CHAPTER 130: DON’T BE LATE

Later that night, long after Ethan had gone to bed and the rest of the house had fallen into a deep, peaceful silence, Stefan sat alone in his room, the glow of his phone screen illuminating the faint lines of stress etched into his face.

He sat on the edge of the bed, one hand gripping the edge of the mattress, the other holding the phone tightly as if it were a lifeline.

After listening to Ethan’s advice, he knew that was what he should do but how was he going to go about it?

Exhaling deeply, he stood up and started pacing the entire length of his room.

He paced the room, restless, hands jammed into his pockets. His mind kept replaying the scene at Rayna’s house—the door slamming, her cold stare, the way she’d protected Ruby like a lioness guarding her own.

Would she even listen to him if he showed up at her house again saying it was her he wanted to see? He highly doubted that.

He ran a hand through his hair and stopped in front of the bed. Then, without overthinking, he picked up his phone from the bed, walked to the door, and stepped into the hallway.

Ethan was still awake, seated at the kitchen counter with a glass of water and his laptop open.

He had retired to bed but had been unable to sleep since the thought of Rayna and how hurt she had looked that day just kept tormenting him so he had decided to just get some work done instead.

He looked up as Stefan approached. "I thought you’d gone to bed," Stefan said as he stopped in front of Ethan and he nodded.

"Yeah. Just remembered I had to get so e work done," Ethan said and Stefan nodded.

Stefan took a deep breath. "Can I get her number?" Stefan asked quietly.

Perhaps, speaking to her on the phone first was the only way he could actually get her to listen to him.

Ethan blinked, then closed the laptop. "Rayna’s?" He asked, and Stefan nodded.

Ethan studied him for a moment, then stood and walked over to a drawer near the fridge. He scribbled something on a notepad, tore it off, and handed it to him.

"Don’t blow it," Ethan said simply.

Stefan offered a tight nod, folded the paper into his palm, and returned to his room.

Now, Stefan stared at the number sitting unsent in his messages app, the blinking cursor in the text field taunting him with everything he still hadn’t said.

He could have typed a thousand things, but none of them felt right. Not for someone like Rayna. She wouldn’t be moved by emotional rambling or shallow apologies.

Perhaps what she wanted was honesty. She would respect truth and Ruby deserved nothing less.

With a breath that shook more than he cared to admit, Stefan finally began to type.

[Message to: Rayna]

[Hi, Rayna. It’s Stefan. Please don’t block me yet—I know I’m probably the last person you want to hear from tonight, but I’m reaching out because I need your help. And not because I think you owe me anything—you don’t. But because you love Ruby. And so do I. I know you might not believe me but that’s the truth. I love her and it’s undeniable.

I didn’t realize it in time that it wasn’t a better version of Ivy as she’d made me believe but another person just like I had thought. Yes, I had first thought she was someone else hence I tried to blackmail her into saying it but then, she didn’t so I just believed she was Ivy and I was over worrying myself. I was blind so I couldn’t see it. I didn’t see what was right in front of me even after I regained my sight. And I hate myself for it.

I would’ve done better if I had known before hand or anything at all. I’m not saying this to justify my actions, I’m just saying I acted according to how I was led but I know she’s hurting and it’s all my fault. I know she’s trying to move on. I’m not asking you to convince her to come back to me.

I’m just asking for a chance to earn her forgiveness. To explain—to let her see that I’m not the same man who was too blind to recognize her heart. I just want her to know though all this started with deception, my heart is with hers and I knew something was wrong the moment I returned home with Ivy. I love her and I want to make things right, for her, for me and for her our baby.

You’ve seen her cry. You’ve seen the pain I caused. I understand why you don’t trust me. But I need you to believe that I’m not here to cause more of it. I’m here to make things right, to stand by her and be a true husband to her.

Please... help me show her I’m sincere. If that means talking to you first, I’m more than willing. I’ll answer any question you want. I’ll prove it however I can. Just don’t shut me out yet.

Please.]

He read it twice. Then again. His thumb hovered over the send button for what felt like a full minute before, finally, with a firm breath, he hit send.

The message whooshed into the ether, and all he could do now was wait.

He placed the phone down gently on the nightstand and leaned back against the pillows, staring up at the ceiling as a dull ache settled in his chest.

How long was he to wait for a response? The time was past eleven already and he doubted she would still be awake by now.

Even if she was asleep now, she’d definitely see it in the morning. But what he didn’t know was if she’d respond. He didn’t know if she’d even read it at all once she gets to know it was from him.

But atleast, he had taken the first step. And maybe, just maybe, that counted for something.

He didn’t know how long he stayed there thinking about what Rayna would say or do when she sees the message until he closed his eyes and fell into the oblivion of sleep.

The Next Morning Rayna woke early, as she often did, with the faint hum of the city creeping in through her window blinds.

She stretched, rubbed her eyes, and sat up, reaching instinctively for her phone on the bedside table.

A single message notification blinked back at her. It from from an unknown Number

Who could it be? She wondered, a frown etching her brows as she went ahead and opened it.

The moment she realized it was a text from Stefan, her heart beat doubled up and she didn’t know know what to do. Whether to go ahead and read it or just leave it.

Why would he even text her and how had he gotten her contact.... Ethan. Why was he bent on destroying their friendship this way?

After betraying her the way he did, he couldn’t even look for a way to apologize to her and explain things, instead he just went ahead to destroy everything, leaving no way for resolution.

Did he truly not want her and had just approached her because of Stefan? Was that how low they could stoop? Why didn’t he just trail her instead of doing this to her? How heartless could he be?

Taking a deep breath, she decided to go through whatever nonsense he’d sent. Since they’d gone through so much effort, it was only right that she gave them even a little bit of her attention.

She exhaled before she started to read. She tried her best to read it slowly, and carefully. After reading it all, she went through it again, wanting to be sure she hadn’t just read from her heart instead of her head.

By the time she finished, her face was unreadable. Her fingers hovered over the screen, as if debating whether to reply, delete it, or ignore it altogether.

She set the phone down wordlessly and climbed out of bed.

She first stopped by Ruby’s room and when she saw that Ruby was still asleep, Rayna padded to the kitchen in her fuzzy socks, pouring herself a cup of coffee as her mind replayed Stefan’s words over and over.

There was a difference between pretty promises and true remorse—and she’d seen both kinds in her life.

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She didn’t trust easily. And she trusted even less when it came to the people Ruby cared about. She didn’t even want to consider Stefan after what he and Ethan did but something about that message...

She picked up her phone again and re-read it.

Even though it wasn’t exactly his fault, there had been no excuses. No manipulation. Just... truth. He’d owned up to all the faults.

He also knew about the baby abd he wasn’t even making an issue about it or wanting to claim it. He had said he wanted to make things right for him, Ruby and their child.

Though she wouldn’t say it but she knew that child deserves love from both parents. It wasn’t always nice having a child without the father in the picture.

Her jaw tightened slightly as she stared out the window. If he meant even half of what he’d written, she’d give him one chance to prove it. Just one.

Having decided that, she opened the keyboard and began to type her reply.

[Message to: Stefan]

[You’ve got five minutes. Tomorrow. 11 a.m. At the café across from the library. You get one shot to convince me you’re not going to hurt her again. Don’t be late.]