hapter y
Chapter 9
Riley didn’t explain. She just hung up and sat numbly in the same spot for a long time.
She was exhausted, unable to go on any longer.
The man she wanted to marry had always been the Nathaniel who once had eyes only for her.
But that man was gone.
He would never come back.
Days passed, and soon their wedding day approached.
But he spent every day at the hospital with Victoria, seemingly forgetting all about the wedding.
And Riley, appearing understanding as ever, never brought it up.
Until the day before the wedding.
She suddenly called Nathaniel, asking him to meet her at the rooftop of their old high school.
“Why did you want to come here?” Nathaniel asked as he carried her up the stairs.
Riley’s expression was subdued. “The wedding’s tomorrow. I wanted to come back and see this place.”
She deliberately ignored how he stiffened at the mention of the wedding, pretending not to notice.
When they pushed open the door to the rooftop, Nathaniel was surprised to find a round table set up with steak dinners and lit candles.
Riley looked silently around the familiar place. “Nathaniel, do you remember? This is where you first told me you loved me.”
That year, eighteen–year–old Nathaniel had cornered her on this rooftop.
“You said you’d only be with me if I caught a hundred butterflies, right? I did it.”
With that, the boy had thrown down his backpack, releasing countless colorful butterflies.
Surrounded by swirling butterflies, he had kissed her, trembling but solemn.
“Riley, be with me. I’ll love you forever.”
Perhaps remembering the past, Nathaniel’s gaze grew tender and deep.
He placed Riley in the chair at the table and kissed her forehead. “Riley, I’ll love you forever.”
His deep sincerity made it seem as if nothing had happened between them.
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Chapter 9
As if he had never held another woman’s hand and said, “If you wake up, I won’t get married.”
Riley looked at the man before her, never realizing his acting skills were so good.
She said nothing, only whispered, “Let’s eat.”
They sat facing each other.
Looking down at the school from the rooftop brought back many memories.
“I remember during morning runs, I could never keep up, so you’d secretly carry me on your back in the crowd. When the teacher caught you and made you run ten extra laps, you grabbed the megaphone and deliberately taunted him, saying not just today, but tomorrow and the day after, you’d carry me for a lifetime.”
“Another time, you were injured but insisted on playing basketball. I was so angry I fought with you and didn’t speak to you for days. You couldn’t stand it and risked getting caught by the dorm supervisor, throwing pebbles at my window at midnight, bringing flower you’d snuck out to buy as a peace offering.”
“During SAT, you were top of the class while I ranked hundredth. During the exams, you answered ‘C‘ for all the English questions, then filled out the same college choices as me. You said seeing me every day mattered more than getting into an Ivy League school.”
She recounted these memories one by one, her voice consistently calm–calm as still water.
Nathaniel didn’t notice her mood, just smiled and said, “Yeah, being separated from you would be worse than death.”
He didn’t know that with each past event Riley mentioned, she wasn’t reminiscing–she was saying goodbye.
Looking at him, she suddenly felt that the boy who, at eighteen, would catch a hundred butterflies in the mountains just because she said so, had perhaps only been her fantasy all along.
Time hadn’t killed him.
Time had merely revealed his true self.
A self she had never truly seen.
Nathaniel saw her eyes redden and assumed she was emotional from the memories. He quickly stood and went to comfort her. “Riley, don’t cry. I’ll always be with you. We’ll never be apart.”
His lies were like poisoned honey, drawing Riley in, then leaving her in agony.
They held each other silently for a long time. From a distance, they still looked like an inseparable couple.
The peaceful atmosphere was shattered by a jarring ringtone–a call from the hospital.
“Mr. Blackwood, Victoria’s awake!”
The voice was so loud that even Riley heard it clearly.
Nathaniel froze, but couldn’t hide his excitement.
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Chapter 9
After hanging up, he hurriedly stood. “Riley, I need to go. I’ll come back for you soon.”
Riley grabbed his sleeve, her voice hoarse: “I still have one more gift for you.”
He hesitated, his expression still gentle, but insistent: “Ill be right back.”
His sleeve slipped from her hand as Riley watched him descend the stairs.
Oh, Nathaniel. You once said no one was more important than me.
But now, for Victoria, you can’t even wait for my final gift?
The pain in her chest hit violently, blurring Riley’s vision. Since stopping her medication, she had endured this torture daily.
But this couldn’t compare to even a fraction of the pain Nathaniel had caused her.
Watching his figure disappear completely, Riley closed her eyes and began counting the time.
“One, two, three…”
“Fifty–six, fifty–seven, fifty–eight…”
When she estimated Nathaniel was nearly at the bottom, she forced herself to stand from the wheelchair.
Then, step by unsteady step, she walked to the edge of the rooftop, watching intently for that familiar figure to appear below.
Since losing her legs, this was the first time Riley had walked so far on her prosthetics.
But it wasn’t for survival–it was for death.
Swaying on the highest point of the rooftop, she watched him hurriedly open his car door, get in, and start the engine.
Nathaniel…
From sixteen to twenty–six, you loved me for exactly ten years.
What would it feel like to watch the girl you loved for ten years die before your eyes?
Unfortunately, she would never see the result.
She didn’t want to know anymore.
This life had been too exhausting.
In the next life, she didn’t want to return.
She smiled faintly, closed her eyes, and as the car engine started, she spread her arms and jumped decisively.
A massive BANG!
She fell from the height, crashing hard onto Nathaniel’s windshield!
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Chapter 9
Blood spread across a large section of the window as screams of horror erupted around them.
“Oh my God! Someone jumped! She’s dead!”
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