Chapter 9: A Goodbye & A Lie
1111 Words
——Teri’s POV – The Hospital
The steady beeping of a heart monitor was the first thing she noticed.
Then—the smell.
Sterile. Clean. Sharp.
Not the island.
Not the beach.
Her eyes blinked open slowly, and for a moment, she had no idea where she was.
Then—a voice.
“Oh my God—you’re awake!”
Teri turned her head, wincing at the dull ache in her ribs.
Lena sat beside her, eyes red and puffy, but smiling wide.
Teri swallowed, her throat dry, rough.
“Where—” Her voice cracked. She cleared her throat. “Where are we?”
“A hospital,” Lena said quickly, gripping her hand. “We were rescued. Airlifted off that damn island and brought here. You—” She exhaled sharply, shaking her head. “You scared the hell out of me, Teri.”
Teri tried to process it.
The rescue.
The fact that she was still here. Still alive.
But her brain wasn’t cooperating.
Something felt… off.
Something was missing.
And then—it hit her.
Her stomach dropped.
Her chest tightened.
“Where’s Raf?” she asked, voice quieter now.
Lena’s expression shifted.
Just slightly.
But Teri noticed.
She always noticed.
Lena hesitated, then forced a small smile. “He’s… gone.”
Teri’s fingers curled into the hospital sheets.
“Gone?”
Lena nodded. “He left before you woke up.”
Teri’s breath caught.
Left.
Just like that.
After everything.
After the island. The near-death experience. The moments where—God, where she could have sworn something was there.
Something real.
And now, he was gone.
Teri forced herself to nod.
Swallowed past the lump in her throat.
“Right,” she murmured. “Of course. Makes sense.”
Lena frowned. “Teri…”
“I’m fine,” Teri cut in.
Too fast. Too sharp.
She didn’t know why it hurt so much.
Didn’t know why it felt like she’d been punched in the gut.
He was just some guy.
Some ridiculously attractive, infuriating, impossible man she had met on a yacht.
That was it.
Right?
Right.
So then why the hell did it feel like something inside her had just shattered?
She closed her eyes, ignoring the sting behind them.
It didn’t matter.
She’d get over it.
Eventually.
Because clearly—he already had.
——Meanwhile: Raf’s POV – Offshore
Raf stood on the deck of a private boat, gripping the railing too hard.
The city lights reflected on the dark water below, but he wasn’t looking at them.
He was staring at the hospital in the distance.
At the place where he knew she was awake now.
He should have been relieved.
He should have felt… something close to closure.
Instead?
He felt like he’d left a part of himself in that hospital bed with her.
“You did the right thing.”
Raf didn’t turn.
Didn’t acknowledge the man standing behind him.
“Did I?” His voice was flat. Emotionless.
“She doesn’t belong in this world, Raf. You know that.”
His jaw tightened.
“You think that matters?”
A long pause.
Then—
“If you care about her, you’ll stay away.”
Raf exhaled slowly, the ache in his chest worse than any bullet wound he’d ever taken.
Stay away.
It was the right call.
The only call.
And yet—
He closed his eyes.
Saw her fighting to save him in the ocean.
Saw her grinning through the pain, teasing him even when she could barely stand.
Saw the way she had looked at him before she passed out in his arms.
Like he was worth something.
Like he wasn’t just a man with blood on his hands.
His grip tightened on the railing.
Because he knew—**deep down, in the part of him he rarely let anyone see—**that walking away was the one thing he wasn’t sure he could live with.
Hours Earlier: The Goodbye
Teri hadn’t been asleep.
Not really.
The fever had broken, but exhaustion still pulled at her, keeping her body heavy.
But when she felt him, she forced her eyes open.
Raf.
Standing over her hospital bed, jaw clenched, looking at her like he was memorizing everything.
Like he was saying goodbye.
Her heart twisted.
“You’re leaving.”
It wasn’t a question.
Raf sighed. “I have to.”
Teri swallowed.
She could have said a million things.
Could have asked why. Could have begged him to stay.
Instead—
“Coward.”
His lips twitched.
Then—before she could stop him, before she could even think—
He kissed her.
Hard.
Desperate.
Like he was memorizing the way she tasted, the way she fit against him.
Like he needed to burn the feeling into his skin before he walked away.
Teri sucked in a sharp breath, her body betraying her, melting into the kiss before she could think better of it.
Before she could remind herself that he was leaving.
His hands framed her face, rough fingertips trailing along her jaw, tilting her head just enough to deepen the kiss.
To take more.
To ruin her for anyone else.
Her fingers curled into his shirt, gripping, holding, refusing to let him go—because she knew.
She knew.
This wasn’t a beginning.
This was an ending.
And still—
She kissed him back.
With everything she had.
With everything she couldn’t say.
Their lips moved together like they’d done this a hundred times before.
Like they’d been waiting for this moment since the beginning.
Like this was inevitable.
Raf made a low sound in the back of his throat, something between a growl and a sigh, his hand slipping into her hair, gripping tight, too tight.
Because he didn’t want to let go.
But he had to.
God, he had to.
When he finally—finally—pulled away, Teri’s breath was unsteady.
His was worse.
Her lips tingled. Swollen. Bruised.
She could still feel the ghost of his breath against her skin, the heat of his body so close, too close.
For a second, she thought he might say something.
That he might take it back.
That he might stay.
Instead, his thumb brushed once—**just once—**against her cheek.
A silent apology.
A silent goodbye.
And then, in that low, rough voice that had ruined her for good—
“Goodbye, bella.”
Her chest tightened.
She opened her mouth—to say what, she didn’t know.
But before she could find the words—
He was gone.
And Teri?
She had never hated silence more in her entire life.
- Writer
