Kathrine thought her life had ended the moment the water began to fill her lungs.

It was slow at first, a creeping suffocation that stole her strength bit by bit. Her limbs had long gone numb, her body refusing to obey no matter how desperately she tried to fight. The cold wrapped around her like chains, dragging her deeper into a silence that felt endless.

She could no longer move.

She could no longer struggle.

Even her thoughts began to fade, slipping away like grains of sand between her fingers.

So this is how it ends.

The realization came with a strange calm. The panic that once clawed at her chest weakened, replaced by a hollow acceptance. Her chest burned, her vision blurred, and the world around her turned into darkness.

And just when she finally accepted it, a voice called her.

Faint.

Distant.

Yet achingly familiar.

Kathrine...

Her heart trembled.

Even in that void, she knew that voice.

Ethan.

That was the only name that echoed in her fading consciousness. The only person her soul reached for even when her body was giving up.

Was she dreaming?

Or had she already crossed into the afterlife?

The darkness shifted.

She felt something then.

A force pulling her.

Strong. Urgent. Refusing to let her sink any further.

And then warmth.

It spread around her, chasing away the cold that had consumed her moments ago. It felt real. Too real to be a dream.

"Kathrine, wake up."

Her brows furrowed faintly, her mind sluggish as the voice grew clearer. It wrapped around her, filled with a panic she had never heard before.

Ethan.

Why did he sound so afraid?

Was she dead?

Was this heaven?

If it was, why did it hurt so much?

Back in the real world, Ethan was falling apart.

His hands trembled as he held her lifeless body, his heart slamming violently against his ribs. For a second, a terrifying thought crossed his mind.

He was too late.

No.

His jaw clenched, his eyes reddening as he pushed that thought away with everything he had.

He refused to believe it.

He would not accept it.

Not when she was right here in his arms.

Not when he still had a chance.

"I won’t let you die," he muttered, his voice breaking despite the determination laced within it.

Without wasting another second, Ethan laid her down carefully and immediately began pressing against her chest. His movements were urgent, desperate, each push fueled by fear and sheer will.

"Come on, Kathrine. Stay with me."

He tilted her head back and sealed his lips over hers, breathing life into her again and again. His hands pressed down rhythmically, forcing the water out of her lungs.

"Do you hear me?" his voice came out rough, almost unrecognizable. "You can’t die. Not like this."

There was no response.

No movement.

Nothing.

The silence was suffocating.

Ethan’s chest tightened painfully, but he refused to stop. He pressed harder this time, his desperation growing with every passing second.

"You promised me ten children," he choked out, his words trembling with raw emotion. "How dare you go back on your word?"

Another breath. Another push.

"Listen to me, Kathrine," he continued, his voice cracking. "You don’t get to leave me. Not now. Not ever."

His hands never paused.

His breaths never faltered.

Even as fear clawed at him, whispering that it might already be too late, Ethan held on to the smallest thread of hope.

Because giving up was never an option.

Not when it came to her.

Not when it came to Kathrine.

And then—

A reaction.

It was subtle at first. A twitch. A faint movement beneath his hands.

Ethan froze for a fraction of a second before pressing down again, harder this time.

"Come on," he whispered urgently.

Suddenly, her body jerked.

A violent cough tore through her, and water spilled from her lips as her chest heaved. A sharp gasp followed, raw and desperate as air finally rushed back into her lungs.

"Ah—"

The sound shattered the suffocating silence.

Ethan stilled.

For a heartbeat, he simply stared at her, as if afraid that if he blinked, she would disappear again.

But she didn’t.

She was breathing.

She was alive.

Relief crashed into him so hard it almost brought him to his knees.

"Kathrine..."

Her name left his lips like a prayer.

Without thinking, he pulled her into his arms, holding her tightly against him as if he could shield her from everything that had tried to take her away.

"You’re back," he whispered, his voice trembling despite his attempt to stay composed. "You’re really back." 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

Kathrine coughed weakly, her body still shaking as she struggled to process everything. Her vision was blurry, her head spinning, but she could feel him.

His warmth.

His arms around her.

His heartbeat, loud and steady against her ear.

She was not dead.

And he was real.

"Ethan..." she breathed, her voice barely more than a whisper.

Hearing his name from her lips broke whatever restraint he had left.

His grip tightened, his hand cradling the back of her head as he pressed her closer.

"Don’t you ever do that again," he said hoarsely. "Do you hear me? Don’t you ever scare me like that."

For the first time, fear had truly shaken him.

Not the kind that came from enemies or danger.

But the kind that came from almost losing the person who meant everything.

"Ethan... am I dead?"

The question came out soft, fragile, as if she was afraid of the answer.

Silence followed.

Ethan slowly pulled back, his hands still gripping her shoulders, his gaze locked onto her face. He searched her eyes, as though making sure she was truly here, truly alive, and not something his desperate mind had conjured.

"What?"

Kathrine did not answer immediately.

Her lips parted slightly, but no words came out. Instead, her eyes began to glisten, the unshed tears trembling before finally spilling over. They slid down her pale cheeks, each drop carrying the fear she had just lived through.

"I... I am so sorry, Ethan," she whispered, her voice breaking. "I didn’t want to leave..."

Her fingers weakly curled into his shirt, holding onto him as if she feared she might slip away again.

"But remember... I love you, and I will always—"

Her words never reached the end.

Ethan suddenly surged forward, capturing her lips in a kiss that stole the rest of her sentence.

It was not gentle.

It was not hesitant.

It was desperate.

His hand came up to cradle the back of her head, pulling her closer as if he needed to feel her, to prove to himself that she was real and breathing and still his. The kiss carried everything he could not say, all the fear, the anger, the relief that had been suffocating him moments ago.

Kathrine froze.

Her mind went blank, every thought scattering under the intensity of it.

For a second, she could not even react.

But then realization struck.

She was alive.

And Ethan was here.

Kissing her.

Her eyes fluttered shut as her fingers tightened against his shirt. The warmth of his lips, the way he held her as if she might disappear again, it all felt overwhelming. Her heart, which had moments ago felt like it had stopped forever, now raced wildly in her chest.

Ethan did not pull away immediately.

He kissed her like a man who had almost lost everything and had no intention of letting go again. Like he was grounding himself in her existence, making sure she stayed.

Only when his breath began to falter did he finally break the kiss.

Even then, he did not go far.

His forehead rested against hers, their breaths mingling, uneven and heavy.

"Don’t say things like that," he murmured, his voice low but trembling beneath the surface. "Don’t talk like you’re leaving me."

Kathrine blinked up at him, still dazed, her lips parted as she tried to steady her breathing.

"I thought..." she whispered, her voice barely audible. "I thought I was gone."

Ethan’s jaw tightened.

"You’re not," he said firmly, his grip on her tightening just a little. "You’re right here. With me."

Another tear slipped from the corner of her eye.

"I heard your voice," she admitted softly. "Even when everything was... fading. I heard you calling me."

Something in Ethan’s expression shifted.

His thumb gently brushed away the tear on her cheek, his touch far softer now, as if he was afraid she might break.

"Of course you did," he said quietly. "Where else would I be?"

Kathrine let out a shaky breath, her hand slowly rising to touch his face, as if she needed to confirm it herself.

But then something clicked in her mind, sharp and sudden.

Kathrine stiffened slightly in his arms before pulling back just enough to look at him.

"But... how did you find me?"

Her voice was softer now, but there was a trace of confusion beneath it.

Her eyes stayed fixed on Ethan, searching his face, trying to piece together what did not make sense. He was not supposed to know. He had no way of knowing where she was being held captive.

So how...