Claimed by the Biker king

Four years ago The rain drummed relentlessly against the roof of the garage. Each drop echoing like a countdown she couldn’t stop. Once that sound had meant safety. Late nights. Laughter. Him. Now it sounded like an ending. Dahlia stood in the doorway. Her hard curled tightly around the frame as if it could hold her in place. Behind her, her car engine hummed steadily. A quiet reminder that everything she had ever dreamed of was waiting for her to choose it. Her suitcase was packed. Her worn brown guitar case lay in the trunk like a promise she had made to herself long before him. Yet she couldn’t move. Because of him. Killian Thorne leaned against the workbench like he always did, like nothing had changed. Like the world wasn’t splitting open between them. His arms were folded, muscles tense beneath the ink that told stories she knew by heart. Stories she once been part of. She didn’t have to look hard to find it, a small dahlia woven into the chaos of his tattoos. Hidden but permanent. Just like she had been. His grey eyes finally lifted to hers. Cold in a way she had never seen before and for a moment she forgot to breathe. “You’re really doing this?” he asked quietly. Not loud or angry but final. Her throat tightened painfully. Words tangling somewhere between her heart and her voice. She had always been good with words. She built entire worlds out of them. Turned feelings into melody. But right now she had nothing. Tears slipped down her cheeks, mixing with the rain that had already soaked through her clothes. “I have to.” Her voice breaking despite how hard she tried to hold it together, “This is my one chance, Killian. I have worked for this moment. I can’t let it slip.” His gaze dropped for a second like he couldn’t bear to look at her. He pushed himself off the workbench and started to walk towards her. Each step felt like a crack forming in her chest. “You’ve always wanted more.” His voice was low and rough, sounding like every word dragged out like it hurt to say out loud. He continued, “The lights. The stage. The whole damn world.” There was no judgement in his voice which made it worse. Dahlia swallowed hard, her voice trembled, “I told you that from the start.” “I know.” He stood in front of her. Now close enough that she could feel his warmth despite the cold rain clinging to her skin. Close enough that her body reacted to him like it always had. Like he was home. “That’s the problem.” He quietly continued, “You always knew what you wanted.” Her fingers curled into fists at her sides, “And you didn’t?” His gaze sharpened, something raw flashing through it, “I did.” The way he said it made her stomach drop. “I wanted this.” His voice breaking just enough to betray him, “I wanted you. Here, with me. Building something real. Not something that disappears the moment the spotlights fade.” The words hit her harder than anything else had because she knew. She had always known. It was in everything he did. In the car he rebuilt for her with his own hands. In the way he showed up every single time even when he didn’t have the words. In the future he never said out loud but built piece by piece anyway. A small town. A simple life. A forever she had never been sure she could survive. Her chest tightened. Something dangerously close to doubt had crept in, but she forced it down. Forced herself to hold onto the version of her that had dreamed bigger long before she had ever fallen in love with him. “If I stay I’ll lose myself.” She whispered, not trying to hide the hurt this time. His expression hardened, like those words cut deeper than anything else she could have said. “And if you go, you’ll lose me.” He replied quietly. The world went still. The rain. The thunder. The air between them. Everything froze around those words. She felt like something cranked opened inside her completely. There was no version of this where they both won. “I can’t stay.” Something in his face shut down instantly, like a door slamming shut for good. He stepped back, putting distance between them that felt colder than the storm outside. “Then go.” There was no anger or pleading. Just acceptance, which hurt so much worse. She turned before she could change her mind. Before she could run back to him and choose the life that felt safe instead of the one that terrified her. Each step toward her car felt heavier than the last, like she was dragging her heart across broken glass. She slid into the driver’s seat. Her hands trembled so badly she had to grip the steering wheel tightly to keep them steady. She looked up and he was still there. Standing in the doorway of the garage just watching her. Not moving. Not stopping her. That was when it really hit her. He wasn’t going to fight for her. A sob caught in her throat as she forced herself to look away. Shifting the car into gear before she could second-guess everything. She drove out of town that had once been her entire world. The rain swallowed the road behind her. One thought echoed louder than anything else. Not that she was leaving her. But that she might never find her way back to him.