The wind howled past Aurora as she fell, her stomach twisting in freefall. The night sky blurred, and then she dropped.
The river swallowed her whole, and the coldness of the water slammed into her skin. The sky above her faded
Then, another splash!
Tim hit the water hard, but he didn't hesitate. His arms cut through the freezing current, his eyes searched the water with all urgency.
Up on the bridge, Liam stood frozen, his breath stolen by the sight below. He had expected Tim to let her drown, and ramain in solid ground. He never expected Tim to jump in before him.
It terrified Liam more than anything. It meant Aurora wasn't just Tim's obsession.
She was also his weakness. And men like Tim didn't handle weakness well.
....
Tim had never known fear before. Not even when he went through the toughest time of his life.
Control had always been his language and his weapon. But as he stood at the edge of the bridge that night, rain-soaked and seething, control meant nothing.
Aurora was gone.
The river stilled below, it's waves crashing with the rocks. Searchlights sliced through the water's surface, illuminating nothing but endless ripples. Divers moved professionally, calling out updates he barely processed.
No body.
Tim's fingers curled into fists, his nails biting into his palms. His suit was ruined—soaked, heavy—but he barely felt it. His mind was trapped in horror, replaying the way she had looked at him before she jumped.
Defiant. Pained. Like she had chosen this. Like she had been waiting to die. He technically killed her.
The thought sent rage clawing through his chest, and his heart burned.
She wouldn't have. She couldn't have.
The hours dragged on, and the river refused to give her back. He paided the divers more to search for her, even after five hours of team search.
Liam stood a few feet away, silent. He hadn't left, he stood, watching the search with an expression Tim wanted to rip off his face.
Tim turned sharply. "Say it." His voice came out icy, with hate. Much hate.
Liam's jaw clenched. "Say what?"
"Whatever the hell you're thinking."
Liam exhaled, his breath visible in the cold air. "She's gone, Tim."
The words sent something growing inside them. Both couldn't digest it.
"No." His voice was low, dangerous. "She's not."
Liam held his gaze, trying not to lash out, and remain steady. "Then where is she?"
Tim didn't answer. He couldn't. For the first time in his life, he didn't know anything. For the first time, he wished he had an answer.
The search stretched into the early hours. The divers surfaced, one by one, shaking their heads. The officials murmured about currents, about how bodies sometimes never surfaced.
Tim scoffed. He ignored their words and stood at the edge of the bridge until dawn, staring at the water.
Waiting!
Daring her to prove him wrong.
The rain hadn't stopped. It soaked through Tim's shirt, dripped from his hair, blurred the edges of his vision—but none of it mattered. Nothing mattered except the hollow ache in his chest and the bastard standing behind him.
He wondered why Liam hadn't left. If he stayed back to taunt him, he can do that and leave already. He deserves it.
"This is your fault." Liam finally broke the silence.
Tim stilled.
The words cut through the downpour, and left him with a deeper wound. He didn't turn, even if he wanted to. He just exhaled slowly, his eyes locked on the river.
"Careful, Liam." His warned, his voice dangerously calm and a bit shaky.
"No," Liam snapped. "You did this. You pushed her to this. You trapped her, hunted her down, treated her like she was yours to control, and now she's gone!"
Tim's teeth clenched. Gone. He hated that word. It made her sound like a ghost, like something lost to time. Aurora wasn't gone. She couldn't be.
"She jumped," Tim said flatly. In denial.
Liam let out a humorless laugh. "Yeah? And why do you think she did that, huh?" He took a step closer, voice breaking. "Because you terrified her, Tim."
Tim finally turned. His glare was sharp enough to cut steel.
"I loved her."
Liam's jaw tightened. "No. You owned her. And now—" his voice cracked, and his raw grief showed, "now she's dead because of you."
Tim's vision blurred with red. He didn't believe that. He refused to believe that.
And then—
"You never deserved her," Liam whispered.
That was it. Those words were a punch on Tim's guts. No matter how true those words were, only Aurora deserves to say them to him. No one else.
His fist connected with Liam's jaw
Liam lunged. He retaliated, and they hit the pavement hard, fists flying, bones crunching. Tim barely felt the pain; he just swung, every hit fueled by the storm roaring inside him.
"You didn't love her," Liam snarled, slamming his fist into Tim's ribs. "You destroyed her!"
Tim grabbed Liam by the collar, flipping their positions. "And what about you?" he growled. "You played the hero? Kept her safe?" He leaned in, voice venomous. "Then why didn't she run to you?"
Liam froze.
For a split second, the fight stopped. Their ragged breaths mixed with the rain, both of them bloodied, bruised.
Then, so quietly Tim almost didn't hear it—
"She never saw me," Liam whispered. His voice shook, his hands curled into fists at his sides. "Not the way I saw her."
Tim's stomach dropped.
Liam? In love with Aurora? It was ridiculous. Unbelievable.
And yet—
Tim saw it now. The way Liam had always been there. The way he'd looked at Aurora like she was everything.
A bitter laugh slipped from Tim's lips. "You wanted her."
Liam's eyes darkened. "I loved her."
And then, Liam's lips curled into a humorless smirk, blood dripping down his chin. "Funny, isn't it?" he murmured. "That I actually cared about her, while you—" his gaze flickered, something sharpening behind it, "—were too busy being a selfish bastard to realize you meant everything to her."
The world stopped. "If eventually she doesn't die and finds love again, I'll beg the universe not to let her cross paths with you. You blood sucking viper," he pushed Tim away and sat up.
Tim sat up too. He stared at Liam, his breath caught in his throat. "What?"
Liam exhaled, wiping the rain off his face. "You heard me." He spat on the floor. "You've always been this way. I also wish I was in no way related to you."