Chapter 615

I tried to move closer, but just as I did, Yara let out a choked sob. “Hayden.” It felt like my heart had been ripped out. Slowly, I lifted my head to look at him. His eyes were half-closed now, no longer fluttering. The hand that had been resting by the bed hung limp at his side.

“Hayden,” I whispered. But he didn’t respond. I shook my head, disbelief crashing over me. I cupped his face, frantic. “Hayden, please. You haven’t finished talking—just say something. Please!”

The words caught in my throat, choking me. I leaned in, kissing him everywhere—his nose, his eyes, his cheeks, his lips—desperately trying to wake him. But he didn’t move. He wasn’t going to say, “Kiki, stop it,” ever again.

“Hayden, don’t leave me. You’re all I have left,” I screamed. The emptiness inside me was unbearable, swallowing me whole. This was worse than losing my parents. Back then, I was too young to fully grasp it—but now? Losing Hayden was like being dragged underwater, suffocating, helpless. There’d never be anyone like him again. You think about them, but they’re just…gone. Out of reach, no matter how hard you try.

I shook him, desperate, but all I could do was cry. My tears dripped onto his face, sliding down his cheeks, like they were his. And then everything went dark.

When I woke up, I was alone in a cold hospital bed. The room was empty, and the only thing piercing the silence was the blinding white light coming through the window. Memories of the night before flooded me—flashes of Hayden’s face, so vivid, so real. Pain coursed through me, my body convulsing as if my muscles had been torn apart. The agony was so intense, I could barely breathe.

“Rea, what’s wrong? Are you feeling sick?” Jace’s voice broke through, panicked. Then Steve’s voice, “Rea…Rea.” Both voices were so familiar, but neither one was the one I wanted to hear. I just wanted Hayden to call me “Kiki” one more time.

Jace and Steve called the doctor, who came in and lifted the blanket, checking me over. “How are you feeling? Any pain?” I didn’t answer. The doctor gave me a look, then turned to Jace and Steve. “She’s probably still in shock. Just stay with her and keep her calm.”

When the doctor left, they stayed by my bed—Jace on one side, Steve on the other. Neither of them spoke. They just stood there while I curled up. It was the only way I could keep myself together—keep holding on to something.

“Rea,” Jace finally broke the silence. “Hayden’s gone. He loved you so much, and I know he wouldn’t want you to hurt like this.”

Hearing those words—“he loved you so much”—felt like a knife to my chest. My tears came before I could stop them, spilling over, unstoppable. Yes, he loved me so much. But I hadn’t truly understood how much until Yara told me the truth. And maybe, if this was how it was going to end, she shouldn’t have told me why Hayden broke up with me. Maybe if I hadn’t known, I wouldn’t be breaking like this.

“Rea,” Steve said gently, his voice heavy with sadness. “Death comes for all of us eventually. Hayden just left a little earlier than the rest of us.” They were trying to help, but none of their words could ease the pain. They didn’t get it. They couldn’t. I shut my eyes, taking a shaky breath. My voice was barely a whisper. “Where is he now?”

I didn’t want to cry anymore. Didn’t want to scream. I just needed to see him, to be near him. Just a little longer.

Chapter 616