"Beatrice, please don't be angry with me anymore," Keith begged, his voice shaking. "God has punished me enough. Find it in your heart to forgive me." But Beatrice's expression only hardened. "I'll never forgive you," she spat, her eyes blazing. "You deserve to suffer. Just leave me alone." With that, she stood up, grabbed her bag, and turned to walk away. Keith sat there, helpless, as he watched her leave. Tears streamed down his face, and he couldn't stop them. "I deserve this," he thought, his heart heavy with regret. "I ruined what we had. I left Beatrice for Amanda without even saying sorry. I'm so cruel. I deserve to suffer." The hot tears rolled down his cheeks as he buried his face in his hands.
Jared couldn't shake off thoughts of Beatrice. He felt guilty for how he had treated her, especially after learning she was in therapy. He confided in his sister, Rachael. "I feel awful," he admitted. "I made Beatrice doubt her own sanity. And now, she's in therapy. I regret telling her she needed help." Rachael offered words of comfort. "Don't blame yourself, Jared. Beatrice needed to heal, and it's good she's seeking help. We were tough on her, but I'm sure she'll forgive us. I've been feeling guilty too - I was hard on her last time we spoke, and I haven't checked in on her since.
"That night, Jared tossed and turned in bed, his mind racing with thoughts of Beatrice. Every time her face popped into his head, he felt a pang of guilt. He couldn't shake off the feeling that he'd made a huge mistake. 'I didn't break up with her when she lost her temper and smashed my phone,' he thought, his brow furrowed in confusion. 'I didn't even leave her when she made those scary threats. So why did I push her away now?' Jared felt like he was losing his mind. He couldn't understand why he'd broken up with Beatrice. 'What have I done?' he agonized, his voice barely above a whisper. 'I feel like I've failed her. How can I make things right again?' The questions swirled in his head, keeping him awake and restless.
"How could I let Beatrice cry herself to sleep for three long weeks? How could I rest knowing she was hurting? I knew she had fears and worries, but I reassured her with my love. I worked hard to win her heart, making promises and sending messages to prove my devotion. I even involved her closest friend and my sister to show my commitment. We made plans for a future together, including building a life and getting married. I vowed to stay by her side and never hurt her. But I broke every single promise. I failed to keep my word, and now I'm consumed by regret," Jared thought, overcome with emotion, tears streaming down his face.
As Beatrice lay in bed, her thoughts swirled around Jared. The sudden ring of her phone broke the silence. She hesitated for a moment before answering, her eyes widening as she saw Rachael's name on the screen. "Hello, Beatrice," Rachael's bright voice came through. Beatrice's reply was soft and subdued, "Hi, babe..."
"Hey, girl, what's wrong? Your voice sounds so down. I hope you're not mad at me," Rachael said gently. "I'm really sorry for not being there when you needed me most. I'm sorry for judging you and not giving you a chance to explain. Please forgive me, Beatrice. And please, forgive Jared too. He's truly sorry for how things ended between you two. He just broke your heart out of the blue, and I know that hurt you so much." Rachael's words were soft and sincere.
"I'm not mad at you or your brother, Rachael," Beatrice said, her voice trembling. "Actually, I'm the one who's sorry. I took out all my anger and hurt from Keith on Jared, and that wasn't fair. I'm sorry for everything. I couldn't keep my promises, I doubted him constantly, and I was always afraid of losing him. He deserves to be happy and at peace. The best thing I can do for him now is to leave him alone. I'm not the right person for him - I'm too complicated. He deserves someone better, someone who can love him without all the drama. It's better this way, Rachael. We were better off as friends," Beatrice said, tears streaming down her face.
"Please, Beatrice, don't say that," Rachael begged, her voice filled with emotion. "Nobody's perfect, not even my brother. He's made mistakes, and so have you. But that doesn't mean you should give up on each other. You mean the world to him, and he loves you deeply. He was just hurt and angry, and that's why he reacted the way he did. Please, my friend, don't let one mistake tear you apart. You two have something special, something worth fighting for."
A week slowly went by, and Beatrice deliberately stayed away from the therapy center, desperate to avoid another painful encounter with Keith. But when her therapist called to check in, Beatrice was forced to come up with an excuse. 'I've just been really busy with work,' she said, trying to sound convincing. 'But I'll definitely come back to therapy soon.' She hoped her therapist wouldn't see through her lie, and that she could avoid the truth - that she was still hurting from her run-in with Keith.
Meanwhile, Keith became a constant presence at the therapy center, holding onto the hope that he'd catch another glimpse of Beatrice. But as the days turned into a week, and Beatrice remained nowhere to be found, Keith's despair deepened. He began to contemplate drastic, harmful measures to end his own miserable existence. One fateful evening, Keith stormed out of the therapy center, his anger and frustration boiling over. Earlier that day, he'd tried calling Beatrice, but she'd slammed the phone down the moment she heard his voice. As he sped down the road, his mind reeled with confusion and regret. Memories of his time with Beatrice flooded his thoughts - the laughter, the adventures, the quiet moments they'd shared. Lost in his thoughts, Keith failed to notice the danger ahead. His car careened out of control, and he was engulfed in a horrific accident. Keith's world went dark as he lay badly injured and unconscious, his future hanging precariously in the balance.
A crowd quickly gathered around the wreckage, and kind strangers rushed to Keith's aid. One of the rescuers carefully searched Keith's pockets for his phone, hoping to find a contact number for his family. As they scrolled through his recent calls, one name stood out - Beatrice. With trembling fingers, the rescuer dialed the number, unaware of the complicated history between Keith and the woman who was about to receive the shocking news.
"'Keith, stop calling me and leave me alone!' Beatrice exclaimed, frustration and anger pouring out of her. 'You promised to leave me alone after I listened to you at the therapy center last week. Why can't you keep your promises? What do you want from me? Why can't you just let me be?' But instead of Keith's voice, a stranger's voice replied, 'Ma'am, I'm sorry to tell you this, but the owner of this phone has been in an accident. We're taking him to City Hospital right now. He's badly hurt and unconscious. You're the last person he called, so I'm calling to ask you to please come to the hospital.' The line went dead, leaving Beatrice stunned and worried.