Chapter 12
Nina never imagined that after d
become… a ghost.
The injection slid painlessly into her veins,
as she’d hoped-
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But the peace only lasted a moment.
agony, no chaos. Just a quiet, dreamless stillness.
Then, like a tide surging back, her consciousness returned.
When she opened her eyes, she found herself floating mid–air, staring down at her lifeless body.
The doctors didn’t see her. They came in, checked her vitals, pronounced her gone, and sent her body off to be cremated.
Watching her own body being pushed into the cremator was surreal. A little too creepy. So she wandered. Aimless. Weightless. Hovering through the sterile halls out of sheer boredom.
She hadn’t expected to see Julian there.
Even less expected was the sight of him holding her journal.
She froze midair, instinctively wanting to close the book–but stopped when she saw his tears.
They slid silently down his face, darkening the page. His expression didn’t shift much, but there was something about the way he wept. Quiet. Still. Yet it tore at the heart more than sobs ever could.
Nina drifted above him, a dull ache blooming in her chest.
Then Samantha appeared, and the fight started. Secrets spilled–things Nina had never known while alive.
By the time the whole truth unraveled, she could only hover there in stunned silence.
So the question that had haunted her for a year… was answered after she died.
She looked at Julian, conflicted.
Part of her wanted to tell him–If you chose Samantha, then be good to her. Don’t look back.
But another part wanted to scream–If you don’t love her, then leave. Don’t let guilt ruin your life.
Yet she couldn’t say any of it.
She could only watch.
And she watched him walk out of the clinic… watched him get into his car… and drive it straight into the ocean.
Panic gripped her as she screamed his name.
Somehow—impossibly he heard her.
He stirred, eyelids fluttering open, like he was waking from a dream.
In that moment, she thought he might actually see her.
Just like now.
His gaze landed squarely on her.
Nina’s breath caught. Was it possible?
But then–he blinked, looked away. He couldn’t see her. He never could.
Her shoulders slumped. A flicker of disappointment bloomed low in her chest.
In front of her, Samantha burst into tears, pounding at Julian’s chest. “You asshole! What the hell am I supposed to do if you die?”
Julian looked down, face pale. “I’m sorry.”
“Sorry?” she choked, mascara running. The front of her wedding dress was soaked with tears. “Does she mean that much to you? So much that you’d rather die than live in a world without her?”
Chapter 12
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He was silent.
And Nina knew, deep down, he wouldn’t answer.
He’d always been good at hiding his feelings.
She sighed.
But then he spoke.
“Yes.”
Nina blinked.
He looked straight ahead, eyes calm but weighted. “I grew up in foster care. I never h have one. She was my whole world. Without her, this world has no meaning.”
had a family. Nina… she taught me what it meant to
Nina’s chest tightened.
Samantha bit her lip. “And me? What about me?”
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Julian turned to her slowly. “I thought I could repay you for everything. That whatever you needed, I’d give. But now I realize… there are things I’ll never be able to give you.”
Samantha’s voice cracked. “You love her that much?”
“I do.”
“I knew it,” she whispered. “I always knew…”
“But she’s dead!” she shouted suddenly, eyes blazing. “And the dead don’t come back!”
With that, she spun and ran from the room.
Julian leaned against the bed frame, staring blankly ahead. “Do the dead… really never come back?”
Nina let out a long breath.
She knew he couldn’t hear her. Still, she answered, softly, “No. We don’t.”
Maybe it was her imagination, but after she said it, his face seemed even paler.
She hovered a while longer, watching him.
Then turned toward the door, thinking she should check on Samantha.
But as she reached the door, a sudden noise made her stop.
She looked back.
And saw Julian reaching for the fruit knife on the bedside table–pressing it against his wrist.
Chapter 12
