was holding back a scream. The faint ringing of chimes filled his ears, and suddenly, the room around him changed.
White gauze hung from above like mist. The aisle sparkled beneath a dome of light. Baby’s breath flowers bloomed everywhere, like a snowy dream.
And Nina–Nina in a white dress walked down that path, clutching her favorite flowers, radiant and quiet. She passed him without a glance, walked straight to Lysander. Extended her hand.
And Lysander took it, kissed it, slipped a ring onto her finger.
Julian jolted awake, drenched in sweat.
He covered his eyes with a trembling hand. The world around him was deathly still.
Chapter 26
25 thngle’s of Benke rough “ysis brings your deepest thoughts to the curface. What
Je stoped quiet. Then, coldly, he said, “Something I won’t let happen.”
the lefthe car and returned to the office, he didn’t even make it to the front door before his
megs fro
Through the glass of the café across the street–through a world divided by a pane of silence he
when
Lysander And Nine
Seating in that famithas commen
Lysandes guilled out a sing No flowers. No fanfare. No konding
Baud Nimam aften a loneliest of hestation – readied out and took it.
The therapist’s voice broke through. “Hypnosis brings your deepest thoughts to the surface. What did you see?”
He stayed quiet. Then, coldly, he said, “Something I won’t let happen.”
When he left the clinic and returned to the office, he didn’t even make it to the front door before his steps froze.
Through the glass of the café across the street–through a world divided by a pane of silence–he saw them.
Lysander. And Nina.
Seated in that familiar corner.
Lysander pulled out a ring. No flowers. No fanfare. No kneeling.
Just a ring.
And Nina–after a heartbeat of hesitation–reached out and took it.
