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Elena was known for her strength-until the day her world collapsed. Haunted by betrayal and the loss of her younger sister, she shuts everyone out, building walls no one can climb... until Kai walks into her life. A quiet man with sad eyes and a mysterious past, Kai isn't looking to save anyone-because he's the one who needs saving too. As they begin to open up piece by piece, the pain of the past starts to bloom into something fragile... and beautiful. But healing isn't easy-and love isn't always enough. Together, they must face the darkness, confront their demons, and decide if two broken hearts can really make something whole.
Chapter 1 The Quiet After the Storm
Elena hated mornings.
Not because they were loud or bright, but because they reminded her of everything she'd lost. Every sunrise was a new day, a new chance, and yet... her heart still lived in the shadows of what used to be.
The cold breeze from the ocean slipped through the cracked window of her small beachside apartment, brushing against her bare arms. She stood there, coffee untouched in her hands, staring out at the grey-blue waves. Waves that had once brought her peace. Now, they only echoed silence.
She hadn't painted in eight months. Not since the accident.
Her fingers twitched as if they remembered the feel of the brush. But her soul? It was still too broken to create beauty.
"Time to forget," she whispered to no one.
She wrapped her cardigan tighter and turned away from the sea.
Kai didn't believe in second chances.
Not anymore.
He arrived in the coastal town of Merlow Bay with only a duffel bag, a motorcycle, and a scar beneath his collarbone no one ever saw. It was easier that way. People didn't ask questions when you didn't offer answers.
He wasn't running.
He'd already run. Now he was hiding.
He pulled up to the old mechanic shop at the edge of the town, the one with peeling red paint and a sign that read "Dave's Garage" in faded white letters. Dave was a friend of a friend-a man who didn't care about Kai's past as long as he could fix engines.
"Name's Kai," he said gruffly, pushing through the door.
Dave looked up from behind the counter. "Don't care. Can you handle transmissions?"
Kai nodded. "Yeah."
"Then you start tomorrow."
That night, as the town dipped into a sleepy hush, two broken souls sat alone-just a few streets apart-completely unaware that fate had already drawn the lines that would cross their paths.
Elena flipped through an old sketchbook she swore she'd burn. Her fingers lingered over a page where she'd drawn her sister's face. So full of light. So gone.
Kai sat in the shadows of his rented room, listening to the low hum of his motorcycle cooling down. He pressed his palm to his chest, right above the scar.
They both longed for quiet.
They both feared what would come if they ever let anyone in again.
And yet...
Somewhere in the thick silence of Merlow Bay, something stirred. Something like healing. Something like hope.
To be continued...
👀 Want Chapter 2 next?
Or should we make Chapter 1 a bit longer and add their first accidental meeting?
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