Chapter 167 BE OKAY

Chapter 167 BE OKAY
KARIMA

The second I shut the door behind me, I leaned against it. I should've felt lighter. I'd finally let go of four years of anger. I'd forgiven him. So why… Why did it feel like I'd only traded one burden for another?

The tears refused to stop. No matter how many times I wiped them away, more kept falling.

"It's fine," I whispered to myself. "It's fine."

But the words felt empty. A dull ache started pounding behind my eyes until I pressed both hands against my temples and rested the back of my head against the door.

After forcing myself to take one deep breath, I pushed away and walked into the bathroom. I peeled off my clothes and stepped beneath the shower. Cold water poured over my skin.

I stared at my reflection in the mirror across from me. For only a second. Then I looked away. The woman staring back at me looked exhausted. Broken. I couldn't bear to look at her any longer.

My fingers reached for the faucet, turning the water warm. Steam slowly filled the room, wrapping around me. But nothing… Nothing eased the heaviness crushing my chest.

When I finally turned off the shower, I wrapped a towel around myself and stepped back into my bedroom. I wanted to think about nothing. To feel nothing. But the moment I looked up… Gabriella was standing in the middle of my room. Waiting for me.

"Are you okay?" she asked quietly.

Without looking at her, I answered. "Yeah."

I walked over to the wardrobe and pulled out the first dress my hand landed on. The moment I closed the wardrobe door and turned around, Gabs was already standing there.

I met her eyes for only a second before looking away. "What is it?" I walked past her toward the bed.

"Is that really it?" she asked.

I stopped. "What?"

She turned to face me. "Don't do that. You know exactly what I'm talking about."

"I don't want to talk about it."

"Why?" Her question came quicker this time. "If it really doesn't affect you the way you're pretending it doesn't... why are you avoiding it?"

I let out a frustrated sigh and stopped trying to fasten my bra. "What's your problem, Gabs?"

"My problem?" She folded her arms. "You said it yourself. It isn't my problem. And I don't want to interfere either." She paused before continuing more softly. "But I think the only person you're hurting right now... is yourself."

I frowned.

"What are you talking about?"

She took another step toward me. "I don't know Owain. I only know what you've told me. But from what I just saw..." She shook her head slowly. "He wasn't fighting to take you away from Isaiah."

I stared at her. "He never asked you to choose him."

Silence settled between us. "He only wanted to know one thing."

My chest tightened.

"Whether a part of you still loved him."

I looked away. Gabs waited before asking quietly, "Why do you think he needed that answer so badly, Karry?”

My chest tightened than the last but I held back everything in me to listen to her.

I opened my mouth, still… Nothing came out.

Gabs held my gaze for another second before speaking again.

"Because he wasn't asking you to leave Isaiah. He wasn't asking you to take him back.” Her voice softened. "He just wanted to know if the woman he spent four years loving... still existed."

My own face softened.

"He needed to know whether he'd truly lost you... or whether the only thing standing between you was a lie. Karry… If you'd looked at him the way you looked at Isaiah… He would've walked away."

I blinked.

"He would've left knowing you were genuinely happy." Then her voice softened even more. "But instead…That man walked away believing the woman he loves still loves him... and still chose someone else."

She swallowed. "Can you imagine how much that must've hurt?”

I still couldn't say a word. Nothing came.

"Anyway," Gabs sighed, "I'm going to pick Juls up from school. And please... try to eat something. You're already looking too thin."

She didn't wait for an answer. The door clicked shut behind her. The silence hit me instantly. My knees gave out, and I sank onto the edge of the bed.

Everything came rushing back. Owain's tears. The way he knelt before me. The apology. The way he'd kissed my hand.

"Tell me that part of you that loves me is gone." Those words rang in my head.

I shut my eyes. My chest tightened painfully. Right then… There was nothing left to deny. My heart had been calling for him all along.

So what was I trying to prove? Why had I pushed him away? I couldn't answer either question. Before I even realized what I was doing, I was already reaching for my phone.

I hurried to my dressing table and grabbed it with trembling fingers and searched for Mr. Marco.

I hit call. It rang but no answer. I called again. Still nothing. I tried his official line. Still nothing.

My breathing grew uneven. I threw the phone onto the bed just long enough to pull on the cloth I'd brought out earlier.

Then… Something flashed through my mind. His face. It looked pale. My hand had slammed the door earlier… He'd grabbed his side. Wait… His stitches.

My heart lurched. What if he'd collapsed? What if he never made it home?

The thought hit so hard it stole the air from my lungs. I snatched my car keys from the dresser and ran. I barely remembered opening the bedroom door.

One thought echoed over and over inside my head. Please be okay… Please…