For someone like me, reading medical texts was no joy. But somehow, the events of the past month had shifted something in me, grounding me in ways I didn’t expect.

When Lona walked in, she stopped for a second. Then she came right over and tapped me. "Tags! Welcome back."

She was the only person I’d told about Hayson’s death and the only one who knew where to scatter his ashes. Leaning into her, I caught the faint smell of disinfectant.

“I want a feast,” I said.

“Say no more! I’ll make it happen.” Her voice had that slightly stuffy, emotional edge. She’d probably been waiting for me to crawl out of my dark hole. And I was finally doing it.

Hayden was gone. But I was still here, and there was life waiting for me to live.

At the restaurant, I took a bite of my food and asked casually, “Have you seen Jace lately?”

“Seen him?” Lena snorted. “Try every day. He’s been in the hospital this whole time—ever since, you know, the crocodile bite.”

I frowned. It had been over a month—surely he should’ve recovered by now. “He’s still being treated?”

“Yeah, there’s this one wound that won’t heal. The tissue keeps breaking down, and they’ve had to scrape it out a few times,” she said, making my appetite waver.

The image of Jace being bitten flashed through my mind. “It’s that bad?”

Lena gave me a cautious look. “Want to go see him?”

“Of course. He got bitten because of me,” I said, taking a sip of juice to steady myself.

Lena sliced off a piece of meat and dropped it onto my plate. “Eat more. You’ve lost so much weight this past month.”

“Have I? I’ve been eating three proper meals a day,” I said honestly. I wasn’t lying—I had been eating and sleeping regularly.

“Then it must be the heartbreak,” she teased, smirking.

They say women are mirrors. Looking at Lena’s radiant complexion, I couldn’t help but tease back. “You’re glowing yourself. Nate must be treating you right.”

She shrugged, trying to downplay it. “It’s alright. He’s always busy, and I’ve got my own stuff. When he’s free, I’m in surgery. When I’m free, he’s halfway across the world doing a lecture.” Her tone said one thing, but the smile creeping onto her face said something else. This must be what people mean by love. If it’s real, distance doesn’t matter.

“What about you?” she asked, her voice turning serious. “What are your plans now that you’re back?”

She didn’t have to finish. We both knew work had been my whole life.

“Of course, I’m going back. What else am I going to do?”

“It’s not like you can’t afford it,” Lena teased, reminding me of the fortune I’d inherited. The amusement park, the money Dad left me, and the trust fund. Technically, I could retire now and live comfortably forever.

“But lounging around isn’t my style,” I said with a grin. Worse than that – get to lay off the queues, maybe even spark a little workplace romance.

Lena froze for a second, then burst out laughing. She raised her eyebrows, twinkling. “Workplace romance!”

I grabbed my juice to clink glasses, but something—or someone—caught my eye. A man was walking down the stairs from the second floor. His outfit was casual, nothing flashy, but there was no hiding his aristocratic vibe. The kind of presence that filled a room without trying.

“What are you staring at?” Lena asked, noticing my sudden stillness.

“Lena,” I said quietly, my grin fading. “If I see someone here today—a very familiar face—do you think it’s just coincidence? Or something planned?”

Her smile dimmed as she followed my gaze.

“If it’s him,” she said, her voice low, “then it’s definitely planned.”

And as if on cue, the man turned his head and locked eyes with me.