Chapter 25
I woke up the next morning with my eyes swollen and my chest feeling heavy. Sunlight was already creeping through the curtains, but I stayed under the covers for a long time, staring at the ceiling. My body felt sore in places that had nothing to do with the accident. It was the kind of soreness that came from carrying too much shame for too many hours.
I didn’t want to get up. I didn’t want to face another day at the hospital. I didn’t want to see Sophia’s smug face or risk running into Ryan Hayes again. Most of all, I didn’t want to see the look in Ethan’s eyes — that mix of hurt and longing that always made me feel like I was failing him.
My phone was on the nightstand. I picked it up and saw five missed calls from Ethan and three messages.
Ethan:
Please call me back, Li
