Chapter 5
Third Person’s POV
It wasn’t until late at night that Marc finally left the hospital with Astrid. Despite a thorough examination, the doctors had found nothing wrong with her.
For some reason, an inexplicable irritation gnawed at him, a nagging feeling that something important was slipping away.
Unable to shake his unease, he pulled out his phone, almost instinctively, and opened his chatbox with Kendall.
But the screen stared back at him, empty.
The last message in Marc and Kendall’s chat was from over a week ago.
It hit him like a punch to the gut. He hadn’t spoken to Kendall–not even once -since the day he left her standing at their wedding.
As such, he was about to chat, only to
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notice that he couldn’t.
That’s when it dawned on him–she had
blocked him.
A wave of unease and fear swept over him, consuming him completely.
With that, he glanced at Astrid beside him, took a deep breath, trying to compose himself, and said, “I’ll drive you home now, Astrid.”
But Astrid caught a glimpse of his phone screen and masked her irritation with a sweet pout. “Can’t you stay with me tonight?” she asked, her voice soft and
coaxing.
Marc sighed, trying to steady his nerves.
“The doctor said you‘ re fine, Astrid. I’ll drop you off at home, but I don’t think I should stay. I don’t want to make Kendall more upset than she already is.”
But Astrid clung to his arm stubbornly.
“Then let me stay at your place tonight. You have so many rooms–just one won’t
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hurt, right? Please?”
He hesitated, the uneasy feeling in his stomach growing stronger. But when she looked up at him with those pleading eyes, he relented. “Alright,” he surrendered reluctantly.
When they arrived at his house, Marc pushed open the door and instinctively called out, “Kendall? Are you home?”
However, only silence greeted him.
Frowning, he flicked on the lights. The house felt eerily empty as he wandered through the rooms, calling her name again and again.
But no one answered.
He searched the entire house, his voice
growing louder with each step, but Kendall
was nowhere to be found.
Eventually, his steps led him to their bedroom.
Opening it, he found the vanity where
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Kendall used to keep her skincare products, bare.
He next moved to the wardrobe and yanked it open. But it was also empty. All her clothes were gone.
Marc’s gaze then darted to the nightstand and his breath instantly hitched. He saw their wedding photo–the one that used to sit proudly on display–carelessly tossed into the trash can.
Heart pounding, he rushed forward and pulled the photo out with trembling hands. Dirt smeared across the frame, and despite his usual aversion to anything unclean, he frantically wiped at the stains with his sleeve.
But no matter how much he scrubbed, the dirt wouldn’t come off.
Despite that, he still placed the photo down on the table. Then, he grabbed his phone and dialed Kendall’s number.
But the automated message that followed
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hit him like a brick. Her number was no longer reachable. She had blocked him there too.
Panic set in as Marc grabbed his car keys. He had to find her. He had to fix this.
But as he headed toward the door, Astrid stepped into his path.
“Marc? It’s so late. Where are you going?” she asked, her tone gentle but curious.
“Kendall blocked me everywhere,” Marc admitted, his voice strained. “I have to find her. She’s upset, and I can’t just sit here doing nothing.”
But before he could leave, Astrid grabbed his hand, stopping him. “Maybe she’s just upset for a moment,” she reasoned.
“Besides, you don’t even know where to start looking. Running around now won’t help.”
Hearing her assumption, Marc hesitated. Her words gnawed at him, but there was a
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small part of him that wanted to believe she was right.
In the past, they’d argued before, but never had they reacted so drastically.
After a long silence, a faint smile tugged at his lips as he chimed in, . “Maybe you‘ re right. She’s just probably upset. Once she calms down, she’ll come back on her
own.”
As he turned away, Astrid stepped closer, her expression softening into something. almost tender.
Without warning, she grabbed his hand and placed it over her chest.
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