At GS Hospital.
Unable to recognize the bodies from the accident, Alex felt a slight glimmer of hope.
However, he trembled as he held the DNA test results, his hopes dashed entirely.
'Rory, she is gone forever. She is dead!'
He read the results countless times, but no matter how many times he looked, the outcome remained unchanged: the unrecognized corpse was indeed Aurora Moon.
Alex lowered her head, trying to hide the terrible feelings overwhelming him as he searched for answers to the many questions torturing his mind.
'How could this happen?'
'Why did she leave me so abruptly?'
'Why didn't she listen to me?'
'How could a fuel truck end up on Pine Hill?'
'What the fuck happened?'
'Is this all real?'
These questions swirled in his mind like a storm, giving him agony.
Whenever a thought crossed his mind, he felt like his heart might stop.
Now, a flood of "if" statements started to fill him with self-blame:
'If only I hadn't tried to provoke Rory, she might have stayed in the car and waited for me instead of leaving in anger, right?!'
'If I returned to my parents' house without being forced, Rory wouldn't have had to drive me to Pine Hill!'
Alex felt a rush of anger at himself for making the foolish mistake that led to Aurora's accident.
'You are so fucking stupid, Alexander Graystone! So fucking stupid!'
He ran his hands through his dark hair and squeezed it tightly, frustrated with himself for being ignorant.
Now, all that remained in him was regret. He would undoubtedly correct everything if he could turn back time, but that was merely wishful thinking—she had already left him forever.
With a deep sigh, Alex rubbed his face before sitting up straight. He stood from his seat, and just as he was about to walk away, his gaze fell on the thin man standing by the glass window.
'U-Uncle Moon...'
Just glancing at Thomas Moon's back, Alex could tell he was crying silently.
Gripping his chest in a desperate attempt to contain the nameless pain in his heart, Alex walked toward him. With each step, the ache in his heart grew stronger until he felt numb.
When Alex stopped behind Thomas Moon and heard his weak sobs, he couldn't help but drop to his knees on the floor, asking for forgiveness.
The loud thud caused Thomas to turn back. He was shocked to find Alex kneeling before him.
"Young Master Alex, what are you doing?" Thomas asked through tears as he hurriedly helped Alex to stand on his feet.
However, Alex refused. Seeing the redness in Thomas Moon's eyes deepened the ache in his heart.
"Uncle Moon, I'm sorry; because of me, Rory had an accident. Uncle, your daughter's death is my fault...I killed her," His words came slow, with a trembled voice. It felt like a hurricane raging inside his heart.
Unable to see Thomas's sorrow, his head hung low. He was shocked seconds later when he saw Thomas Moon kneeling before him.
Alex lifted his head to meet Thomas's gaze. Confused, he asked, "Uncle, why are you...?"
"No, Young Master. This is an accident. And it is not your fault, Young Master! It's not your fault. It's me. I was the one who had asked Rory to leave the house..."
Thomas stammered, recalling how foolish he had been to ask Aurora to leave. If he hadn't done that, the accident would never have happened.
"No, Uncle..." Alex corrected him hurriedly. "I'm the one who brought her home. If I don't challenge my mom, she doesn't have to drive for me! This is my fault. She died because of me, Uncle..."
...
As Alex and Thomas Moon grieved and competed to blame themselves, Aurora stood frozen in a hidden corner, watching them.
She could hear everything they said, enough to bring her to her knees. Her vision blurred, and tears streamed down her face as she watched her father cry and blame himself.
Although she couldn't see Alex's face, only his back, she heard his cries clearly, along with every word on his lips.
Aurora wanted to crawl over and hug her father, to tell him that this was not his fault and that she was still alive. Yet her legs wouldn't move, and her little heart screamed, reminding her she was no longer Aurora Moon but Aurora Spencer.
All she could do was cry silently as she watched her father and Alex blame themselves for the accident that had claimed her life.
'I'm sorry, Dad! I didn't mean to make you this sad. I apologize, Alex; this isn't your fault either. Stop crying! Stop being so weak, Alex! Please return to your usual self—dominating and cold.'
Aurora expressed her sadness while trying to distance herself from that place. She knew she couldn't face them now.
Gathering her strength, she stood up, using the wall for support as she walked away.
Hiding her face under her baseball cap, she ignored the gazes of the nurses and patients passing by, giving her confused and pitying looks.
Her slow and heavy footsteps gradually returned to normal as she moved away from her father and Alex.
However, as the elevator doors opened in the distance, a familiar male figure stepped out in her direction, causing her heart to race.
'Alvin!' Aurora wiped her tears, lowered her cap to conceal her face, and walked away from the elevator, evading Alvin.
She was uncertain whether Alvin recognized her as Aurora Spencer, but she still needed to hide from him.
Before she could walk too far, Alvin called her name from behind, his voice loud yet dignified: "Young Miss, wait a moment..."
Aurora didn't stop. She tried to convince herself that Alvin hadn't called her. Maintaining a calm demeanor, she continued walking, to distance herself from the voice approaching behind her.
'Damn it! Seriously, does he recognize me? Did young Aurora's dad send him a photo of me?' Aurora wondered. She felt her heart race as these thoughts raced through her mind.
"Miss, please wait…"
Gritting her teeth, Aurora finally stopped when she heard Alvin's footsteps beside her.
"Y-Yes...?" she asked, not daring to lift her head to meet his gaze.