Maybe Sienna’s brutal honesty that night finally got through to Ryan, because he started this whole desperate apology tour.
Problem was, it was basically a one–man show that nobody else gave a shit about.
He had someone ship Sienna’s favorite childhood treats from this fancy bakery back in LA – no return address, but the delivery guy brought them right back with a note saying “recipient refused
package.”
He stalked her class schedule and showed up to her Art History elective, sitting right next to her. For two straight hours, Sienna didn’t look at him once. Just took notes like he was invisible.
The most pathetic moment was when he stood outside the lab building for three hours in the rain, watching through the windows as Sienna and Daniel worked on some project together. She was pointing at something on their papers and laughing, Daniel leaning in to listen and making notes.
Their easy chemistry was like a knife to his chest.
He and Sienna used to be like that – inseparable, finishing each other’s sentences, completely in sync.
Ryan waited until it got dark, but when Sienna finally left the building, she used the side exit and didn’t even glance in his direction.
Days turned into weeks. Ryan stopped going back to Harvard, basically turning into this creepy ghost haunting Sienna’s campus. He kept hoping for a chance to talk to her, to explain everything.
The worst part was watching her with Daniel every day – walking across campus together, heads bent over research papers in the library, sharing dessert in the dining hall while Daniel casually picked out the parts she didn’t like.
All the little things that used to be theirs were now someone else’s.
One day Sienna didn’t show up to class or the lab.
Ryan’s heart stopped. Sienna never missed class something had to be wrong.
He got her UK number from his family’s investigator and called immediately. It rang forever before someone finally picked up.
“Hello? Who’s this?”
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Daniel’s voice, calm as ever.
Ryan completely lost it.
“Where’s Sienna?!” he screamed into the phone. “What did you do to her?!”
“That’s none of your business.” Daniel’s tone was still maddeningly calm, and Ryan could hear water
running in the background.
What do you mean it’s none of my-”
Click.
The dial tone hit Ryan like a punch to the gut.
He paced outside the academic building for hours, his mind racing through every worst–case
scenario, until he finally spotted Daniel’s car parked outside Sienna’s dorm that evening.
Meanwhile, Daniel was at his flat taking care of Sienna.
She had this nasty flu that was going around campus – fever spiking to like 102, completely delirious and mumbling about thesis deadlines in her sleep.
Daniel kept rotating cold compresses on her forehead, being ridiculously gentle like she was made of glass.
Every thirty minutes he’d swap out the cloth and try to get her to drink water, which was like trying to hydrate a very sick, very stubborn cat.
Her lips were all cracked from the fever, so he made her this honey–lemon tea and basically had to spoon–feed it to her while she was half–conscious.
Around 3 AM her temperature finally broke.
Daniel had been doing his worried–professor vigil by her bed and ended up crashing with his head on the mattress, still clutching a damp washcloth like some kind of medieval nurse.
When Sienna woke up the next morning, sunlight was filtering through his curtains across his sleeping face.
He looked like absolute shit–neck definitely gonna be sore from sleeping at that weird angle, dark circles under his eyes from pulling an all–nighter playing nurse.
Sienna just stared at him for the longest time, getting these weird butterflies watching him sleep. She
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grabbed a throw blanket and tucked it around his shoulders.
When they finally made it to campus, Daniel was in full caretaker mode.
He opened her car door and handed her a travel mug. “Chicken noodle soup from that place you like. Your stomach’s probably still wonky, so start with something easy.”
They’d barely parked when Ryan materialized from whatever bush he’d been hiding behind.
Ryan watched Daniel fix Sienna’s messy scarf with these careful fingers. Watched him hand her soup like she was precious cargo. Watched Sienna look up at him with this soft, grateful smile – still pale and weak but trusting in a way that made Ryan’s chest hurt.
The jealousy was like acid burning through his veins, followed by this crushing realization of how badly he’d fucked up.
He could’ve been the one taking care of her. Should’ve been. Instead he’d chosen Nina every damn time.
Ryan literally doubled over, the regret hitting him so hard he couldn’t breathe.
Some mistakes you just can’t come back from.
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