Ethan’s POV
———
The ambulance tore away from the symposium hall, its red lights slicing through the dusk like a scream I couldn’t voice.
My chest heaved, my hands still slick with Aria’s blood, trembling as I stared at the empty space where she’d just been. She was gone... unconscious, broken, and it was my fault. My legs buckled beneath me, but I caught myself against the wall, the cold brick biting into my palms. Around me, the world was chaos, full of shouts, footsteps, the distant wail of sirens fading—l but all I could hear was the echo of her name in my throat, raw and ragged.
Aiden’s voice cut through the haze, sharp and venomous. “You bastard!” He stormed toward me, his fists clenched, his hazel eyes blazing with a fury I’d never seen in him before. “This is on you! You did this to her!”
I straightened, my own anger flaring hot and wild, but I forced it down, swallowing it like broken glass. “Aiden, calm down,” I said, my voice low, shaking despite my effort to keep it steady. “This isn’t the time—”
“Don’t tell me to calm down!” he roared, shoving me hard. My back hit the wall, the impact jarring my already fractured composure. “You broke her heart, and now she’s—” His voice cracked, his fists trembling as he stepped closer, inches from my face. “You don’t get to stand here and act like you care, not after what you did!”
I clenched my jaw, my hands balling into fists at my sides, but I didn’t swing. I couldn’t. He was right, I’d hurt her, pushed her away, and now she was lying somewhere, bleeding, because I couldn’t protect her. “I’m not acting,” I said, my voice thick, barely holding. “I do care, more than you’ll ever know. But fighting me won’t help her now.”
“Bullshit!” Aiden lunged again, his fist grazing my shoulder as Jiro and Arkin grabbed him, hauling him back. He thrashed against them, his face twisted with rage and pain. “Let me go! He doesn’t deserve to be near her!”
“Stop it!” Zianne’s voice sliced through the fray, sharp and desperate. She shoved herself between us, her small frame trembling but fierce, her eyes wet with tears. “Both of you, just stop! This isn’t helping Aria! She’s in an ambulance, fighting for her life, and you’re out here acting like idiots! Knock it off!”
Her words hit like a slap, cutting through the haze of adrenaline and guilt. Aiden stilled, his chest heaving, his glare still boring into me, but he didn’t fight her. I stepped back, my hands dropping to my sides, the fire in my gut doused by the raw truth in her voice. She was right. This wasn’t about me or Aiden. It was about Aria.
I turned toward the parking lot, my car keys already in my shaking hand. “I’m going to the hospital,” I said, my voice rough, barely audible. I couldn’t stay here, couldn’t stand still while she was out there, hurt. I took a step, then stopped, glancing back at her friends.
Zianne, Jiro, Arkin, Troy, and Aiden, all staring at me with a mix of anger and uncertainty. “You’re welcome to come with me. I’ve got room in my car.”
They hesitated, the air thick with distrust. Zianne’s eyes narrowed, her arms crossed tight, like she was weighing whether I deserved to breathe the same air as them. Jiro muttered something under his breath, probably a curse, while Arkin just watched me, his face unreadable. Troy shifted awkwardly, glancing at Jiro for a cue. Aiden didn’t move, his jaw locked, his glare a blade aimed straight at me.
“Come on, man,” Arkin said finally, nudging Aiden’s shoulder. “She’s our best friend. You wanna be there when she wakes up, right?”
Aiden’s eyes flickered, the fight draining out of him just enough to nod. “Fine,” he spat, his voice low and bitter. “But I’m not doing it for him.”
I didn’t argue. I didn’t care why they came, just that they did. We piled into my car, Zianne on the passenger seat, Jiro, Arkin, and Troy cramming in the back with Aiden squeezed in last, his shoulder pressed against the door like he couldn’t get far enough from me. The engine roared to life, and I peeled out of the lot, my hands gripping the wheel so tight my knuckles bleached white.
The silence was suffocating, broken only by the hum of the tires and the occasional sniffle from Zianne. I glanced at her, her face streaked with tears she wasn’t bothering to hide, her phone clutched in her lap like a lifeline. “Zianne,” I said, my voice low, urgent, “call Kai. He needs to know.”
She nodded, her fingers trembling as she swiped her screen, hitting Kai’s contact. The call rang once, twice, then his voice crackled through, warm but edged with that big-brother worry I knew too well. “Zianne? What’s up? You okay?”
Zianne put it on speaker, her breath hitching as she tried to speak. “Kai, it’s… it’s Aria. There’s been an accident.”
“What?!” Kai’s voice sharpened, panic slicing through the line. “What happened? Where is she? Is she okay?”
I leaned closer, my eyes on the road but my heart in my throat. “Kai, it’s Ethan,” I said, forcing my voice steady even as it shook. “She’s at the hospital. The symposium banner fell during cleanup... it hit her. She’s unconscious, bleeding… I got her to the ambulance as fast as I could. They’re taking her to St. Luke’s now.”
“Oh gosh,” Kai breathed, his voice cracking. “How bad is it? Ethan, tell me she’s gonna be okay!”
“I don’t know,” I admitted, the words tearing out of me like shards of glass. “She was out when they took her. There was blood… a lot of it. I’m driving there now with her friends. Just… get here, man. She needs you.”
“I’m on my way,” Kai said, his tone shifting to steel, all CEO control kicking in. “Mom and Dad too. Allie’s with me... we’ll be there in an hour. Ethan… don’t let anything happen to her, you hear me?”
“I won’t,” I promised, my voice breaking despite my effort to hold it together. “I’ll stay with her.”
The call cut off, and the car fell back into that heavy silence, the weight of it crushing me. Zianne’s quiet sobs filled the space, Jiro muttering curses under his breath, Arkin staring out the window like he could will Aria awake. Aiden didn’t say a word, but I felt his glare burning into the back of my head, a silent accusation I couldn’t escape.
We screeched into St. Luke’s parking lot, and I barely threw the car into park before we were out, sprinting for the ER doors. The sterile smell of antiseptic hit me like a wall, the chaos of nurses and patients blurring around us as I shoved my way to the desk. “Aria Grey,” I barked, my voice hoarse. “She was just brought in, where is she?”
The nurse glanced up, her face calm but firm. “She’s in trauma room right now. They’re examining her. She's still unconscious. You’ll have to wait.”
“How long?” Zianne demanded, her voice trembling but fierce, stepping up beside me.
“Hard to say,” the nurse replied, not unkindly. “They’re doing everything they can. Take a seat over there, we’ll update you when we know more.”
We shuffled to the waiting area, a grim little corner with stiff chairs and a flickering TV stuck on some infomercial. Zianne collapsed into a seat, burying her face in her hands, her shoulders shaking. Jiro paced like a caged animal, Arkin sat beside Troy, his jaw tight, while Aiden slumped against the wall, arms crossed, staring at nothing.
I couldn’t sit. Couldn’t stand still. My legs burned with the need to move, to do something, anything, but all I could do was hover, my hands flexing uselessly at my sides.
Aria’s face flashed in my mind... pale, still, blood streaking her cheek and I choked on a breath, my chest caving in. This was my fault. If I hadn’t pushed her away, if I’d fought Claire’s threat instead of caving, maybe she wouldn’t have been there, distracted, vulnerable.
The silence stretched, taut and unbearable, until Zianne’s voice broke it, small and hesitant but sharp enough to cut. “Professor Ramsey… why’d you do it?”
I turned, caught off guard, my heart lurching as I met her gaze. Her eyes were red, glistening, but there was a fire in them, a demand for answers. “Why’d you break things off with Aria? Why’d you hurt her like that?”
The question hit like a freight train, knocking the air from my lungs. Jiro stopped pacing, Arkin and Troy looked up, and even Aiden’s head snapped toward me, his glare narrowing. They were all staring, waiting, and I felt like a cornered animal, exposed and raw.
“I…” My voice faltered, my throat closing up. How could I explain without spilling everything? Claire’s blackmail, the threat to Aria’s future, my cowardice... I couldn’t tell them. Not yet. “It’s complicated,” I managed, my words lame, hollow. “I thought… I thought it was the right thing. For her.”
Zianne’s face twisted, anger flaring through her tears. “The right thing? She was a wreck, Ethan! She loved you, and you just—”
Before she could finish, the ER doors swung open, and a doctor stepped out, his scrubs rumpled, his expression calm but serious. We all froze, the air thickening as he approached.
“Family for Aria Grey?” he asked, scanning us.
“I’m her cousin,” Zianne said, jumping up, her voice trembling. “And these are her friends. Her parents are on the way, what’s happening? Is she okay?”
The doctor nodded, his tone measured but reassuring. “She’s stable. The banner hit her hard causing her concussion, some bruising, a fractured wrist, and a cut on her head that already stitched. She’s still unconscious, but her vitals are strong. We’ve moved her to a private room for observation. She’ll be fine, but it’ll take time for her to wake up.”
Relief crashed over me, so intense my knees nearly buckled, but it was laced with dread. Stable, but unconscious. Aria was lying there, hurt because I couldn’t keep her safe.
“Can we see her?” Jiro asked, his voice rough, his usual bravado gone.
The doctor nodded. “One at a time for now. Room 312.”
Once everyone sees Aria, Zianne began to face her friends. “Guys,” she said, her voice thick, “you should go back to the dorms. It’s late, and we’ve got classes tomorrow. You need rest. I’ll stay with her until her family gets here.”
“No way,” Jiro protested, crossing his arms. “I’m not leaving her—”
“Jiro,” Zianne cut in, sharp but gentle. “She’d want you to take care of yourselves. Please. I’ve got this.”
Arkin nodded, clapping Jiro’s shoulder. “She’s right, man. Let’s go. We’ll come back tomorrow.”
Aiden hesitated, his eyes flicking to me, then to the door. “Fine,” he muttered, his voice low. “But call us if anything changes.”
They trudged off, reluctant but beaten down by exhaustion, leaving me and Zianne. She turned to me, her gaze hard. “You’re staying?”
“Yeah,” I said, my voice rough, resolute. “I’m not leaving her.”
She studied me, then nodded, stepping aside. “Fine. But don’t think this means I’m okay with what you did.”
I didn’t argue. I deserved that.
———
Room 312 was dim, the only sound the soft beep of monitors and the faint hum of hospital machinery. Aria lay there, small and fragile under the white sheets, her face pale, a bandage stark against her forehead. Her wrist was in a cast, her breathing shallow but steady. Zianne went out to get some coffee, so I had the time to be alone with her. I sank into the chair beside her, my chest caving in at the sight of her... so still, so broken, because of me.
I reached for her hand, my fingers hovering over hers, trembling. She was warm, alive, and it hit me like a tidal wave, she was still here. Tears burned my eyes, spilling over before I could stop them, and I let them fall, my voice cracking as I spoke to her, low and ragged.
“Aria… I’m so sorry,” I whispered, my words tumbling out in a desperate rush. “For everything. For hurting you, for breaking us. I didn’t want to... I swear I didn’t. There’s so much I can’t tell you, stuff you’d hate me for even more if you knew. I thought… I thought I was protecting you, keeping you safe from my mess, but look at you now. I failed you, and it’s killing me.”
My hand closed around hers, gentle, like she might shatter if I gripped too hard. “I’m such a coward, Aria. I should’ve fought for you, should’ve found a way. Instead, I let you go, and now you’re here, and I… I can’t lose you. Not like this. You’re everything... everything I didn’t know I needed until you were gone. I hope… Gosh, I hope someday you can forgive me. That you’ll find someone your age, someone who isn’t a messed-up professor with too many secrets, someone who’ll love you right, fight for you like I couldn’t.”
Tears dripped onto her hand, my voice breaking into a sob. “Please wake up, Aria. Your family’s coming, they’re so worried. Kai, your mom, your dad, Allie… they need you. Your friends need you. I need you. Just… open those eyes, yell at me, slap me, anything. Please.”
I sat there, my head bowed, her hand in mine, the monitors beeping a steady rhythm that was my only lifeline to hope. Time blurred by minutes, maybe hours until the door burst open, and her family spilled in, a storm of panic and love.
Zianne, who had been standing near the bed, her arms crossed tightly as she watched over Aria, flinched at the sudden intrusion but stepped forward to meet them.
Tita Mira, Aria’s mom, rushed straight to the bedside, her face crumpling as she took in her daughter’s still form, pale and bandaged under the stark white sheets. “Oh, my baby,” she choked out, her hands hovering over Aria’s face, trembling as they avoided the stitches on her forehead.
Tito Liam, her dad, was right behind, his jaw clenched tight, eyes red with unshed tears, while Kai and Allie lingered at the threshold, Kai’s fists balled at his sides, Allie’s arms wrapped around herself as if to hold her composure together.
“Zianne,” Mira gasped, spotting her niece, her voice thick with desperation. “How is she? What happened?”
Zianne’s eyes, still red from crying, met Mira’s, and she swallowed hard before speaking, her voice shaky but firm. “She’s stable, Aunt Mira. The doctor said it’s a concussion, a fractured wrist, and a cut on her head that already stitched. She’s been out since they brought her in, but her vitals are strong. We’re just… waiting for her to wake up.”
Tits Mira let out a sob, and Tito Liam pulled her into his arms, his gruff voice cutting through the tension. “She’s a fighter. She’ll pull through.”
Zianne nodded, stepping closer to her aunt and uncle, her small frame a quiet pillar of strength amid the storm.
I stood from the chair beside Aria’s bed, wiping my tear-streaked face with my sleeve, my throat raw. Kai’s gaze snapped to me, his voice rough with urgency. “Ethan, what the hell happened?”
I met his eyes, forcing my voice steady despite the tremor in it. “The banner fell during cleanup at the symposium. It hit her hard. She was incredible up there, Kai. Her symposium presentation was flawless, she blew everyone away. Then this happened. I got her to the ambulance as fast as I could. She’s stable now, just unconscious.”
Zianne’s head turned slightly, her gaze flickering to me, a mix of gratitude and lingering resentment in her expression. She didn’t speak, but her presence beside Aria’s family felt like a silent acknowledgment of my effort and a reminder of my failures.
Allie stepped forward, her eyes sharp but glistening. “She better wake up. She’s too stubborn to let a stupid banner take her out.” Her voice cracked, betraying the bravado.
Kai clapped a hand on my shoulder, his grip tight, grounding. “Thanks for getting her here, man. Stay with us, okay?”
“Yeah,” I rasped, sinking back into the chair as Zianne moved to stand near Aria's dad, her hand brushing his arm in a quiet gesture of support. The family gathered around Aria’s bed. Tita Mir was stroking her daughter’s uninjured hand, Liam holding his wife, Kai and Allie hovering close, and Zianne anchoring them all with her steady, tearful watch.
I stayed too, an outsider in their fortress of love, my heart a wreckage of guilt and hope, watching Aria breathe, listening to the soft beep of the monitors and the murmured prayers that filled the room.
She had to wake up. And when she did, I’d be here, fierce and unyielding whether Aria forgave me or not.
Because losing her to this silence wasn’t something any of us could bear.