Chapter 258 Who Are You
When Alexander opened his eyes again, the first thing he saw was Caroline.
She sat beside the bed, head bent over a poetry collection.
At the sound of his movement, Caroline looked up and smiled.
"You're awake?"
Alexander bolted upright and pulled her into his arms.
"What's wrong?" Caroline gasped at the sudden force. "Did you have a nightmare?"
Alexander buried his face in the curve of her neck, his breathing ragged. He drew in the elegant scent of her skin as if trying to prove she was real.
He held her so tightly she could barely breathe, but she didn't push him away. She only patted his back gently.
"I dreamed you died." Alexander's voice came muffled against her shoulder, fractured and raw. "I dreamed... that I was the one who killed you."
Caroline's hand stilled.
"I dreamed you suffered because of me for five years. I dreamed that in the end... you put a gun to your own head."
His voice cracked, and tears already soaked through the fabric at her shoulder.
"I regret it so much, Caroline. I really do... I dreamed of those days without you. I was nothing but an empty shell. I wore your clothes, slept in the living room where your casket had been. I turned myself into your ghost..."
His voice finally gave out.
"I'm so scared. I'm terrified that when I open my eyes, you'll be gone again."
Caroline laughed softly, her fingers threading through his disheveled hair, smoothing it back with slow, soothing strokes.
"How could that be?" she said gently. "I'm right here, aren't I? I haven't gone anywhere."
She leaned back so he could see her face clearly, then raised her hand and pressed her fingertip to his lips.
"If you don't believe me, touch me."
Alexander looked up, his vision swimming with tears.
He reached out, his hand shaking badly, hovering near her face for a long moment before finally making contact.
Her skin was warm.
That warmth spread from his fingertips, slowly seeping into his battered heart, pulling him back from the edge.
"You're warm." He whispered, his lips curving upward. "You're still alive."
Caroline felt both helpless and heartbroken. She pressed his hand to her cheek, nuzzling into his palm.
"Of course I am. I'm right here in your arms, not some ghost." She said softly. "Now stop crying. You're a grown man acting like a child."
Alexander nodded frantically, tears still streaming down his face, but smiling like someone who'd just been pulled from drowning.
He couldn't let go. One hand held hers, the other wrapped around her waist, his forehead pressed to her shoulder, his whole body leaning into hers.
"It was just a dream. Thank God." He murmured. "Just a dream. Thank God..."
Caroline let him cling to her, one hand patting his back, patient and comforting.
When Mark pushed open the door, he found Alexander half-sitting on the hospital bed, body tilted forward, arms wrapped around nothing, his cheek pressed against empty air. A gentle smile played on his lips as he murmured softly.
"Just a dream. Thank God... just a dream. Thank God..."
Mark's throat constricted.
He stood in the doorway for a long moment before his emotions settled enough to move. Then he walked in quietly.
Alexander heard the footsteps and looked up.
"Who are you?" He tilted his head, studying Mark carefully. "Why are you in my room? And wearing my security uniform."
Alexander glanced at the empty space beside him. "Liam, who is this?"
Mark took a deep breath, forcing down the ache rising in his chest. He stepped forward and bowed slightly.
"Sir, my name is Mark," he said. "I'm one of Liam's men. Just started working with him recently. From now on, I'll be assisting Liam in looking after you and keeping you safe."
Alexander studied him, found him steady and capable, and smiled with satisfaction.
"Good, good. If Liam picked you, that's good enough for me."
Then he turned to the empty space beside him and said warmly, "Liam, you've been working too hard. Go get some rest. I'm fine here. You don't need to watch over me constantly."
He nodded slightly, as if seeing someone off.
Then his gaze returned to the bedside, his hand reaching out as if grasping invisible fingers.
"You know what? I just had the most awful dream. I dreamed you didn't want me anymore."
He paused, listening to the silence, then shook his head gently.
"No, you can't leave me. You promised. You said you'd never leave."
After another moment of listening to a response only he could hear, he suddenly smiled.
"That's right."
Mark watched Alexander talking to empty air—anxious one moment, joyful the next, then leaning close as if listening to whispered secrets. He finally couldn't bear to watch anymore and slipped quietly from the room.
Alexander had found his Caroline. He... had no right to disturb him.
Even if she was only a phantom.
A few days later, Alexander was discharged.
Since seeing Caroline in his hallucination, he'd changed back into men's clothing. His hair was carefully groomed, neat and precise, making him look almost identical to the sharp, decisive CEO he'd once been.
From the moment he'd changed clothes, his lips had been curved in a smile. He looked less like he was being discharged and more like he was preparing for a long-awaited date.
"Why are you making me dress so formally?" He said softly to the empty air beside him. "We're just going home, not to a board meeting."
Listening to the response from the void, his smile deepened.
"Alright, alright. Whatever you say."
Though Mark had grown accustomed to seeing him talk to hallucinations lately, each time still sent a dull ache through his chest.
He smoothed his expression and stepped forward respectfully. "Sir, the car is ready."
Alexander nodded, reached back with one hand as if holding someone's, then walked out.
But the moment the car turned into the old estate, the smile on his face dimmed.
He looked up, glancing around several times, then turned to Mark.
"Mark, why aren't we going back to Ravenwood Manor?"
Mark's heart clenched.
He'd prepared his answer days ago, but now that the moment had come, his throat still tightened.