I let out a laugh, though there’s no humor in it. It’s shaky, edged with panic. “If you think I’m leaving you, you’re out of your mind.”
His eyes search mine. “I know things went to shit, but I need to tell you something, Scarlett… I—”
“Don’t you fucking dare,” I cut him off, my voice sharp with fear. I know what he’s going to say, and I can’t bear to hear it. Not like this.
“Let me…” He tries again, his voice fainter this time.
“No,” I snap, pressing harder on his injury, feeling the warm blood coat the cardigan and my hands. “You won’t tell me you love me because you think you’re dying.”
“I don’t justthinkI’m dying.”
“No!” I shout, my voice cracking as I stare at the injury, as if I can keep him alive by sheer willpower. “You’re not dying. You’ll be fine. Everything will be fine.”
“Scarlett,” he says, his hand trembling as it grips my wrist. “I don’t want this to be one of my regrets.”
“You’ll tell me at the hospital,” I insist, barely holding it together. It feels like I’m going to vomit or pass out, like my body just wants to reject the situation altogether. Wants to escape it. “Once you’re patched up and we talk about why you came here alone.” There’s a weight on my chest that makes it hard to breathe. “Spoiler alert: we’re getting back together so I can dump you.”
He chuckles, but it turns into a groan. His skin is cold, clammy, and his eyes are unfocused. He looks so fragile, so close to slipping away. It rips through me like a knife.
“This is all my fault,” I sob, my voice trembling with guilt and fear. “If you’d never come back—”
“I don’t regret you for a second, Freckles,” he murmurs. “Not one.”
His eyes flutter closed, and I panic, shaking him. “No, Rafael, don’t fall asleep! The ambulance is coming. Please!”
His eyes open again. “It’s okay.”
“Stop saying it’s okay! You’re beingselfish!” I cry as I watch that infuriatingly gentle smile that makes me want to scream and hold him tighter all at once. “No, stop looking at me like that. Ethan needs you.Ineed you. You’re not leaving me, you hear me? You’re going tobe screamed at, and then you’re going to grovel, and then we’ll be together forever. I can’t face everything alone. I can’t get over you, Rafael.”
“Okay.” His voice is barely audible now. “You’re right. Breathe.”
“Don’t tell me to breathe,” I snap, even as I try to force air into my lungs. “I’m taking care of you, not the other way around.” I choke back a sob. “The romance hero doesn’t die at the end of the story. You promised me a love worthy of a romance book.”
“I know. I’m sorry.” I glare at him through my tears. “Or I would be sorry if… but I’m not.”
“Right.”
“But just in case…”
“Rafael…”
“If you don’t want me to say it, then you do it, please.”
I’m pressing down as hard as I can, but the bleeding won’t stop. It’s everywhere, and I don’t even know if it’s the shoulder wound or the injury on his head that’s killing him. “No, no!” I plead, shaking my head frantically. “At the hospital, Rafael.”
“Okay. But you know, right?”
I nod furiously, my tears falling faster. “I know.”
“And you feel the same?”
“I do.”
“Give me a kiss.”
“No, Rafael.”
“It’s just a kiss.”
