Saviour
2132 Words
ATHENA’S POV
“Are you okay?”
The voice sounded distant.
Blurred.
Like someone speaking underwater.
Pain pulsed violently through my body before I even managed to open my eyes.
A groan slipped past my lips.
Warmth surrounded me.
Strong arms.
A firm chest beneath me.
For a second, I didn’t understand where I was.
Then memory slammed back all at once.
The bridge.
The water below.
Jumping.
My eyes flew open instantly.
I gasped sharply and tried pushing myself upright, but agony exploded through my shoulder.
I cried out immediately.
“Easy.”
Large hands steadied me carefully.
I blinked through the haze and found myself staring directly into familiar dark eyes.
Doctor Vale.
Relief flashed briefly across his face when he realized I was conscious.
“You’re alive,” he muttered under his breath.
I frowned weakly.
Disappointment twisted painfully inside me.
I should have died.
The realization hit me harder than the pain.
I swallowed thickly and looked around.
We were lying near the rocky embankment beneath the bridge.
Cold night air whipped around us violently.
Water crashed nearby.
“How…” My voice came out hoarse.
“You hit part of the lower ledge before falling into the water,” he explained quickly while examining my arm carefully. “You’re lucky.”
Lucky.
The word almost made me laugh.
I hissed sharply when he touched my shoulder.
“It’s dislocated,” he said immediately. “And your knees are scraped pretty badly.”
I looked down weakly.
Blood stained my jeans.
I barely even felt it.
Shock probably.
Or exhaustion.
“Listen to me,” he said firmly, forcing my attention back toward him. “I need to reset your shoulder before the muscles tighten.”
Fear crossed my face instantly.
He noticed.
“This is going to hurt.”
Before I could respond, he pulled a white handkerchief from his pocket and rolled it tightly.
“Bite down on this.”
Still dazed, I obeyed automatically.
He shifted closer carefully, one hand gripping my arm while the other steadied my shoulder.
“Look at me.”
I shook my head frantically.
“I can’t—”
“Look at me, Athena.”
The way he said my name made me freeze.
His eyes locked onto mine steadily.
Dark.
Focused.
Strangely calm.
Then—
Snap.
Pain exploded through me instantly.
A muffled scream tore from my throat around the cloth.
Tears sprang into my eyes immediately.
“Breathe,” he ordered softly.
I trembled violently while trying to steady myself.
“There,” he murmured. “It’s back in place.”
My breathing came out uneven.
Before I could recover properly, he pulled his shirt over his head in one smooth movement.
My eyes widened involuntarily.
For one embarrassing second, my brain stopped functioning.
His chest was lean and muscular beneath the dim moonlight, scattered with faint scars that looked old enough to have stories behind them.
Heat crawled unexpectedly up my neck.
God.
What was wrong with me?
I had just tried to kill myself.
Meanwhile my brain chose this moment to notice that my doctor was attractive.
Humiliating.
Completely humiliating.
Unaware of my spiraling thoughts, he wrapped the shirt carefully around my shoulder to keep my arm stable.
“There,” he said quietly after tying it securely. “That should help until we get back to the hospital.”
Hospital.
I stiffened instantly.
“No.”
His brows furrowed.
“You need medical attention.”
“I’m fine.”
“You jumped off a bridge.”
“I changed my mind halfway.”
“That isn’t funny.”
The sharpness in his voice surprised me.
For a moment, genuine anger flashed across his face.
Not cruel anger.
Fear.
Like he had actually been terrified I’d die.
The realization unsettled me deeply.
Without another word, he carefully lifted me into his arms.
I instinctively tensed.
“It’s okay,” he said quietly.
And somehow…
I believed him.
The little boy from earlier stared at me wide-eyed from the backseat once the doctor settled me carefully into the passenger seat.
“Daddy,” he whispered loudly, “is she a mermaid?”
Despite everything, a weak laugh escaped me.
Doctor Vale sighed tiredly.
“No, Ethan.”
“She fell from the sky?”
“No.”
“Then why is she wet?”
I bit my lip to stop another laugh.
The doctor shut the car door with a quiet groan.
“I’m beginning to regret teaching you curiosity.”
The little boy grinned proudly.
By the time we reached the hospital again, exhaustion had swallowed me whole.
The last thing I remembered was Doctor Vale carrying me through bright hospital hallways while voices murmured around us.
Then darkness.
“Sir, we already checked twice.”
A deep voice pulled me slowly awake.
“She has no registered family.”
My head throbbed painfully as I opened my eyes.
Bright fluorescent lights immediately burned against my vision.
I winced.
“She must have somebody,” another voice replied.
Familiar.
Controlled.
Doctor Vale.
“All records lead back to foster care,” the first man continued. “No emergency contacts. No listed relatives.”
Silence followed briefly.
Then—
“So she’s alone.”
Something about the way he said those words made my chest ache unexpectedly.
I slowly turned my head toward the voices.
Doctor Vale stood near the doorway speaking to a large man wearing plain clothes.
Probably security.
Or police.
The moment Doctor Vale noticed I was awake, he straightened immediately.
“How are you feeling?”
“Sore,” I admitted quietly.
That was an understatement.
Everything hurt.
The large man excused himself shortly afterward, leaving the room silently.
Before the awkwardness could settle properly, small footsteps approached my bed.
I blinked down in surprise.
Ethan.
He stared curiously at the sling around my shoulder.
“Does it hurt?”
His blue eyes looked genuinely concerned.
I forced a small smile.
“Only a little.”
He looked horrified.
“That sling looks painful.”
A real laugh escaped me this time.
“No, it just looks scary.”
He considered that seriously.
“Can I touch it?”
“Ethan,” Doctor Vale warned immediately.
“What? I’m curious.”
I smiled faintly.
“It’s okay.”
Ethan reached out carefully with one tiny finger and poked the sling gently before gasping dramatically.
“You’re broken.”
I laughed again.
God.
I couldn’t remember the last time I laughed twice in one day.
“Give her a few weeks,” Doctor Vale said dryly from across the room. “She’ll survive.”
My smile faded slightly at the reminder.
Survive.
I wasn’t even sure I wanted to anymore.
Ethan eventually wandered toward the television while Doctor Vale moved closer to my bed.
“That was an investigator earlier,” he explained. “We were trying to locate any relatives.”
“I don’t have any.”
He studied me carefully.
Not pitying.
Just… observing.
“Do you have anywhere safe to stay after discharge?”
“My apartment.”
“Stairs?”
I hesitated.
“Yes.”
“That’s not ideal with your injuries.”
“I’ll manage.”
His jaw tightened slightly.
“I’d also like you to speak with a therapist before discharge.”
I stiffened immediately.
“I’m not crazy.”
“I didn’t say you were.”
“Then why do I need therapy?”
“Because people who jump off bridges usually need help.”
The bluntness irritated me instantly.
“I said I’m fine.”
“You nearly died.”
“I’m still here.”
“And next time?”
Silence.
His expression softened slightly afterward.
“This isn’t punishment,” he said quieter now. “It’s support.”
Support.
The word felt foreign.
Dangerous.
I looked away first.
“I can’t stay here long,” I muttered. “I need to work.”
“Athena—”
“And Lucas still needs funeral arrangements.”
The grief hit instantly after saying his name aloud.
My chest tightened painfully.
Doctor Vale noticed immediately.
“Your medical bills have already been handled.”
My head snapped toward him.
“What?”
“It’s taken care of.”
“By who?”
He arched one dark brow.
“The owner of the hospital.”
Suspicion filled me immediately.
“Nobody does things for free.”
Something unreadable crossed his face.
“That cynical outlook must be exhausting.”
I slowly pushed the blanket aside despite the pain.
“I need to thank him.”
“You already are.”
Confusion crossed my face.
Then realization.
“You?”
He nodded once.
Embarrassment rushed through me instantly.
“Why?”
“Because you needed help.”
“That’s not enough reason.”
His eyes held mine steadily.
“Maybe to apologise."
I swallowed hard.
People like him didn’t help people like me without expecting something eventually.
That was how the world worked.
Still…
“Thank you,” I whispered quietly.
For a second, something softened in his expression again.
Then he ruined it immediately.
“You’re still not discharged.”
I sighed dramatically.
“You doctors are controlling.”
“You tried to throw yourself off a bridge.”
“Technically I succeeded.”
“Athena.”
The warning in his tone almost made me smile.
Almost.
A few hours later, after endless paperwork and reluctant monitoring, Doctor Vale insisted on driving me home personally.
“It’s late,” he said firmly when I protested. “And you’re injured.”
I finally gave in mostly because arguing hurt too much.
The drive remained quiet.
Ethan had fallen asleep in the backseat halfway there.
By the time we reached my apartment building, something immediately felt wrong.
My stomach dropped.
My belongings littered the sidewalk outside.
Trash bags.
Clothes.
Shoes.
The small lamp Lucas once fixed for me.
“No…”
I stumbled out of the car immediately.
Pain shot through my legs as I rushed upstairs.
The apartment door was locked.
I pounded against it desperately.
“Open the door!”
Nothing.
The elderly woman across the hall peeked outside cautiously.
“They came earlier,” she said awkwardly. “The landlord said he didn’t want troublemakers in his building anymore.”
My chest hollowed out instantly.
“He can’t do this.”
“Technically,” Doctor Vale said coldly behind me, “he absolutely cannot.”
The woman shrugged helplessly.
“Nobody wanted problems after the ambulance situation.”
Then quieter—
“He called you strays.”
The word hit like acid.
Again.
Always that word.
Strays.
As if broken people deserved less humanity.
The woman disappeared back inside quickly afterward.
Silence settled heavily around us.
I stared numbly at my belongings scattered across the floor.
Nowhere to go.
No family.
No Lucas.
Nothing left.
“Where can you stay?” Doctor Vale asked quietly.
I laughed weakly.
“That’s a funny question.”
Before either of us spoke again, Ethan’s sleepy voice drifted from the car.
“She can stay with us.”
We both turned.
The little boy blinked tiredly from the backseat.
“She looks sad.”
Something inside my chest twisted painfully.
Doctor Vale rubbed a hand down his face tiredly.
“That’s not how life works, buddy.”
“Why not?”
Honestly…
Neither of us had an answer.
A strange silence passed between me and Doctor Vale.
Then unexpectedly, we both laughed quietly.
Small.
Tired.
Broken laughs.
“Maybe he has a point,” he admitted eventually.
I stared at him in shock.
“You can’t be serious.”
“It would only be temporary,” he clarified quickly. “Until you recover.”
“That’s insane.”
“Probably.”
I hesitated.
Every instinct screamed not to trust this.
But exhaustion was winning.
And for the first time in years…
Someone was offering me safety.
“I’ll repay you,” I whispered.
“You don’t owe me anything.”
I looked at him carefully.
“You’re not as terrible as I thought you were, Doctor.”
One corner of his mouth lifted slightly.
“Don’t make me regret this.”
As he loaded my bags into the trunk, I looked quietly toward the sleeping little boy in the backseat.
Then toward the man helping me despite every reason not to.
A dangerous ache spread slowly through my chest.
Because this wasn’t just guilt anymore.
Or grief.
It was worse.
Hope.
And hope had destroyed me before.
Still…
As I climbed into his car beside him, another secret settled heavily inside me.
One he could never know.
Because if Dominic Vale ever discovered the truth about his son—
Everything would shatter.
- Writer
