Chapter 6

Kayla stayed in the hospital for several days. To keep Beatrice from worrying, she lied and said she was spending time at a friend's house. Beatrice didn't question it. With Kayla set to leave the country soon, it made sense for her to spend time catching up with friends one last time. That afternoon, Kayla went to handle her discharge paperwork. As she stepped into the main lobby, a commotion broke out behind her. "Move! Get out of the way!" She turned around and froze. Darren came bursting through the hospital doors, carrying Winona in his arms. She was covered in blood. He looked frantic, yelling for the hospital director to come save her. It was the first time Kayla had ever seen Darren like that—so desperate. Darren was always composed. No matter the crisis, he handled everything with cold, quiet control. But now, his white dress shirt was soaked in blood, his hair a disheveled mess. The usual composure that marked him as the poised scion of the Tate family was completely gone. As if pulled by something beyond reason, Kayla followed them. Outside the operating room, Darren's closest friends were trying to console him. "Darren, stop blaming yourself. This wasn't your fault." "Yeah, Winona insisted you take her to that mountain highway to watch the sunset. That road's practically a death trap." "You shielded her during the crash and still got injured yourself. You did everything you could." Despite the flurry of voices around him, Darren said nothing. His eyes remained locked on the operating room door. Then a doctor burst out in a rush. "Her liver's ruptured. We need an immediate transplant." Darren shot to his feet. "I'm a match. Use mine." "No way! You're the heir to the Tate family. Your parents would never agree to this." His friends rushed to block him. "Exactly. Look, we get that you love Winona. But in the end, she's just one girl. Your life's worth too much. First loves don't usually last. Don't throw it all away—" "I'm not marrying anyone else," Darren said sharply. His voice was low, unwavering. "It's here or no one." He pushed past them all and followed the doctors into the operating room. From around the corner, Kayla stood silently and watched it all. She was reminded of a rainy afternoon when they were kids—how Darren had waited outside for three hours just to help an injured stray cat. Even back then, she had known he was the kind of person who would love someone deeply, without hesitation. Now, all that devotion belonged to Winona. He truly loved her so much that he was willing to sacrifice his health, abandon his responsibilities to the Tate family, and give up everything for Winona. Just like he had chosen Winona that night, leaving Kayla bleeding on the floor without a second glance. She whispered to herself, "Darren, I hope you find your happiness." That single sentence had been her final farewell—a quiet, resolute end to a decade of unspoken love. From that moment on, Darren's joy or sorrow would have nothing to do with her. Afterward, Kayla kept herself busy with preparations for her upcoming departure. She filed for a leave of absence from school, packed her luggage, and handled all the miscellaneous paperwork and arrangements. Now and then, while scrolling through her phone, Winona's Instagram posts would pop up. Photos of Darren lying pale in a hospital bed after donating part of his liver. A video of him gently feeding Winona chicken soup. Another clip showed him brushing her hair with the utmost tenderness. Kayla barely blinked as she scrolled past, feeling nothing at all. Three days before she was set to leave the country, she returned to campus to finalize the last of her paperwork. The moment she opened the front door of the Tate residence, deafening music blared from inside. The living room was a mess. Winona and her friends had turned the place upside down. Red wine was spilled across the white rug, snack wrappers were scattered on the floor, and Darren's cherished model aircraft were carelessly tossed into a corner. "What are you doing?" Kayla switched off the speakers, her voice trembling. Winona spun around with a wine glass in hand, her smile indulgent and smug. "Isn't it obvious? It's a party. "Darren's busy today, so I thought I'd celebrate. He said I could use the house. Got a problem with that?" Kayla froze. Darren had always been obsessive about cleanliness. He never allowed noise in the house, let alone anyone touching his models or books. But everything in front of her now made one thing painfully clear—he was willing to toss all of that aside for Winona. She stood there for a long moment. Then she bent down, carefully picking up the broken pieces of a model plane. She gently wiped the dust from the wings before placing them back into their display case. She said softly, "This one was his favorite. Please just be careful with it when you're playing around." She turned to leave, but Winona suddenly grabbed her arm. "What's that supposed to mean? Are you his girlfriend? Or am I? Are you telling me how to act now?" Kayla didn't want to argue. She opened her mouth to respond, but at that moment, the butler, Dominic Woolridge, came rushing in, out of breath. "Ms. Wolfe!" Dominic was sweating through his uniform. "It's scorching outside. Beatrice's already waded into the pond more than ten times and picked nearly nine hundred water lilies. Please let her come inside. She's going to get heatstroke!" Kayla's head snapped up. "What water lilies?" Winona tilted her head with an innocent smile. She swirled the wine in her glass. "We were craving lily seed pods, so I asked your mom to fetch some. She's the housekeeper, isn't she? Picking a few flowers shouldn't be too much to ask." Kayla felt a chill run down her spine. In that unbearable heat, her mother had waded into the pond over ten times, picking nearly nine hundred water lilies. She bolted out like a madwoman, and when she reached the edge of the pond, the sight she saw shattered something deep inside her.