“No?”

Eric confirmed, his tone steady.

“We’re not that close. She probably wouldn’t want us getting involved.” He looked away.

“Come on, Marshall and the others are waiting for us.”

“Alright, if you say so,” Megan said with a smile, clearly pleased that Eric was brushing off Hadley’s situation.

At the entrance, their driver had already brought the car around. They climbed into the car, and as it pulled away, Hadley rushed past, phone pressed to her ear, saying, “Where are you? Okay, stay put! I’m coming!”

Eric kept his gaze forward, catching only a fleeting glimpse of her from the corner of his eye. A whirlwind of thoughts flooded his mind. What was wrong with her? Who was she running after? Would she be okay? Her recklessness always worried him.

Suddenly, he snapped out of it. Eric’s hands clenched tightly. Why was he even thinking about Hadley? This wasn’t his concern. He had no right to care.

He pushed the thoughts away, determined not to dwell on Hadley or anything tied to her.

At the next intersection, Hadley found Brady, who stood amid the bustling crowd, looking utterly broken.

“Brady,” she said gently, approaching with care.

“Come home with me, okay?”

Brady turned, forcing a weak smile but avoiding her question.

“I couldn’t catch up… I couldn’t catch up with her. Colleen’s gone. She left!”

Hadley’s breath hitched, tears brimming in her eyes.

“Brady…”

Words failed her; nothing she could say felt adequate to ease his pain.

Brady hung his head, looking lost, like a child.

“Hadley, I screwed up. I messed up again.”

Instead of offering grand advice, Hadley simply took his arm.

“Come home with me,” she said softly, her eyes glistening.

“It won’t feel better right away. It’s going to hurt, maybe for a very long time…”

But no matter how much it hurt, she knew life would go on. Even after loss, they had to keep moving forward.

“But it will pass. Everything does.”

Later, back on Jewel Avenue, after her shower, Hadley’s phone rang just before bed. It was Quentin.

“Hello, Quentin,” she said, already suspecting the reason for his late call.

“Is Ernest back?”

“Yeah,” Quentin replied.

“Was it Elissa?” Hadley asked, her voice tinged with hope, her pulse quickening.

“No.”

Hadley wasn’t too shocked, but disappointment still settled in.

“Oh…” After a pause, she asked, “How’s Ernest doing?”

“Not good,” Quentin said candidly.

“He has never been in great shape since the accident, just holding it together. We’re heading back now, just wanted to let you know.”

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