Chapter 56 THE HOSPITAL
Alex
They didn’t go at 3 AM. But at 9 AM, Elias was getting dressed.
“I’m going with you,” Alex said.
“You don’t have to.”
“Yes, I do. We’re in this together. Remember?”
The drive to the hospital was silent. Elias’s hands gripped the steering wheel so tight his knuckles went white. Alex kept his hand on Elias’s thigh. Grounding him.
Katie met them in the lobby. She looked exhausted. Dark circles under her eyes. Coffee cup shaking in her hands.
“Thank you for coming,” she said.
“How is he?” Elias asked.
“Physically? Stable. Mentally? I don’t know. He keeps saying he needs to see you. That he has to make things right.”
“What room?”
“412. But Elias? Be careful. I don’t trust him. Even like this.”
They took the elevator up. The hospital smelled like antiseptic and old coffee. Lights are buzzing overhead. Everything is too bright and sterile.
Outside room 412, Alex stopped. “Are you sure about this?”
“No. But I have to do it anyway.”
Elias knocked. A weak voice from inside. “Come in.”
Carter looked terrible. Pale. Thin. IV in his arm. A hospital gown hangs off his shoulders. Nothing like the confident person from the photos Elias had shown Alex months ago.
“Elias,” Carter said. His voice is cracking. “You came.”
“You said you’d try again if I didn’t.”
“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that. I was scared.”
“Of what?”
“Of you hating me. Of dying alone knowing I destroyed the only good thing I ever had.”
Elias’s jaw tightened. “You destroyed it yourself. Two years ago. When you left.”
“I know. I was wrong. About everything. About you being too much. About not being able to handle loving you.” Carter’s eyes shifted to Alex. “Is this him? Alex?”
“Yeah,” Alex said. His voice was cold.
“You’re younger than I thought.”
“And you’re exactly what I expected.”
Carter looked back at Elias. “I’m sorry. For the harassment. For Ashley. For trying to break you guys up. I was jealous. Seeing you happy with someone else made me realize what I’d lost.”
“So you tried to destroy it?”
“I wanted you to hurt the way I was hurting. I wanted you to know what it felt like to lose everything.”
“Mission accomplished. We almost broke up a dozen times because of you.”
“But you didn’t. You stayed together. You fought for each other. That’s what I couldn’t do. Fight for us.”
Elias was quiet. His hands were in his pockets. His face was carefully blank.
“Why did you really call us here?” Alex asked.
Carter’s eyes welled up. “To tell you I’m done and really done. I’m checking into treatment after this. Long-term. Six months minimum. My therapist thinks I have attachment disorder. That I never learned how to let go of people.”
“We could have told you that,” Alex muttered.
“I deserve that. I deserve all of it.” Carter looked at Elias. “I need you to know it wasn’t your fault. None of it. Not the breakup. Not the harassment. Not this.” He gestured to the hospital room. “I was broken before I met you. You just made me feel whole for a while. When that ended, I didn’t know how to exist anymore.”
“That’s not love,” Elias said quietly. “That’s dependence.”
“I know. I’m learning that now. Too late. But I’m learning.”
“Good. I hope treatment helps.”
“Can I ask you something?”
“What?”
“Are you happy? Really happy?”
Elias looked at Alex. Something passed between them. Understanding. Love.
“Yes,” Elias said. “I’m really happy.”
“Good. That’s good.” Carter wiped his eyes. “I’m glad one of us figured it out.”
“Carter.” Elias’s voice was softer now. “I hope you get better. I hope you find someone who makes you happy. But that person isn’t me. It never will be again.”
“I know.”
“And if you ever contact us again, for any reason, I’ll file charges. No more chances. No more forgiveness. We’re done. Permanently.”
“I understand.”
They stood there in uncomfortable silence. The machines are beeping. The hospital sounds are filtering through the closed door.
“I should go,” Elias said.
“Wait. One more thing.” Carter pulled out a folded paper from his bedside table. “I wrote you a letter. An actual apology. Not manipulation. Just the truth. You don’t have to read it. But I wanted you to have it.”
Elias took the letter. Didn’t open it. “Goodbye, Carter.”
“Goodbye.”
In the hallway, Elias leaned against the wall. His whole body was shaking.
“You okay?” Alex asked.
“I don’t know. That was harder than I expected.”
“He looked pathetic.”
“He looked broken.”
“Do you feel bad for him?”
“A little. But mostly I feel relieved. That I’m not him. That I didn’t let losing someone destroy me like that.”
They found Katie in the waiting room. “How was it?”
“Sad. But necessary.” Elias showed her the letter. “He gave me this.”
“Are you going to read it?”
“Eventually. Not now.”
They walked to the parking garage. The September sun was too bright after the dim hospital. Alex squinted against the light.
In the car, Elias set the letter on the dashboard. Stared at it.
“Do you want me to read it first?” Alex asked. “Screen it for anything manipulative?”
“Would you?”
“Yeah.”
Alex unfolded the letter. Read it silently. His expression shifted from anger to something softer. Sadder.
“Well?” Elias asked.
“It’s genuine. No manipulation. Just apologies and explanations. And a lot of regret.”
“Does he ask for anything?”
“No. He wants you to know he’s sorry. That he understands why you left. That he hopes you’re happy.”
Elias took the letter back. Read it himself.
Dear Elias,
I’m writing this from a hospital bed because I destroyed everything. Including myself. You were right to leave. Right to move on. Right to find someone better.
I told myself I left because you were too much. But the truth is I wasn’t enough. I couldn’t handle loving someone who needed me. I was too selfish. Too broken.
Watching you be happy with Alex showed me what I should have been. Patient. Kind. Fighting for us instead of running. He’s a better person than I ever was.
I’m sorry for everything I did. The messages. The lies. Ashley. All of it. You deserved better. You always did.
I hope you build a beautiful life together. I hope you never doubt his love the way you doubted mine. I hope you find everything I couldn’t give you.
I’m getting help. Real help. Not for you. For me. So I never hurt anyone like this again.
Goodbye, Elias. Be happy.
Carter
Elias folded the letter. Put it in the glove box. “Okay. That’s done.”
“How do you feel?”
“Lighter. Like I can finally breathe without waiting for the other shoe to drop.”
They drove home in silence. But it was comfortable. Easy. The weight of months is finally lifting.
At home, Elias threw away the journal Carter had sent. Deleted every blocked number from his phone. Cleared out everything connected to the harassment.
“Fresh start?” Alex asked.
“Fresh start.”
That night they celebrated being free. Made dinner together. Laughed. Kissed. Felt normal for the first time in months.
In bed, Alex said, “Do you think he’ll really get better?”
“I hope so. Not for us. For him. Nobody should be that broken.”
“Do you still love him? Even a little?”
“No. I love who he could have been. But not who he is.”
“Good answer.”
They fell asleep peacefully. No messages. No threats. Just quiet.
But in the morning, Alex woke to find Elias already up. At his laptop. Staring at the screen.
“What’s wrong?” Alex asked.
Elias turned the laptop around. Showed him an email.
From the university. Subject: Academic Integrity Investigation.
Mr. Reed,
We’ve received allegations that you engaged in an inappropriate relationship with a student while employed as a teaching assistant. We need to schedule a meeting to discuss these concerns.
Please respond within 48 hours.
“Who would send that now?” Alex asked. “Carter’s in the hospital. Ashley’s gone.”
“I don’t know. But someone’s still trying to destroy us.“