"Leo!"
My voice echoed down the hallway long after Leo disappeared.
I stood frozen outside the conference room, my chest heaving. My fingers clutched through my phone tightly, my heart pounding harder than it ever had. What just happened—those wild, terrified eyes, the way he shouted, recoiled, and ran—it was like Leo had vanished and left someone else in his place.
People were whispering behind me. I didn't care.
My hands trembled as I pulled out my phone and dialed his number.
Once.
No answer.
I bit my lip hard. Again.
Twice.
Straight to voicemail.
my knees weakened. "Come on… Leo, please," she whispered shakily, blinking back the tears blurring my vision.
A third time.
my thumb hovered.
Call.
I paced near the window, gripping the edge of the wall for support. The lights outside blurred as I blinked away the tears. My voice cracked in my throat.
"Pick up… please pick up…"
Click.
The call connected.
For a moment, neither of them spoke.
Then I heard it—his shallow breathing. Quiet. Guilt-ridden. Alive.
My knees nearly gave out.
"L-Leo…?" I whispered, voice shaking. "W-Where are you?"
A pause, just breathing.
"I'm fine," he muttered, hoarse.
"No, you're not!" I cried and my voice rising despite the knot in my throat. "You ran off—you looked like… like you were hurting and—God, Leo, I didn't know what to do!"
Tears spilled down my cheeks as I tried to stay upright, clinging to the window frame.
"I've been calling you over and over. I thought—what if something happened to you? What if—"
My voice cracked as I let out a choked sob.
"I'm coming to you. Just tell me where you are, please…"
Another silence. Then:
"Dr. Elistair's house."
I didn't wait and wiped my tears roughly with my sleeve, grabbed my bag with shaking hands, and bolted for the elevator.
The rain had started.
Of course it had.
I stood outside the tall, wrought-iron gate of Dr. Elistair's private property, my coat already soaked through, my hair clinging to my cheeks as tears and rain blended into one. I rang the doorbell twice, heart thudding with each second of silence.
I was about to try again when the gate buzzed and clicked open.
I didn't wait. I pushed through, running up the cobbled path, shoes slipping slightly as I approached the front door. Dr. Elistair—an older man with silver hair and sharp eyes—stood waiting, his expression grim but knowing.
"You're here for Leo," he said softly.
I nodded, out of breath. "Please… where is he?"
He stepped aside. "Library. Down the hall. I've… I've seen this before. He'll listen to you more than me."
I swallowed hard and entered, the warmth of the house wrapping around my chilled skin, but doing little to ease the tightness in my chest.
I found him sitting on the floor of the library, back against the shelves, knees drawn up, his hands covering his face. His jacket was tossed aside, his shirt half-unbuttoned like he had been struggling to breathe. The warm light from a nearby lamp flickered across his figure, casting long, haunted shadows.
"Leo…" my voice cracked.
He flinched.
I stepped closer, slowly, kneeling in front of him. My hands trembled as I reached for him.
"Hey… it's me," I whispered, barely able to speak past the lump in my throat. "I'm here now. I—I was so scared. You looked like you were in so much pain and I didn't know how to help. I should've done something—I should've stopped you…"
"Don't," he whispered hoarsely, lowering his hands just enough for me to see the torment in his eyes. "Don't blame yourself."
"Then don't push me away," I begged. "Let me stay. Let me be here—for you."
He looked at me then, really looked—eyes red-rimmed, glassy. He was silent for a long moment.
Then, finally, like something inside him cracked open, Leo whispered, "I thought I could bury it. I thought if I worked hard enough… kept moving… it would all just go away."
He laughed bitterly, but it sounded like a sob.
"But it's still here. Every night. Every time a camera flashes… when the lights flicker. I'm back there again. And today—I thought I was okay, but I wasn't. I broke again."
My tears fell freely now as I reached for his hand. He didn't pull away.
"You're allowed to break," I said softly. "You're human, Leo. And you don't have to go through this alone anymore."
He leaned forward then, resting his forehead against mine, his breath shaky.
"I don't want to be alone," he murmured.
"You're not," I whispered back, gripping his hand tighter. "Not anymore."
I stayed like that in silence—just two broken souls in a quiet room, the storm still raging outside, but something inside beginning to settle.
The rain had stopped sometime before dawn.
Soft golden light spilled through the sheer curtains of the guestroom, brushing across the bed where Leo lay still. His breathing was slow and even, his features finally at peace after a night that had nearly torn him apart.
I sat beside him, curled up in the armchair, a blanket draped over my legs. I hadn't slept much—only closed my eyes for minutes at a time. Every time Leo shifted or let out a quiet sound, my heart would jolt and glance at him, afraid he might wake up in that same panicked state from yesterday.
But he hadn't.
Not yet.
Dr. Elistair had gently brought me some tea earlier, telling me in his calm, professor-like tone that Leo would need rest more than anything. "He's never truly let himself fall apart. Not until now," he'd said. "But having someone there to catch him when he does… that makes all the difference."
I sipped the last of the lukewarm tea and quietly set the cup down, then stood to check on Leo. I sat on the edge of the bed, brushing a stray lock of hair from his forehead.
His eyes fluttered open slowly.
"Mel…?" His voice was raspier than usual, low and uncertain.
"I'm here," she said instantly, leaning closer. "I didn't leave."
Leo blinked a few times, as if trying to register my presence. He reached out hesitantly, fingers grazing my wrist.
"You stayed all night?"
I nodded, my smile soft and full of worry. "Of course I did. I wasn't going to leave you like that."
A long pause.
Then Leo let out a quiet sigh, like the breath had been sitting in his lungs for far too long.
"Thank you," he whispered. "I… I'm sorry for scaring you."
"You did scare me," I admitted, my voice trembling again, though I smiled through it. "But I'm more scared of you going through that alone."
He didn't say anything. Instead, he gently tugged my hand and interlaced their fingers under the blanket.
The silence between us was warm now, not heavy.
"I don't remember much after I left the meeting," he murmured. "Just… flashes. Noise. My chest hurt. Then I was here."
"You didn't want to be touched," I said as my thumb lightly brushing his. "You looked like you couldn't breathe."
"I couldn't," Leo admitted quietly. "For a moment, I thought I was back in that alley. With the flashes. The screaming. The things they said..."
I felt his grip tighten just a bit.
"But then I heard your voice. On the phone. You were crying."
"I couldn't help it," I whispered. "I—I thought I was going to lose you."
Leo looked at me then—truly looked—and for the first time since everything happened, there was something gentler in his expression.
"You didn't," he said. "You found me. Again."
A silence settled between us again.
Then, quietly, I leaned down and kissed his forehead.
"We'll get through this," as I said. "Together."
Leo nodded, his eyes closing again—but this time, not out of fear or exhaustion. This time, it was peace.
And in the stillness of that morning, something between them began to quietly, slowly mend.