Chapter 169: Flight to Forgiveness

Chapter 169: Flight to Forgiveness

Leo

I drove back to Langose Hospital in silence. When I reached it, I stepped into Kayden’s room.

The atmosphere was completely different from the tension I’d left behind earlier.

My mother and Gabriella were surprisingly in the room laughing warmly with Kayden, who was holding Starlight.

The sound of their laughter filled the space and I decided to pretend as if everything was fine with me.

I forced a small, polite smile onto my face and slipped back into my usual self.

"You three are making far too much noise here," I said dryly. "The other patients might develop elevated cortisol levels from all this excitement."

Everyone turned toward me. Before they could respond, I continued, "I’ve just checked Kayden’s latest vitals. His inflammatory markers are down, pain levels are manageable, and his mobility is improving faster than expected. He’s cleared for discharge."

The room erupted in excited shouts and cheers.

Kayden’s face lit up, and both my mother and Gabriella clapped happily.

Gabriella’s face beamed as she spoke. "Wonderful! Since we are in Langose City, we’ll have dinner at my home tonight. I’ll call the maids right now and have them prepare a proper meal. We should all eat together before you boys head back to Oak City."

I nodded once, keeping my expression neutral. "That sounds fine. I’ll see you at dinner. I need to round up a few things first."

It wasn’t entirely a lie, but it wasn’t the full truth either.

"See you around," I muttered as I turned and left. Once I was in my office, I closed the door and dropped into the chair.

My phone sat on the desk like a dead weight. I kept checking it every few minutes — refreshing messages, checking missed calls, opening Instagram. Nothing. No reply. No read receipt.

It was just silence.

Later that evening, the five of us gathered for dinner at Gabriella’s beautiful home in Langose City. The table was elegantly set, the food smelled incredible, but I barely tasted any of it.

Conversation flowed easily around the table — light, warm, full of relief about Kayden’s recovery — until my mother glanced around with a warm smile.

"I have forgotten to ask but where’s Miller? I haven’t seen him all day." She looked around as if expecting Miller to appear through the door. "I thought he’d join us."

Kayden opened his mouth to answer but only managed a stutter. "He... uh..."

I set my fork down calmly. "He left earlier. He went back to Oak City."

The table went quiet for a beat.

I felt everyone’s eyes on me, the unspoken questions hanging in the air.

The knot in my chest tightened painfully and I couldn’t take it anymore.

"Excuse me," I said quietly, pushing my chair back.

I stood up and left the table without waiting for a response, my footsteps echoing softly as I walked away from the dining room.

I couldn’t stay inside any longer.

I stepped out onto the balcony of Gabriella’s home and started pacing.

The cool night air did nothing to calm the storm in my chest.

I heaved a deep sigh, running my hand over my buzz cut again and again.

The door behind me slid open and my mother stepped out and stood quietly beside me for a moment, looking up at the sky.

"The moon is unusually bright tonight," she said lightly. "Almost like it’s trying to outshine your mood."

I didn’t answer. I just kept pacing.

She sighed softly. "Leo... what happened? You and Miller looked like things were finally working out between you two. What the hell happened? Why is he not here?"

I stopped pacing and rubbed my hand over my face as another sigh left me.

"I said a lot of bad things to him," I admitted. "And I know I’m selfish. He found out I’m an enigma... but not because I told him. He overheard it. I wasn’t supposed to feel guilty about it, but I do." My voice cracked.

I sniffled, trying to hold it together. "I thought it wouldn’t hurt this much... but it does. He won’t pick up my calls. He keeps ignoring me and... I don’t know what to do."

The tears I’d been fighting finally broke free.

I burst into quiet sobs, shoulders shaking. I had never cried for anyone before but in this case, I did.

My mother immediately pulled me into her arms without hesitation.

I buried my face against her shoulder and cried harder than I had in years.

"Let it out, sweetheart," she whispered, rubbing slow circles on my back. "This is the first time I’ve seen you like this in a very long time. You must really like the boy."

"You have no idea, Mum," I choked out between tears, my voice muffled against her. "You have no idea."

She held me until my breathing started to even out, then gently pulled back, cupping my face with both hands so I had to look at her.

"Leo, listen to me," she said, her voice soft but strong. "Love like this doesn’t come around often, especially for someone who’s spent most of his life building walls and keeping people at a distance. You’ve always been so careful, so guarded... but that boy managed to get past all of that. That means something real."

She brushed a tear from my cheek with her thumb.

"You can’t keep hiding parts of yourself from the person you love. It will only create more distance. Yes, being an enigma is complicated. Yes, it’s scary and it’s why I had to protect you all these years but real love requires courage. It requires trust. You have to give him the chance to choose you — all of you — instead of assuming the worst," she paused, caressing my cheek gently.

"Open up to him. Tell him everything. Your fears, your past, why you hid it. Let him see the real you, not just the doctor who uses big medical terms to avoid feeling things."

My mother smiled gently, her eyes full of warmth.

"You are worthy of being loved exactly as you are. And from what I’ve seen... that boy looks at you like you hung the moon and the stars. He’s madly in love with you, Leo. Don’t throw that away because you’re scared. Fight for it. Be brave enough to be vulnerable. That’s how real relationships are built — not on secrets, but on choosing each other every single day, even when it’s hard."

I was about to argue that he still wasn’t picking up my calls when something clicked in my head.

My eyes suddenly widened, the brightest spark of hope lighting up inside me.

Without another word, I turned around and ran back inside the house. I came back out a minute later, phone in hand, already booking a flight.

"Mum, I will need you to drop me at the airport. Please."

"Leo, it’s late—"

"I have to see him," I cut in, my voice shaking. "I can’t wait until tomorrow."

Gabriella, who had stepped out behind her and heard everything, pulled out her phone without hesitation. "I’ll speak to my brother. We can use the private jet. It’ll be faster."

"Thank you, Gabriella."

She nodded and excused herself to make the call and when she returned, she was smiling, which meant good news.

Gabriella ended the call and turned to us with a satisfied smile. "My brother said yes. The crew is luckily available tonight, so the private jet will be ready. Rhoda and I will drive you to the airport."

I felt a small wave of relief wash over me. "Thank you."

Before I could say anything else, Rhys spoke up, his arm still loosely around Kayden’s waist. "I hope you and Miller resolve whatever is going on with you two."

Kayden nodded quickly, smiling. "Good luck, Leo."

A small, genuine smile tugged at my lips despite everything. "Thank you. Both of you."

Gabriella clapped her hands together once, already in full organization mode. "Perfect! Get ready. We leave in one hour."

"Thank you, Gabriella."

"Anything for my son," she responded, smiling.

My mother gave me one last warm squeeze on the shoulder before heading inside with Gabriella.

"We’ll be waiting downstairs."

I stood there for a second longer, staring out at the bright moon my mother had joked about earlier.

My heart was still racing, but for the first time since the argument, I felt like I was doing something right.

One hour.

In one hour, I’d be on my way to Oak City.

To Miller.