Chapter 188: One who walked away

His phone started buzzing again.

This time, he answered it as he stepped out, his voice low and distant.

The door clicked shut.

Another crushing silence followed.

Lucas stared at the space he left behind, his chest tight, his thoughts in chaos.

His father’s words echoed in one ear and Alex’s in the other. Somewhere in between remained a feeling he couldn’t explain.

“Dad,” Lucas whispered finally, not looking away from the door.

But even he didn’t know what he wanted to ask anymore.

The door had barely clicked shut behind Alex when the silence he left behind began to press in on Lucas. It was heavy and suffocating.

“Lucas,” his father’s voice softened, stepping closer to the bed as if nothing had just happened. “You have to understand, this is for the best.”

Lucas didn’t respond. His eyes were still fixed on the door. As if, if he stared long enough, it might open again ushering Alex in.

His father noticed but he ignored it and continued.

“Lucas, he was the reason you had that accident,” his father continued, gentler and more persuasive. “If not for him, none of this would have happened to you.”

Lucas swallowed hard.

The words didn’t settle. They just floated, clashing with something deep inside him that refused to agree.

“You were lucky,” his father added. “Lucky the police got to you in time. Lucky you were rescued from his crazy ex.” He shook his head. “Do you even realize what could have happened to you?”

Lucas’s fingers tightened around the bedsheet. Unclear fragments came but there was no clarity or certainty in them. Fear gripped him as he wondered what he might have gone through in the so-called ex's hand.

“Dad,” Lucas finally spoke, his voice strained, almost pleading. “I don’t even remember any of that. How am I supposed to believe it? How am I supposed to feel anything about it?”

His father exhaled, as if expecting this resistance. “You don’t need to remember everything right now,” he said calmly. “What matters is your safety and your future.”

Lucas looked at him then, eyes clouded.

“Your future is with Derby,” his father went on. “You’re engaged to her. You had plans. A peaceful life without chaos or danger.” His tone grew firmer. “Marry her, Lucas, and have peace.”

Peace? The word felt distant and unreachable.

Lucas shook his head slowly, his chest tightening. “I… I can’t just decide that. Not like this. I don’t even know what I feel anymore.”

“You don’t have to decide anything now,” his father cut in quickly. “You need rest. That’s what you need now.”

Lucas opened his mouth to protest, but the older man didn’t give him the chance.

“We’ll talk about this later,” he said, already turning toward the door. “Clear your head first.”

“Dad.”

Before he could say anything, his Dad was gone.

The door closed before him, again, leaving him helpless. And just like that, Lucas was alone.

The silence returned, and it was louder this time.

He sat there, unmoving. His thoughts were a mess. Voices overlapping, truths and lies tangled so tightly he couldn’t separate them.

“I was kidnapped. Then I had an accident. Now I'm engaged to Derby. Alex called me his baby, his sweetheart. He sounded so genuine. The worst…I liked the sound of that. But…but being put in danger because of him…Oh gosh.”

Lucas ran a hand through his bandaged head.

“Damn it, nothing fits together.

Nothing felt real.” He muttered.

He sat staring at space as his thoughts spiraled. But one thing refused to be ignored.

The look on Alex’s face when he left. That quiet, broken softness.

Lucas’s chest ached suddenly. It came sharply and unexpectedly.

His hand lifted slowly, brushing against his cheek. The same place Alex had touched. Warmth lingered there, or maybe, he just imagined it.

“Why do I feel like this?” he whispered to himself. His throat tightened. He didn’t understand why his heart felt heavy. Why did it hurt watching Alex walk away?

Why was a part of him irrationally desperate, and wanted him to come back?

“I don’t even know you…” He murmured, his voice trembling slightly. “So why does it feel like I just lost something?”

His eyes drifted back to the door.

It was still closed and silent.

Lucas drew his knees up slightly, running a shaky hand through the back of his neck.

Everything was wrong and too much, yet beneath all the confusion, beneath the fear and the pressure, there was that feeling.

It was quiet, persistent, and pulling at him.

Lucas squeezed his eyes shut, his heart pounding against his chest like it was trying to break free.

“I just want my memories back…” he whispered.

He felt devastated because as it was, his mind was empty. However, his heart was not.

The room had grown quieter with time, but not calmer.

Lucas hadn’t moved an inch from where he sat. The same thoughts looped endlessly in his head, refusing to settle and make sense.

Suddenly, his phone buzzed again. The sound made him flinch slightly. He stared at it this time and it was Derby.

For a moment, he hesitated. Then he picked up the phone staring as it buzzed. His thumb hovering, heart beating just a little faster.

Then, slowly, he swiped the answer button. “Hello?” His voice came out softer than he intended.

“Oh sweetheart,” a warm female voice flowed through the line, gentle, concerned. “Your dad told me about the accident. I’ve been so worried. Are you feeling better now?”

Lucas swallowed.

Sweetheart. The word felt… unfamiliar.

“Yeah,” he replied after a brief pause. “I’m… better.”

But even as he said it, he knew it wasn’t true. He felt like a stranger in his own life. His grip on the phone tightened slightly.

“I’ll be home soon, dear,” Derby continued, her tone affectionate, reassuring. “I took the earliest flight I could. Just focus on resting, okay? Don’t stress yourself.”

Lucas closed his eyes briefly.

Rest.

Everyone kept saying that as if rest could fix this… this emptiness, this confusion clawing at him.

“Okay,” he said quietly.

There was a small pause on the other end, like she was waiting for more, for something softer, something intimate. Well, Lucas had nothing else to give.

“Take care of yourself for me,” she added gently.

“I will.”

The line went dead.

Lucas slowly lowered the phone from his ear. Stared at the screen for a few seconds before it dimmed completely.

Silence returned, but it felt different.

He exhaled shakily, leaning back slightly against the headboard. That conversation should have comforted him. She sounded caring like everything his father said she was. Somehow, it didn't feel right. His heart didn't respond the way he expected.

Lucas’s gaze drifted unconsciously toward the door once more. That same door Alex had walked through. His chest tightened again.

“What is wrong with me?” he whispered under his breath.

He had just spoken to the woman he was supposedly going to marry.

And yet, the only thing his heart seemed to remember was the man who walked away.