Chapter 5

The familiar cramp in my stomach twisted, a harsh reminder of years of stress and suppressed emotion. I clutched my abdomen, a reflexive action. It was a phantom pain, yet undeniably real.

"Still get those stomach aches, I see." Cassius's voice, smooth and low, startled me. He stood leaning against the opposite wall of the fire escape, a small bottle of antacids in his hand. He must have followed me. "You always did when you were stressed. Here." He offered the bottle, his gaze soft, almost concerned.

I sidestepped him, not breaking my stride. "Some things never change, Cassius," I said, my voice flat. "But my reliance on you for stomach remedies certainly has."

He lowered the bottle, a faint shadow crossing his face. "You should rest, Alana. Take some time off. You're pushing yourself too hard." There was a genuine note of concern in his voice, but it felt hollow, disingenuous.

I almost laughed. His concern? Now? After everything? "My vacation days are already booked," I replied, a small, defiant smile playing on my lips. "For something far more important than recovering from your family drama." I kept my eyes fixed on the distant cityscape visible through the small, grimy window, refusing to let him see the triumph simmering beneath my cool exterior.

He moved closer, his hand reaching out, a slow, deliberate gesture towards my hair. I flinched, pulling back just as his fingers brushed my cheek. A spark, a tiny shock of unwanted familiarity, jolted through me.

"Always so stubborn," he sighed, his hand dropping. "You never did know when to quit." He leaned against the railing, a wistful look in his eyes. "Remember that time in college? You had a fever of 103, but you insisted on taking that anatomy exam. Passed out cold right in the middle of it."

His words painted a vivid picture. I remembered it too. The fluorescent lights, the dizzying heat, the sensation of the room spinning. But his memory was sanitized. He remembered the drama, the spectacle. Not the actual pain.

"Still, you passed with flying colors," he continued, a proud smile on his face. "Never one to back down, were you? Always so fierce. So unyielding."

He was caught in a loop of nostalgia, a selective recollection of our shared past. But my thoughts were already elsewhere. A gentle buzz vibrated in my pocket. My phone. A private message. A warm, reassuring presence in the cold, hard reality of Cassius.

I pulled out my phone, a faint smile touching my lips as I read the text. It was a reminder, a tether to my actual life, my actual happiness.

"You really do romanticize everything, don't you, Cassius?" I said, cutting him off, my voice sharp and cold. "You make it sound like you were there, cheering me on, worried sick." My smile twisted into a bitter sneer. "But you weren't, were you? You were too busy consoling Kori, wiping her tears after she'd failed a pop quiz that same day."

His smile vanished. His face froze, the pleasant memories draining away, leaving behind a stark, uncomfortable truth. His eyes, usually so confident, flickered with uncertainty. He had been caught.

I didn't wait for his response. I pushed past him, heading back into the hospital. I needed air. I needed distance. I needed to remind myself that his distorted version of our past had no power over my present.

The next few days, I avoided Kori's floor. I scheduled my surgeries strategically, dodged rounds, and buried myself in paperwork. I was a surgeon, not a therapist, and certainly not a punching bag for their twisted narratives.

But the hospital is a small world. Eventually, avoidance becomes impossible. A week later, I found myself standing outside Kori's room again, mandated for a final discharge check.

As I pushed the door open, Kori was rising from her bed, leaning heavily on Cassius's arm. She was still pale, still fragile, but a triumphant glint in her eyes betrayed her actual strength.

"What's delaying her discharge?" I asked, my brow furrowing. I glanced at Kori's chart. Everything indicated she was ready to go home.

Kori immediately looked away, her hand fluttering to her forehead. "Oh, Alana," she murmured, her voice barely audible. "I just... I'm still a little weak. The doctor said it's common after... after such a difficult delivery. Cassius is being so sweet, helping me. He said we could stay another day or two."

Her hand reached out, instinctively grabbing for mine, but I pulled back before she could make contact. I wasn't falling for her victim act again.

"Your father called, Alana," she continued, her voice gaining a surprising strength. "He misses you. He says your room is still the same, waiting for you. He wants you to come home. We all do." Her eyes, wide and innocent, pleaded with me.

I could feel the unspoken questions, the thinly veiled accusations from the other staff members in the room. They looked at me, the heartless doctor, the estranged daughter.

I closed my eyes, a wave of profound exhaustion washing over me. The charade was endless, the emotional manipulation a suffocating blanket. I just wanted it to end.

"Fine," I conceded, the word a bitter taste on my tongue. "I'll come home. For a little while."

A triumphant smile, quick as a flash, lit up Kori's face before she masked it with a soft, grateful expression. Cassius, too, watched me, a possessive glint in his eyes.

Later, in the passenger seat of Cassius's car, I leaned my head against the cold window, the cityscape a blur outside. The weight of their manipulations pressed down on me. I needed to retrieve some personal items from my old room, things I' d left behind in my hurried departure years ago. Things that held memories of a different life, a different me.

My scarf, a soft cashmere knit, had somehow come loose. It slipped from my neck, exposing the delicate skin beneath. A small, almost imperceptible mark, a dark bruise against my pale skin, was now visible. It was a love bite, a tender souvenir from a night spent in the arms of the man who truly made me feel safe.

Cassius caught sight of it in the rearview mirror. His eyes, usually so sharp and calculating, widened, then narrowed into dangerous slits. His gaze fixed on the mark, a silent obsession. The casual conversation died in his throat.

His hands, still gripping the steering wheel, tightened. The veins in his forearms bulged, a clear indicator of the rage simmering beneath his carefully composed exterior. The air in the car thickened, charged with an unspoken fury.