CHAPTER 104

CHAPTER 104
POV ISABELA

The first thing I felt was pain.

A severe pain.

Throbbing.

Pulsing inside my head as if something were pressing against my skull from within, pushing, crushing, giving me no relief.

A groan escaped my lips before I even realized it.

I tried to move.

That was one of my mistakes.

My whole body reacted.

Every muscle protested.

Heavy.

Sore.

As if I had been crushed.

As if I had been… run over.

And maybe I had.

My mind was slow.

Foggy.

My thoughts came tangled, disconnected, hard to reach.

Even breathing seemed to take effort.

I tried to open my eyes.

The light bothered me immediately.

Too white.

Too strong.

I blinked a few times, trying to focus.

And then…

I saw him.

Noah.

Sitting beside me.

Still.

As if he had been there for hours.

His eyes were tired.

Red.

Deep.

Carrying something that tightened my chest before I could even understand it.

Worry.

Fear.

Relief.

When he realized I was awake, his body reacted instantly.

He leaned toward me quickly but carefully.

As if he were afraid any sudden movement might break me.

“Isa…” his voice came out low, hoarse… filled with relief. “Can you hear me?”

I blinked again.

My throat was dry.

Scratchy.

“Noah…” I murmured, almost without sound.

Just speaking hurt.

He let out a breath, as if he had been holding it for a long time.

“How are you feeling?”

It took me a few seconds to answer.

Trying to organize my thoughts was already difficult.

“My… head…” I whispered. “It hurts… a lot…”

He brought his hand up to my face.

The touch was light.

Almost imperceptible.

But enough.

“You’re going to be okay…” he said softly. “You’re safe… you’re with me.”

I closed my eyes for a moment.

Feeling.

Absorbing.

That touch.

That voice.

That presence.

It was as if, even in the middle of chaos… he was the only point of balance.

But then…

The memories came.

All at once.

Like a violent wave.

The stadium.

The noise.

The heat.

My phone is vibrating.

The call.

Alex.

The news.

My name.

The headlines.

The photos.

Noah and I.

The hotel.

The scandal.

My heart raced.

Isis.

My daughter.

The stands.

Her face.

The tears.

The words.

My chest tightened so hard it hurt more than any physical injury.

My breathing faltered.

“No…” I murmured, feeling the panic rising. “No…”

“Isa?” Noah called immediately. “What is it?”

Tears started to fall before I could stop them.

“Everyone knows…” My voice broke. “Everyone…”

He frowned, trying to follow.

“I know…” he said carefully. “But…”

I shook my head.

“They don’t know the truth…” My breathing was uneven. “They think I cheated on Daniel with you…”

The tears were uncontrollable now.

Hot.

Painful.

“They think I destroyed my family… that I… that I’m…”

My voice failed.

The words came back.

Cruel.

Cutting.

“Slut.”

“Just another woman.”

“I’m ashamed of you.”

I shut my eyes tightly, as if I could force those words out of my mind.

But it didn’t work.

They were there.

Carved in.

And it hurt.

It hurt too much.

I started crying.

Really crying.

Unable to hold it back.

“Hey… hey…” Noah moved even closer.

Carefully.

Always carefully.

Avoiding the wires.

The machines.

As if he were learning how to touch me all over again.

He held me.

As best as he could.

Gently.

But firmly.

Present.

Safe.

“Easy…” he whispered near my ear. “I’m here…”

I clung to him as much as I could.

Even weak.

Even limited.

“I fought with Isis…” I murmured between sobs.

His body tensed.

“What happened, my beautiful?”

My breathing faltered.

“She… she said I destroyed the family… that I cheated on her father… that I should be ashamed… that I was acting like a… like a…”

I couldn’t finish.

I couldn’t say it again.

It was like swallowing glass.

The tears came harder.

Stronger.

Noah held me more carefully.

His hand was sliding slowly along my back.

Trying to calm me.

Trying to steady me.

“She was angry…” he said quietly. “Confused…”

I shook my head.

“She said she hates me…” My voice was faint, almost gone. “She said she’s ashamed to be my daughter…”

My chest broke all over again.

“She said she never wants to look at me again…”

Silence fell.

Heavy.

Suffocating.

Noah didn’t answer right away.

He just stayed there.

With me.

His hand moved up to my hair.

Sliding slowly.

Gently.

Patiently.

“She’ll regret it…” he said finally. “She’s just hurt…”

“I lost my daughter…” I murmured.

That was the only thing I could feel.

Loss.

“You didn’t lose her.”

“I did…”

“No…” he insisted, resting his forehead against mine. “You didn’t lose anyone… this will pass… the truth will come out…”

I closed my eyes.

But the fear was still there.

Strong.

Alive.

“What if it doesn’t?” I whispered. “What if she never forgives me?”

He didn’t answer right away.

But his arms tightened slightly around me.

As if that was the answer.

“I’m not going to let you go through this alone…” he said at last. “Never.”

The tears kept falling.

But even in the middle of the pain…

Even with my heart shattered…

Something inside me calmed.

A little.

Just a little.

Because he was there.

With me.

For real.

And in that moment…

That was everything I needed not to fall apart completely.