Page 94 of The Scout

Because what was the point?

How was I supposed to exist in a world without Ryker? Without Will?

The ocean called to me, its waves rolling in slow and steady, the tide reaching for me like an open hand. I understood now, in a way I never had before, how someone could walk into the water and never turn back. How they could let the sea cradle them, let the weight of it pull them under, let it fill their lungs until there was no more pain.

It would be so easy.

One step.

Then another.

Then nothing.

The idea slithered through my mind, deceptively soft, whispering promises of peace.

Maybe this was it.

Maybe this was what people meant when they said their life flashed before their eyes.

Because suddenly, I was eight years old again, sitting in the back seat of my dad’s old Chevy, my feet barely reaching the floor as Will sat beside me, grinning like he had a secret. Dad had taken us out for ice cream, even though we hadn’t finished dinner, his laughter rumbling through the truck like music as he reached over to ruffle Will’s hair, then mine.

"Sometimes, the rules don’t matter, kiddo," Dad had said, handing me a melting cone of vanilla with rainbow sprinkles. "Sometimes, you just gotta take the good when it comes."

The memory cracked open something inside me, something raw and bleeding, because I could still feel the stickiness of the ice cream on my fingers, could still hear Will complaining that mine had more sprinkles than his. I could still see Dad’s smile in the rearview mirror, warm and safe, his eyes crinkled at the edges.

But Dad was gone.

And now Will was, too.

And Ryker.

A sob tore from my throat, my body curling deeper into the sand as more memories came rushing in, relentless and cruel.

Will teaching me how to ride a bike in the school parking lot, his hands steady on the seat, his voice encouraging even when I fell.

Will sneaking me into a PG-13 movie when I was ten, bribing the cashier with an extra five bucks and a cocky grin.

Will hugging me so tight the day Dad died, whispering,I’ve got you, Izzy. It’s just us now. I’ve got you.

And then Ryker.

Ryker pressing his forehead to mine in the dark, whispering things he’d never say in the light.

Ryker holding me like I was the only thing in the world that mattered.

Ryker telling me he’d burn the world for me.

God, was this it? Was I meant to die here, with them? Was this how my story ended?

Alone, broken, staring into the abyss of what could have been?

I wasn’t supposed to be alone.

I was supposed to have Will beside me, laughing at some stupid joke. I was supposed to have Ryker gripping my waist, dragging me against him like he couldn’t stand the space between us.

I was supposed to have a future.

A wedding.

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