Chapter 5

What usually takes two hours, Lucas did in just under one. On the third floor of the City J Sanatorium, Sophia followed close behind him. As soon as he pushed the door open, they saw the girl sitting on the windowsill, head down, nervously fidgeting with the edge of her sleeve—a gentle, delicate presence. Eva. The girl Lucas held closest to his heart. "Lucas…" Eva blinked in disbelief and pinched her arm. When the sting felt real, tears immediately started rolling down. Then she jumped off the windowsill and ran straight into Lucas' arms. "Lucas, I really thought… I thought I'd never see you again…" "Shh, it's okay, Eva. I'm here, I'm not going anywhere," Lucas comforted her, gently patting her back—just like he used to do for Sophia, back before everything fell apart. "You promise?" Eva looked up, flashing a cheerful, hopeful smile. But when she caught sight of Sophia, her smile vanished, tension coming over her. "…But what about Sophia?" "Her? Eva, you don't need to worry about someone like that." "But—" "No buts. Just rest, alright? I'll go get the discharge papers sorted, and we'll head to the beach for dinner tonight." Lucas affectionately tousled Eva's hair before reaching out to yank Sophia's wrist, clearly ready to drag her out. "Lucas!" Eva quickly stopped him, grabbing Sophia's other hand and looking at him with those pleading eyes. "Please don't be mad... It's been so long since I last saw Sophia. Can... can she stay with me for a bit?" "Sure…" Lucas couldn't bring himself to reject Eva. But he leaned close to Sophia's ear and whispered coldly, "Don't push your luck. If anything happens to Eva again, I'll make sure you and that kid of yours both regret it." Sophia let out a soft, bitter laugh under her breath but didn't fight back. Now that Eva was awake, Lucas was probably going to walk out of her life completely. Well, so be it. Let him go. Sooner or later, the truth would come out anyway. As soon as Lucas left, Sophia took a deep breath, doing her best to keep her voice calm as she approached Eva. "Eva… do you still remember what happened before the accident?" She kept her tone soft and careful, afraid that too much emotion might overwhelm Eva all over again.Even though everything she'd suffered in the past three years had something to do with Eva, at the end of the day, it wasn't really her fault. "...What's wrong? Nervous, Sophia?" Eva let out a short, mocking laugh, her voice ringing sharp. "Remember? Oh, I remember. I couldn't forget it even if I wanted to." "Eva—what's done is done, don't—" "Don't what? Don't cry over it anymore?" Eva cut Lucas off with a snarl. "Sophia, you stole everything from me. Who are you to tell me how I should feel?" Her eyes narrowed, and her lips curled up in a twisted smirk, not with joy but something closer to rage. "You're hoping I'll tell Lucas none of it was your fault, right? That what happened to me—that night, the fall—had nothing to do with you?" "And once I clear your name, you can move on and live your happy little life?" Eva stepped toward Sophia slowly, every move laced with tension. Sophia had no choice but to step back again and again until her back hit the edge of the bed. She had nowhere left to go. "But you're dead wrong. What happened to me was your fault! That night, it was meant for you. You didn't show up, so I ended up in your place. Because of you—I was raped by three men. Do you have any idea how much it hurt? That was supposed to be my first time. I saved that for Lucas!" "Eva, you—" Sophia's face drained of color as the truth hit her like a slap. What had she done to deserve this kind of revenge from Eva? "Sure, I'm not as kind as you. I'm not some perfect little angel. But what did I really do wrong? I just wanted Lucas to hate you. That's all. Tell me, why did I end up like that, and you got the man? Even pregnant with his child!" Eva suddenly reached out, grabbing Sophia roughly by the stomach, fingers digging in. But just when it looked like she might lash out even more, she collapsed, arms around her knees, breaking down in tears. Like she was the one who'd been dealt the cruelest blow after learning the truth. Instinctively, Sophia took a step back, then turned—only to lock eyes with Lucas outside the window, fury blazing in his gaze like fire. She let out a bitter laugh, watching Eva crying on the floor like it was all some kind of sick performance. "No... that's not true, Heart, you're lying... Lucas won't think I'm dirty... he won't, he won't..." And just as expected, Lucas kicked the door open with a bang, grabbed Sophia by the collar, and shouted, "Sophia, are you trying to die?!"