📖 Defying Destiny – Book 2, Episode 8
475 Words
A Life They Shouldn’t Have
Claire woke up to silence.
No gods.
No fate pulling at her soul.
No more running.
For the first time in lifetimes, they were free.
Ethan lay beside her, his arm draped over her waist, his breath warm against her skin.
It should have felt perfect.
But something was wrong.
The air felt too still.
Like the universe itself was holding its breath.
And deep inside, Claire felt it—
A pull.
A whisper of something unfinished.
She didn’t want to admit it.
Didn’t want to ruin the moment.
But the feeling wouldn’t go away.
Like fate had just taken a step back—not disappeared.
And when she rolled over to wake Ethan—
She saw it.
A letter.
Sitting on the bedside table.
With a name written across it.
A name that shouldn’t exist anymore.
Ryan Parker.
A Message from the Impossible
Ethan sat up, rubbing his face.
"What’s wrong?"
Claire just stared at the letter.
She could barely breathe.
"Claire?" Ethan frowned, following her gaze.
Then—
He saw it.
And he froze.
Because Ryan was gone.
Erased.
This letter shouldn’t exist.
And yet—
It was here.
Ethan reached for it, his hands steady, but Claire saw the tension in his jaw.
Like he was afraid.
Afraid that if they opened it—
It would mean Ryan was never truly gone.
Or worse—
That fate was still playing with them.
Ethan exhaled sharply.
"We read it together."
Claire nodded.
He tore the envelope open.
And inside—
A single line of writing.
“I found a way out.”
Claire’s heart stopped.
Ethan’s breath caught.
Because that?
That meant Ryan wasn’t erased.
He was somewhere else.
Somewhere they weren’t supposed to reach.
And suddenly—
The feeling in Claire’s chest made sense.
They weren’t free.
Not yet.
Fate was still waiting.
And Ryan?
Ryan needed them.
Again.
IThe Glitch in Reality
Ethan didn’t speak for a long moment.
He just sat there, the letter in his hands, staring at it like it might disappear.
"This isn’t possible," he muttered.
Claire swallowed.
"Neither were the gods. Neither were the lifetimes we lost."
Ethan looked at her.
And for the first time—
She saw it.
Fear.
Not fear of losing her.
Not fear of fate.
But fear of hope.
Because what if this was real?
What if Ryan was out there?
And what if they had to fight fate all over again?
Claire reached for Ethan’s hand.
"We find him."
Ethan exhaled.
Then—
He nodded.
"We find him."
But before either of them could move—
The lights flickered.
The air shifted.
And suddenly—
A shadow moved outside the window.
Claire’s heart stopped.
Because for just a second—
She saw him.
Ryan.
Alive.
And then—
He was gone.
To Be Continued…
- Writer
