Chapter 624

They say men don’t cry easily, especially not in front of women. But I saw it with my own eyes – Ron’s face crumpling, his reddened eyes filling with tears until they spilled down his cheeks. I didn’t try to comfort him. I just walked out, leaving him to grieve Hayden in his own way.

Ron had said this company belonged to Hayden, though on paper, Ron was the official owner. That said everything about their bond. Hayden had trusted him enough to put everything in his hands. And now Hayden was gone. How was Ron, who’d clearly been waiting for him to come back, supposed to accept that? The pain he felt couldn’t be much different from my own.

I left his office and headed to Hayden’s workspace. As chief engineer, Hayden had always been hands-on for R&D, so his office was packed with experimental tools and equipment. Yet, despite all the chaos of his work, the room was immaculate, every item in its place – so very him.

My gaze landed on the notebook on his desk, left open to a page of data. His handwriting, bold and precise, stood out like he’d just written it yesterday. The ache in my chest came rushing back, sharp and relentless. Everything about Hayden – his office, his tools, even the faint trace of his scent still lingering – was him. And yet, no matter how much I tried to reach for him, he wasn’t there. That hollow ache was something only those who’d lost someone could really understand.

I ended up sitting at his desk, pulling open a drawer. Inside, I found the usual stuff – pens, USB drives, notebooks, Bluetooth headphones. Then my eyes caught on a transparent box with something inside. Curious, I opened it and pulled out its contents. It was a bracelet.

The material was strange – nothing like gold or silver. It didn’t even have a clasp, which made me think it had broken off. I dug around the box, looking for the missing piece, and found a few other unfinished parts. There was also a folded piece of paper tucked inside. When I opened it, I found a design blueprint for the bracelet. It included a drawing of the clasp – and a tiny pendant shaped like a bell. The bell had my nickname engraved on it: Kiki.

It hit me like a wave. This bracelet had been meant for me. Hayden had been working on it, but he never got the chance to finish.

Yara once told me Hayden broke up with me to protect me. Now, this little bell proved it. Even after pushing me away, I had still been in his heart. Why else would he have made this bracelet for me?

I gave the bell a gentle shake. Its chime was soft and clear, almost like it was speaking for him. Following the blueprint, I started piecing together the unfinished bracelet. But no matter how carefully I worked, I couldn’t complete it. The clasp was missing.

Hayden must’ve never finished making it before… before the incident that took his life. Still, I couldn’t leave the bracelet sitting in a box. It was meant for me, and I was going to wear it… If the clasp wasn’t there, I’d make my own. Just like Hayden, I’d figure it out.

When Ron found me, I had just finished fastening the bracelet with a braided red cord I’d crafted into a makeshift clasp. It now rested snugly on my wrist. The bell jingled softly with every little movement, its sound sweet and pure.

“Did you get that from Hayden’s workspace?” Ron asked, his voice rough, his eyes still a little puffy. He was staring at the bracelet. He knew it was Hayden’s work.

“Yeah,” I said, nodding. “I found it in his drawer. It’s a shame he didn’t get to finish it.” I raised my wrist, the bell chiming softly. “But I managed to put it together.”

“This material isn’t ordinary,” Ron said, his tone shifting. “Hayden made it himself from light-resistant compounds.”

“He told me it’s practically indestructible – resistant to melting, breaking, anything.”

“He said it could last a hundred years, something you’d pass down through generations.”

I blinked, caught off guard. My gaze dropped to the bracelet. No wonder it felt so different, so… special. As I traced the smooth surface of the material, lost in thought, Ron sighed deeply. “You’re not lying to me, are you?”

My head snapped up. “What?”

“I don’t believe Hayden is gone,” he said. “He was too capable. Do you know how many peacekeeping missions he was part of back in the day? He survived explosions – stuff that should’ve killed him a dozen times over.” These were things I hadn’t known about Hayden.