Chapter 3

Alisa POV:

I knew, deep down, that Jonas had never loved me. Not truly. The signs had been there from the very beginning, etched into every stolen glance, every hurried touch, every casual dismissal of my feelings. It was a wound I had chosen to ignore, foolishly believing that love could blossom from obligation.

Everyone in our small town knew about Jonas Morgan and Bria Francis. Their love story was legendary, a high school romance straight out of a movie. She was the popular cheerleader, he the star athlete. They were inseparable, the golden couple. I was just Alisa Battle, the quiet girl who watched him from afar, harboring a secret, aching crush that felt both childish and profound. For four years, I loved him from a distance, a silent devotee to a love that wasn' t mine.

He only ever had eyes for Bria. Their connection was undeniable, a raw, passionate thing that burned bright for years. Until it didn't. Bria, always restless, always chasing the next thrill, had left town abruptly after high school, breaking Jonas' s heart. He was devastated, a shadow of his former self.

I, the ever-present, ever-hopeful admirer, had been there for him, offering a sympathetic ear, a shoulder to cry on. I saw his pain, and in my naive heart, I hoped to heal it. I hoped he would eventually see me.

One night, years after Bria left, Jonas called me. He was drunk, his voice thick with sorrow and longing. He rambled, slurred Bria' s name, confessed how much he missed her. And then, he mistook me for her.

"Bria," he whispered, his hands fumbling for mine, his breath hot on my neck. "Bria, I always loved you."

I froze. A part of me, the rational part, screamed to pull away. But the other part, the desperate, yearning part that had loved him for so long, succumbed. I allowed myself to be kissed, allowed myself to be held, allowed myself to believe, just for a moment, that his affection was for me. It was a selfish, desperate act, borne of years of unrequited love.

The morning after, his regret was immediate, palpable. He pulled away from me, his eyes wide with horror, as if seeing me for the first time.

"Alisa, I... I' m so sorry. I was drunk. I shouldn' t have..." He couldn't even finish the sentence. He couldn' t even look at me.

The shame was a physical blow, but I swallowed it, just as I had swallowed so much else for him.

A few weeks later, my world turned upside down. I was pregnant. With Jonas' s baby.

He married me, of course. Reluctantly. He did his duty. He acknowledged our son. But his heart was never in it. Our marriage was a hollow shell, filled with his polite indifference and my silent longing. He was a ghost in his own home, always present, yet always absent.

And then Bria came back. A year ago, she swept back into town, claiming a new diagnosis of severe anxiety, using it as a weapon, a shield, and a tool for manipulation. Jonas, ever the white knight for her, welcomed her with open arms, allowing her free rein in our lives, in our home, in our son' s heart.

Jax adored her. She was everything I wasn' t-fun, permissive, dramatic in a way he found exciting. She bought him gifts, took him to places I said were too dangerous. She encouraged his defiance of my rules, always with a sympathetic pat on his head, a knowing look at Jonas.

I tried to talk to Jonas, to explain how damaging this was.

"She' s just lonely, Alisa," he'd say, his eyes distant. "She needs support. And Jax loves her. You' re overreacting."

Overreacting. That was always his go-to.

Jax, spurred on by Bria' s subtle encouragement, became openly hostile towards me.

"Mom, why do you look so old?" he' d asked, his eyes narrow, mimicking Bria' s critical gaze. "Aunt Bria is so pretty. You just yell all the time."

"I wish Aunt Bria was my mom," he' d declared more than once, especially after Bria had soothed him through a manufactured tantrum. "She' s way better than you."

Those words, those biting, cruel words, had always been a dagger to my heart. But now, amidst the dust and rubble, they felt like a prophecy fulfilled. He got his wish.

My breath hitched again. The agony in my chest intensified, radiating down my left arm. My vision flickered, the edges darkening. I felt lightheaded, dizzy, my body trembling uncontrollably. Too much stress. Too much pain. My heart, my loyal, broken heart, was finally giving up.

My knees buckled. I tried to brace myself, to push back against the impending darkness, but my arms were useless, heavy, unresponsive. I fell, a pathetic heap in the debris, the sharp edges of concrete digging into my skin.

The dust swirled around me, a suffocating shroud. I couldn' t hold myself up. I couldn' t even lift my head. The raw, burning sensation in my lungs was getting worse. My vision was fading in and out, the world a blurry, indistinct mess. I was losing control, losing my grip on consciousness.

This was it. The end. Alone. Betrayed. Unloved. The darkness beckoned, a final, merciful release.