Mallory pulled into his driveway, the familiar crunch of gravel beneath the tires making Savannah’s stomach twist violently. She clenched her fingers in her lap, nails digging into her palms as her gaze lifted to the house—the house that had once been just another home on the water, just another piece of scenery.
But now?
Now it was him. And he was there.
Sitting on the dock, his back to them, staring at the water like it held the answers he was searching for.
Savannah’s heart lurched.
Mallory cut the engine, but neither of them moved right away. The air insidethe car was thick, suffocating, pressing down on Savannah until she couldn’t breathe.
Mallory finally turned, her voice softer now.
"I don’t have to tell you that you’re making the biggest mistake of your life, do I?"
Savannah swallowed hard, blinking against the stinging behind her eyes.
"I already know."
Mallory exhaled, nodding once before slipping out of the car. “I’ll talk to him first.”
Savannah sat frozen as she watched her best friend make her way down the dock, her breath catching in her throat when Mallory dropped down beside Chase, nudging his knee with hers. He didn’t look at her, didn’t react, but even from here, Savannah could see the tension radiating off of him, could feel the weight of it in the air between them.
Savannah couldn’t hear them.
Didn’t need to.
She knew Mallory. Knew what she was saying. Knew she was telling him that she had tried. Knew she was telling him that Savannah was leaving anyway. And then—Mallory stood.
Looked back once.
Then walked back toward the car.
"It’s your turn," she murmured, her voice laced with something defeated before she slipped into the driver’s seat.
Savannah forced herself to move, forced herself to take the steps that led her toward him, toward an ending she didn’t know how to survive. She heard the way her footsteps hit the dock, soft but hesitant, like a heartbeat slowing before stopping completely.
Chase still didn’t move.
Not until she was right beside him.
Only then did he tilt his head slightly, his gaze heavy when it met hers.
"One last visit, huh?"
Savannah sat beside him, their shoulders nearly touching, and turned toward the horizon. She wished she had the words to make this hurt less. But there were no words. No comfort. No way to fix what she had already broken. “I didn’t want to leave without seeing you.”
Chase huffed out a humorless laugh, shaking his head.
"That’s the problem, Monroe. You shouldn’t be leaving at all."
Her chest caved.
She turned her head, finding him already watching her.
"You’re really going," he murmured.
Her breath hitched. “Yeah.”
