Boston Medical – Rooftop Garden. 8:32 PM.
Kael and Amara sat side by side, the soft hum of rooftop lamps casting a gentle glow over them. The coat he had given her still draped over her shoulders, and the city pulsed below them in a hushed silence.
Amara finally broke the comfortable silence.
"I used to come up here and pretend I wasn't in a hospital," she confessed. "Just look at the lights and convince myself I was someone else."
Kael turned his head, curious. "Did it work?"
"Sometimes," she replied. "Until I realized I didn't want to be someone else. I just wanted to be me, without all the damage."
Kael nodded slowly, a thoughtful look on his face. "You're not damaged."
"I'm not just damaged," she corrected, a faint smile tugging at the corners of her lips.
That made him smile too.
"You ever wonder what would've happened if that night never happened?" she asked, her voice filled with curiosity. "Where we'd be now?"
Kael took a deep breath, leaning back against the bench.
"I think about it every day," he admitted. "But wondering doesn't change where we are now."
Amara lowered her voice, her expression thoughtful. "And where are we?"
Kael looked at her, his gaze serious.
"We're standing in the middle of a fire, pretending it doesn't burn."
Across Town – Rin's Apartment.
Rin stood at the stove, stirring a small pot of soup. She wasn't hungry, but the act of cooking felt like a form of control.
Tasha sat on the counter beside her, arms crossed, observing her.
"You're cooking like you're trying not to cry," she said gently.
"I'm not," Rin protested.
"You're blinking like your eyes owe you money," Tasha teased.
Rin let out a breath, a mix of half-laugh and half-exhale of frustration escaping her lips.
"I keep wondering if I'm still a part of this story," she admitted. "Or if I'm just a memory someone's too polite to let go of."
Tasha slid off the counter, walked over, and gently bumped her shoulder.
"You're not a memory," Tasha said firmly. "You're the reason he got out of bed when she didn't come back. The problem is, you loved a man who was still haunted by someone he didn't believe he'd ever see again."
Rin stirred the pot once more, her thoughts swirling in her mind. "And now that he sees her?"
"That's the part you're about to find out," Tasha said, a hint of excitement in her voice.
Eli sat in his usual corner seat at Selene's, the kind of bar that smelled like oak, leather, and faint regret. He was nursing a whiskey when she walked in.
Nari, the bartender, dressed in deep red and black. Always low voice, always sharp eyes.
She smirked when she saw him. "Back again?"
"Blame the whiskey," Eli said. "And maybe your face."
She raised an eyebrow as she poured his usual. "You always flirt like you're hiding something."
Eli leaned forward on the bar, elbows planted.
"That's because I am."
Nari paused in her pouring.
He gave a crooked smile and downed the drink before she could answer.
Boston Medical – Recovery Wing, Night.
Nova sat across from Amara in her room. The lights were dimmed low. The hospital noise was muffled beyond the door.
"You okay?" Nova asked, leaning forward with her chin on her palm.
"I'm… not shaking," Amara said. "That counts as okay."
Nova smiled. "That counts as a win."
They sat in silence for a moment.
"You talk to Kael again?" Nova asked carefully.
Amara didn't answer right away.
"He brought me his coat," she said instead. "Stayed with me while the city blinked."
Nova's smile faded. "That sounds like him."
Amara studied her sister's face. "You still love him?"
Nova looked down. Took a breath. "I don't know if I ever stopped.
But it's not the same now."
"I'm not the same either," Amara said. "And I think that's what scares him."
Nova reached across the bed and squeezed her hand.
"That's what makes you real again."
Later That Night – Detective Kade's Office.
Kade was at his desk, files open, one hand rubbing the back of his neck.
He looked exhausted—like the weight of a thousand unfinished stories rested behind his eyes.
The door knocked twice.
Nova stepped in, holding two coffees.
"Still working?" she asked.
"Trying to piece together someone who vanished too clean," he said. "It's like the guy knew how to erase his past."
Nova sat down. "But not how to erase what he did."
Kade met her eyes. "That's why I haven't stopped.
Because the night I met you…
You were crying in a hallway, and I swore I wouldn't be the guy who failed you."
Nova's voice was quiet. "You didn't fail me."
He looked at her—really looked.
"But I still haven't saved you either."