38.

I just didn't expect that when I left the clinic, where they had practically forgotten me, I would return different and find within myself the strength I needed not only to break the chains that bound me but also to try to put an end to that whole circus. Crouched on the floor, I try to take a deep breath, failing in the attempt. In addition to the pain I was already feeling, I now also had to deal with tremors throughout my body and the endless cold that had arrived to keep me company. Even breathing was pure torture.

I had already reached the peak of my limit. I had completely lost track of time; I knew that the days continued to pass normally, but I no longer knew how many days had passed since Klaus had locked me in there.

I had finally reached an internal impasse. I didn't know if I hated him or loved him, maybe even both. My body suddenly jerks forward as a wave of nausea threatens to come out, and before I can even drag myself to the bathroom, I vomit. However, I feel that something is wrong because I can't even keep my head up, which quickly makes me conclude that the vomit is choking me. Despite wanting to turn on my side, my body doesn't obey; nothing seems to work in my body, and I can only think that I'm going to die.

I didn't realize when the door opened, let alone the quick steps and the hands that lifted my body, tilting me forward and finally massaging my back. My head tilts to the side, breathing through my mouth, with a mental confusion in my head.

"Hailey," Klaus says seriously, laying me in his lap, pushing strands of sweaty hair away from my face. "Hailey, can you hear me?"

I look at him, unable to concentrate on his voice, let alone his eyes that are watching me closely.

"It hurts so much, Klaus," I whisper.

"I know," he replies with a hint of regret in his voice, his eyes scanning my entire body before returning to hold my gaze. "But it's for you to get better."

"I'm not okay now," I close my eyes, swallowing hard when a wave of pain washes over me. Klaus suddenly gets up, carrying me in his arms. Initially, I thought it was to take me out of the room, but it only took a few steps to realize that we were inside the bathroom because he turned on the shower and then sat with me between his legs.

The contact of the water against my body makes me gasp, even with my eyes closed, grateful that the water is cold and that it makes the pain stop, even though I know it's only for a short time. I tilt my head back, tears mixing with the water. Klaus's arms remain around me, keeping me close to his warm body. I lean against his body, resting my head against his chest, allowing the water to calm me slowly, just as he expected it to. For a moment, I forget that we are at an impasse, torn between hating each other or not.

This was the first time in a few days that I lay down on the bed; it felt strange. It seemed like it had been a long time since I had done that, just lying down, being still. Klaus was at the foot of the bed, staring at me; I knew that even with my back turned to him. At least twice a day, we sat in silence on the bathroom floor while the water fell on us. It was like a form of therapy in itself. Sometimes, I would spend hours that way, completely oblivious to the cold in my body and my wrinkled fingers. I felt good that way, and I believe that Klaus noticed it too.

But without any explanation, the "baths" began to decrease and soon became quick showers, where Klaus made sure to soap me and wash my hair. It was as if he didn't want me to find a new addiction.

Klaus exhales slowly, moving slightly.

"You're not alone, Hailey," he says, breaking the room's silence. "It may seem like you're going through hell alone, but you're not." His voice tried to convey what he was feeling, which surprised me because we weren't used to talking. "Things got out of control, I know," I hear him smile briefly, as if he were laughing at something amusing he thought of. "The worst part is that I only realized all the shit that's around my neck just now when I saw that I was going to lose you, this time forever." I clench my fists tightly when something stirs inside me. "I didn't know you were pregnant; I wouldn't have pushed you down the stairs if I knew; I would have made you suffer before that."

In the end, we were both broken inside. I didn't realize when Klaus left the room; I only realized that something was happening when I heard the car engine revving abruptly, pulling me out of my mind's emptiness. Sitting on the bed, I look for him at the foot of the bed but don't find him. The engine continued to roar fiercely, as if he were pouring all his anger into it. Getting out of bed, I approach the window that happens to have a view of part of the property, in this case, the side garage.

Pressing my face against the glass, I notice that the car being accelerated is Klaus's car, and he's inside it. For a fraction of a second, he makes eye contact with me, and the only thing I can feel is that something is very wrong at that moment. Before I could figure out what it was, the car speeds out of the garage, and less than ten seconds later, I hear something crashing into the water.

"The pool," I conclude quickly, approaching the door, only to

find it closed. My eyes wander around the room as I begin to think about how to get out of there, eventually finding a risky method. With some difficulty, I lift the medium-sized piece of furniture on both sides of the bed when I'm in front of the window, using all my strength to throw it in that direction. The glass shatters into several pieces, some larger and some smaller falling near my feet.

I feel the remaining glass on the window cut me as I pass through it, looking down at the ground just below, glad I've never been afraid of heights. There wasn't more than three meters of height, but it was still three meters of height. But what were those meters of height compared to Christian drowning in his car?

When I realize it, the side of my body hits the ground with force. I gasp, rolling to the side, drawing in air through my mouth with force, struggling to lift my body. Ignoring the pain in my body, I stumble over my own feet, becoming increasingly amazed as I approach the pool and see the car almost at the bottom. I fill my lungs with air, holding my breath as I dive, moving my arms forcefully around me, propelling myself downwards.

I try to open the door when I come across Klaus, unconscious, with his hands taped to the steering wheel. How had he managed to do that? I think, shaking my head from side to side as I realize that, in addition to that, he had tied his waist to the seat with a rope.

I hold his face in my hands, giving gentle taps, hoping he would open his eyes. He doesn't, which worries me even more. My lungs force me to return to the surface, followed by diving again, now focusing on untying him from the seat, which proves to be more difficult.

My lungs start to burn after a few seconds, while my hands work on the knot he had made. Another trip to the surface, I manage to undo the knot and then remove all that tape from his wrists. I needed more strength to get a man of approximately 220 pounds out of a car and swim with him out of the water. At the surface, I rest his head on my shoulder, using only one of my arms to reach the edge of the pool and pull him out, which completely drained all my energy.

Lying next to him, trying to catch my breath, I realize that he's still not completely safe. Kneeling beside him, I start massaging his chest as I've seen a thousand times, alternating with forcing air into his lungs.

"You said I wasn't alone!" I growl between clenched teeth, putting more force into his chest. "You said."

For some time now, I had stopped believing in promises. Klaus had to make me a promise and then simply commit suicide! This wasn't the first time I had saved his life, and I needed to believe that it wouldn't be the last.

I put a little more force on his chest, feeling that the massage was no longer working properly due to the fatigue that was setting in. I didn't want to give up, I couldn't.

"Klaus," I call as if he could hear me. "Don't die," I beg, not stopping what I was doing. "I'm here." At some point, tears began to blur my vision, and slowly, I realized that all my effort was in vain and that he might already be dead. I started crying when I stopped gradually, looking at his peaceful expression.

"I... I had no doubt that I wouldn't recover anymore," I whisper. "You promised!" I shout, hitting his chest hard with anger taking over me. "You lied to me!" I pounded his chest with all my strength, hoping that wherever he was on that line between life and death, he could feel all my anger. I wanted him to know that I was disappointed in him and that I still had hope that we would rebuild, and that he had screwed everything up once by putting it in his mind that it was best to take his own life.