Neveah Aurora North:

The room is silent. Nothing makes a fucking sound and it's driving me insane. I wish it would rain right now. At least that way I wouldn't have to sit in total silence.

'Neveah?' I wait for Celine to enter my room. She has been checking up on me since last night. I glance over at Leya who looks up at me. She's laying with her head on my leg and waits for me to respond.

Both of them are so comforting, but it's not enough.

I feel fucking empty.

'Come in.' Leya whispers oh so softly, but because of the silence, Celine is able to hear her. She slowly enters the room and smiles at me. It's a genuine smile, filled with empathy.

'How are you holding up?' The question I absolutely hate more than anything else in the world. That and the person who made them fucking crash.

The tears that I've been holding in for the past two hours, finally escape and I break. I cry and can't handle the fucking pain. They're gone. Tiago's gone...

'Neveah, they're going to be fine...' Leya repeats, just like she has been doing since last night. 'You don't-'

I'm unable to speak. It just hurts too much.

This pain is unbearable. It's worse than my family's death.

'There's no news yet, but that does not mean that they didn't make it.' Celine rushes over to me and takes a seat on my right, wrapping her arms around me just like Leya does.

'You heard the crash yourself!' I cry, trying to compose myself because none of this is their fault. 'There is a tiny chance that they would survive that and-'

They don't know what to say and neither do I. We don't have enough information to work with and I think that says enough.

'But there's still a chance, you can't-' 'Please...' I beg, wanting Celine to stop talking about it. It hurts too much to even think about it.

Cataleya and Celine stare at each other for a second, before turning back to me. I hate the way they look at me.

'Get out.' Celine wants to say something, but Leya shakes her head, making her swallow the thing she wanted to say. They head to the door and just as they're about to leave, Celine turns towards me. 'Take the pills, it might help.'

I let out a little laugh. Tiago might be dead and she wants me to take a goddamn pill?

As soon as the door closes, I break down again. Tears stream down my face, leaving a stinging feeling as they roll down my cheeks. It feels like my tears are made out of pure acid, burning through my skin as they drop onto the sheets.

I take a deep breath, trying to calm myself down just enough to evaluate the moment.

I regret sending them away. Now I'm all alone again, in silence. At least with them around I had something to look at. Now I have to look at nothing. At the emptiness that's trying to swallow me.

The pillow beside me seems like a good place to scream right now. And I do. I scream at the top of my lungs, letting all the pain and anger flow out of me as much as I can. But it's not enough. I'm angry at myself.

It's not their fault and I lashed out. Whose fault is it?

The first person coming to mind is him. Tiago himself.

I blame him.

I blame him for making me like him again. I blame him for making me want him again. I blame him for everything I'm feeling right now. Because it's all his fault.

Him and Rio. The devil himself... If it was just Rio who died, I would be perfectly fine. I would be fucking thrilled. But no. Both of them are dead...

No... Celine and Cataleya are right. We don't have enough information. Just because they haven't responded in- How long is it? Twelve hours... Does not mean they're dead.

I take a shaky breath and sit up straight for a second. My heart feels like it's about to be ripped out of my chest if I move or say anything.

My body is playing a weird game with me. It's trying to make me feel shit that I don't need. Pain that I don't want. It's unendurable. It's too much...

I look at the little table on the side of my bed and stare at the bottle of pills. She said it might help... All I know is that the pills made me an emotional wreck last time I took them, but if she says it might help, maybe it will?

I swallow the pills and take another deep breath before wiping my cheeks. I'm done crying.

We don't know if they're dead... And I just hope that Celine's right. They're just trying to get out of there as fast as possible. That's the only reason they didn't call or text us yet. They need to escape.

A soft knock makes me look at the door. I just hope it's Leya, I need her around to stop crying.

'Come in.' My voice is dry and soft, nearly inaudible.

But the door opens. To my surprise, it's not Cataleya, nor Celine. It's Manuela.

'Hello, Neveah. How are you doing?' Her sweet voice has a softening effect on the pain, but the way she looks at me just makes me want to cry again. Her eyes are filled with pity, I hate it...

The tears that were just on the verge of escaping, escape. They flow out of my eyes, burning my skin again as I crawl back against the headboard of the bed. 'Oh Piccola!' She rushes over to me and wraps her arms around me, hugging me oh so tightly.

I try calming down again. The last thing I need right now is more pity. They're going to be fine. They're not- They're not dead.

'The Curzio masters will be alright.' She whispers as she gently caresses my back. It's soothing, but not enough. Nothing seems to be enough.

Manuela holds me for more than thirty minutes as I cry out on her shoulder. The fact that I'm still able to cry, scares me. I've been crying ever since the phone call, which means I've been crying for over twelve hours.

'It's okay, they'll be back soon. Trust me.' I just hope you're right... It takes me a few minutes to compose myself again, but Manuela's hug helps a lot more than I thought it would. 'You should come with me, I'm going to the village again.' She whispers.

'I don't know if-' 'It wasn't a request. Come on.' She stands up and waits for me to follow her, but I stay put. 'Manuela, I'm really not in the mood and-'

Manuela, the old woman who seems harmless, pulls me out of bed and smiles as I drop to the ground. 'You need to get some fresh air. Let's go.'

The sudden change is making me smile, which is making her smile as well. She helps me off the ground and hugs me one more time, before pulling me out through the door.

'You're definitely magical!' Leya shouts as she wraps her arm around mine, pulling me with her. Manuela simply smiles and proceeds to walk through the house, until we get outside.

I am so not wearing the right clothing for the weather. The sun is bright and hot, shining on us just like it did yesterday. And here I am, wearing an oversized hoodie and trousers.

'Can I at least change into something else?' They stare at each other before turning back to me. 'No.'

I snort before continuing to walk. Being outside the house is helping so far. I feel fine. Well, I feel better than I felt inside. It feels like I'm able to breathe without my lungs tearing apart.

'See, I told you! The outside would do you good!' Manuela chimes as she pulls me a little closer. 'She can be so stubborn sometimes!' Leya complains as if I'm not walking right beside her.

'I'm right here you know.' 'That's the point.' I stop walking and stare at the both of them, completely in shock. They're teaming up against me.

They continue walking for a few seconds and turn back to me, smiling. Their smiles are so infectious that I instantly smile back. 'There's that smile again!'

I walk over to them and shove Leya away, before pulling her back so I can wrap my arm around hers.

She knew I was going to like going back to the village again. It's the most delightful place I've ever been to. It has so much culture and antiquity, I could stay here my whole life.

'Why did we need to come here again?' I ask as we enter the little community filled with people. 'Just to get out of the house.'

There are people everywhere, pressed up against each other but enjoying every second of it. The smell of freshly baked bread fills the air and suddenly I'm hungry.

'We should get some food!' Leya chimes. She obviously noticed my reaction and wants me to finally eat something.

Normally I eat, no matter how sad I get. The last time I broke down like this, I locked myself in my room and ate all the shit I had. But this time, I didn't.

Not just because I didn't have anything in my room, but because I wasn't hungry. I didn't see the point in eating, which sounds dramatic, I know, but I just didn't see the point.

I still don't, but the smell of food is too irresistible.

'Sure, why not.' Manuela smiles and pulls the both of us towards the little bakery just beside the square filled with market stalls.

'Wait here, I'll grab something for you two to eat.' She enters the store, making us wait less than five minutes before she comes out again. 'Here you go.'

She hands the both of us a little paper bag, with something that looks absolutely delightful inside. 'Taste it.'

I look at Leya who simply waits for me to take the first bite, like always, before looking at the little bun in my hands. It's still warm and smells amazing, making my mouth water a little.

I take a bite, enjoying every second of it. It's absolutely delicious, as expected.

'And?' 'It's amazing!' I exclaim, covering my mouth as I speak.

Manuela smiles and waits for Leya to try it. She also enjoys it and when I'm done eating, I want to buy another one.

'You can have another one after we get back from church.' Manuela smiles, making me raise an eyebrow at her. 'Church?'

'She wanted us to come with.' Leya explains before throwing the paper bag in a bin. They both start heading to the church. 'I'm not-' 'You don't have to come inside, but you're not staying here. Come one!'

I roll my eyes and follow them towards the church. They simply stare at me for a few seconds, waiting for me to change my mind about going inside. But there's no way I'm going inside.

Why should I?

I have nothing to do there. Sure, I could pray, but why? It won't do shit. At least not for me.

I've tried that. All the religious stuff. It didn't work last time, so why would it work now?

I get why people turn to God though, I really do. It's just not an option for me. It might help them, but it didn't help me.

Now you must be thinking: Oh wow, she's absolutely rude about all religions!

No. No, I'm not. I accept that people believe in God and I do believe that there is someone behind all of this. I just don't think they'll listen to what I have to say. They didn't listen before and I don't see the point in putting time and effort into something that doesn't help me at all.

I walk around the little square in front of the church, staring at the little fountain with crystal clear water.

Just yesterday we were running past it to get to the church.

Just yesterday, when everything was fine. When I didn't cry my eyes out because of the idiot that I tried to get away from for the past six years.

Damn, a lot changed in the past twenty-four hours. Less than that actually.

I take a deep breath, trying not to break down in the middle of this place. It's the last thing I want to do right now.

The calming sound of the water dripping into the pool beneath does wonders. It really helps.

People softly murmur around me, but it doesn't matter. As long as they don't come and talk to me, I should be fine.

After another fifteen minutes of standing beside the fountain, Leya and Manuela walk out of the church. They seem happier than when they went in, meaning it worked for them.

'Did it work?' I ask playfully. Leya rolls her eyes and shoves me away, almost making me drop into the fountain. 'Let's just hope it did.' Manuela sighs, wrapping her arm around mine again.

'You still want another Lagana?' Manuela asks as we walk back to the little bakery nearby. 'A what?'

'The bread from earlier?' She smiles at my confusion and waits for me to answer. 'No, but they were delicious. I'm getting kind of tired.'

'Did you just admit that you're tired!?' Leya asks, totally in shock. I nod and lean on her a bit more, making her laugh since were both about to fall if I don't stop.

'Let's get you home then!' Manuela exclaims before walking back to the house. We get there after about thirty minutes since we're all kind of tired.

As soon as we reach the ground and move past the big gates, I notice a new car that wasn't there before. 'Is that-'

I'm unable to hear Leya finish her sentence as I run through the front door and into the hall. 'We're back!' I shout at the top of my lungs, hoping to see either Rio or Tiago.

I need to know it's them. I need to know if they're alive.

'Celine!' I hear muffled talking from down the hall and run towards it, not giving a single fuck about my tiredness just a few seconds ago. I just need to know if it's them.

At the end of the hall, near Kai's room, they stand. Tall, dark, tattoos, hazel eyes, and his fucking beard that grew way more than I thought it would.

Rio's wearing a simple black shirt, revealing the bandages around his arms, and some black pants.

'Where is he?' His lips curl up into a smirk as he turns to Celine. 'Neveah? Why are you out of breath?' 'Where the fuck is he?' I ask again, waiting for them to answer my question.

'Good to see you too, North. We need to talk.' Rio states, his voice clear of doubt. He's not going to answer my question. 'Answer me!' I sneer, but he simply continues smiling like an absolute maniac.

'You're going to walk into the dining room, take a seat, and wait for me to join you.' He demands, still smiling as if this is nothing to him.

My heart starts pounding again, almost dropping out of my chest again. 'North don't make me repeat myself-' 'At least tell me if he's alive!'

His eyes shoot to mine and I stare at him, almost dropping to the ground. If I need to beg, I will.

This feeling, it's too much. It's consuming me. I should've known that something like this would happen. That I would fall for Tiago again and love him with all I have. At least that's what I'm ready to do. Was ready to do.

I can't do that anymore. It's too painful.

'If he was dead, you would've known. Trust me.' He states, waiting for me to walk to the dining room, just like he demanded.

My heart finally stops pounding as I take in his words. He's not dead...

I slowly turn around and head to the dining room. As I walk past the entrance, I see Manuela and Leya walking through the door. They stare at me with wide eyes and look at the person behind me.

'I'm back.' Manuela instantly smiles and rushes over to Rio, wrapping her tiny arms around his waist. He smiles as she almost squeezes him to death, and glares at me and Leya.

Without actually saying it, he's forcing us to walk into the room.

I grab Leya's arm and pull her after me, before taking a seat in one of the chairs.

It takes a few minutes until Rio and Celine enter the room. Celine takes a seat right across from me and sighs deeply. She doesn't dare look at me, making me wonder what's going on.

'Is Tiago alright?' 'As I said, if he wouldn't be, you would've known.' Rio repeats, making me groan out of annoyance.

Doesn't he understand how this fucking feels?! Of course, he doesn't. He's incapable of feeling anything for anyone.

'Now tell me why you untied Davis?' He asks me directly. I look at Celine, but she's not the one who told him. 'How did you-' 'Does not matter, why did you let him roam around the house?' He asks again, more determined this time.

'He's not going to harm us.' I repeat, just like I did yesterday.

I don't have any other reason, besides that it was sad seeing him tied up to a chair all day. He said he wasn't going to hurt me and we started talking, so I let him go. I knew there was a chance he was going to kill me, but then I would simply squeeze his knee or something.

Rio chuckles before slamming his fist against the table separating us. 'Listen up, North.' His eyes move to mine again, devouring me in the worst way possible.

'I don't know if you remember, but that fucker shot you.' He sneers at me, making me flinch because of his hard tone.

'I know but-' He reaches into his back pocket, pulling out his gun, before placing it on the table. 'If you have such a big death wish, just go ahead and kill yourself.'

I stare at the gun for a second, trying to see if I heard him correctly.

'You asshole!' Leya sneers, sliding the gun back to him. She rushes over to me but keeps her eyes on Rio.

'What?! She's the one who set that idiot free!' He growls at her, making her roll her eyes out of annoyance.

'Where is Tiago?' I ask, making all of them look at me. 'He's alive.' Rio answers, making me look into his eyes.

Something is wrong and I know it.

'That's not what I asked. Where the fuck is he?' I ask again, standing up so I can walk over to him. He smirks, enjoying the show I'm giving him as I walk over to him. 'He's angry, so I made him do some shit. He performs best when he's angry.'

'Oh god, what did you do?' Celine asks, turning to her friend as if this is the fiftieth time they're fighting. 'Trust me, he's not angry at me.' He chimes, slowly walking over to the head of the table.

His eyes shoot to Leya, who's not looking at him anymore. 'Who is he angry with?' I ask, making him look back at me again.

'You would love to know, wouldn't you?' He asks, making me look away for a second. His eyes are too scary for me to look at for too long. 'Just tell me-'

'At you of course.' What? I can't help but gasp for air a little at his answer. 'What did I do?'

Rio smirks and almost can't contain himself from laughing. 'I guess he'll tell you when he gets back.' He smirks before leaning back in his chair. 'You should get some sleep, you look exhausted.'

As much as I want to shout at him, scold him for talking to me like that, he's right. I'm absolutely exhausted. And now that I know Tiago is alive, somewhere, I can finally go and sleep a little.

I walk to the door, leaving Celine and Leya speechless, but making Rio sigh deeply. He's not liking the fact that I'm giving up already, but I'm just too exhausted.

Just as I'm about to turn to my room, Celine pulls me back. She smiles at me and opens the door before I can even reach it. 'Take the pills okay?'

I nod and wait for her to leave before I take those stupid pills again. They did help a little before we left, so maybe they'll help again?

The moment my head hits the pillow, I'm out. Off to dreamland.

When I wake up, I notice that it's dark outside. I didn't close the curtains and the moon is shining bright.

'You're finally up.' I almost jump up at the sound of a deep voice in my room but regain my composure when I recognize it. It's him. Tiago...

'Ciao Cara-' My body reacts before my mind can. I jump out of bed and wrap my arms around him, taking in every inch of his body. He chuckles and walks over to my bed, gently laying me back down.

He wants me to let go, but I can't. I won't.

'Neveah... You should rest a bit more...' I groan and slowly let go of him, laying back down on the soft pillows. 'Stay with me.'

I look at him, scan his body if you might say. He doesn't have a scratch, besides the fact that he has a small bruise on his right cheek.

He stays a little away from the bed, making me wait for him to climb next to me so we can lay in each other's arms.

'Tiago?' His shoulders go up and down a few times before he turns back to me. Tears stream down his face. What's going on?

He walks back to the edge of my bed and takes a seat, making me crawl over to him. 'What's wrong?'

'Do you still want to leave Cara?' He asks as tears streak down his face.

My hands are shaking as I cup his face. 'I care about you Tiago.' I whisper gently as I try to wipe away his tears. He leans away and takes a shaky breath.

'I care about you so much it hurts.' I continue as he turns away from me. 'It's breaking me. It's tearing me apart. I thought-'

I choke, not knowing what to say. Well, I know what to say, I just don't want to say it. It hurts too much.

'I thought I was going to lose you.' I admit as tears roll down my cheeks. 'I was terrified and I can't-'

He turns back to me. The silence is killing not just me, but him as well.

'Every time I look at you my body aches.' I say my voice breaking mid-sentence. 'I thought I could do it.'

My sobs now cutting through me like daggers.

'I really thought I could care about you without fearing this... But it hurts too much.'

He walks back to the bed and wipes away his tears. It's no use. I already saw and I know this is breaking him just as much as it breaks me. Maybe even worse.

'Do you still want to leave Cara?' He asks again, his voice breaking as he whispers.

Pain rushes through my body. It's like someone is dragging a dagger through my chest, just to rip out my heart.

My heart... I feel like my heart is breaking, shattering all over the place, as I watch the splinters turn into fire, until there's nothing left but ashes.

I look into his eyes which are now red and puffy. I gaze at his beautiful face trying to memorize every inch of him.

How his eyebrows arch slightly as he awaits my answer, or how he bites his lower lip out of frustration, all of it.

And how his chin has a little dent in the middle, the cutest thing ever. I wish I could put my thumb upon it one more time, but he's too far away.

I suck in my breath, trying to steady my voice as the next words leave my lips before I could take them back. 'Yes.'

He nods, closing his eyes for a second.

'Even after everything?' I nod and wait for him to look at me again.

I need him to see that this is hurting me more than anything in the entire world. 'I can't Tiago.'

Finally, he opens his eyes. But he doesn't look me in the eyes. He can't.

'Something is going on between us and you know it.' He states, not looking at me whatsoever.

He steps closer to the bed and takes another shaky breath, making me flinch a little. It sounds like his lungs are giving in.

In to the pain, my words caused him.

'Tiago can we please not do this right now?' I want to kiss him but he leans back and shakes his head at me.

'What?' He simply shakes his head again and walks over to the other side of the room.

'You can't do that.' What? He slowly turns away from me and takes another deep breath. 'What's going on?'

'About a month ago you kissed someone else and now you want to kiss me?'

Where the fuck is this coming from?

'You slept with someone, yet you have the audacity to talk about one stupid kiss?' I ask, feeling the anger inside me grow again.

I feel more emotional than usual, which might be because of the pills Celine gave me. But it might also be because of my confession.

I really thought I could love him again. I thought I could love him without the fear hanging around. The fear of me turning into something I don't want to be.

'Why do you care?' He hisses, turning back to me and staring deep into my eyes.

I hate this. I hate all of this. I hate that he's on the other side of the room. I hate that he's blaming this on me. I hate that he needs me to say it again, which will only hurt him more in the end.

'What?' He nods and steps towards me, stopping right in front of me. 'You know why I care, but why do you?'

My mouth opens but nothing comes out. I can't bring myself to say it again. I can't bring myself to hurt him even more.

'You keep saying you want to leave.' He mumbles softly.

Tiago's in pain. Not physical pain, but mental. He's broken, drained even.

'Why are you doing this?' I cry, fighting the tears that are trying to escape my eyes again. 'Please Tiago, I-'

He reaches out for my face, gently holding onto me for dear life. 'Tell me why you care Neveah...'

I shake my head as fear fills my body. I thought everything was fine. I thought that everything was going to uncomplicate itself in the end, but it seems to only get worse.

'I told you I loved you, I told you I need you to stay with me... Yet you want to go.'

I regret telling him everything. I regret telling him I want to leave because right now, I'm doubting again. It's all because of him.

'Tell me what the next step is and don't just take it.' I want to break, right here and now.

'Please don't-' 'You don't have the right to be mad about me sleeping with Monica if you won't tell me how you feel.' His words hurt more than anything ever.

He knows I have a hard time admitting my feelings, even though I just did, yet he wants me to say it again. He wants to hear the words but I can't say them because he'll break again.

'Tell me Neveah.' I take a shaky breath, trying to compose myself instead of breaking into tears. 'Get out.'

His eyes shoot to mine but he doesn't move. 'What-'

'Get the fuck out Tiago.'

He steps back, lowering his hand from my face, and stares at the ceiling for a second.

'Neveah I-' 'Tiago, please!' I beg, wanting him to get the fuck out so I can go to sleep. I'm tired from all of this and I just want to sleep forever.

'Get out, please.' He sighs deeply and turns to the door.

Tiago mumbles something under his breath before walking out the door.

As soon as the door closes, as soon as I hear the click of the door, I break. Tears start streaming down my face and I curse at Celine for giving me those goddamn pills.