Chase sat there, his head resting on his hand, eyes lost in thought as his friend spoke, breaking the silence.

"Chase, Petal’s condition is... it’s more fragile than we thought." His friend’s voice was low, weighted with concern. "Even I would say it is wrong  for other doctors to say her father to tell her about you "

Chase took a deep breath, his hands clasping together, his gaze dropping to the floor. "He won’t tell her. He’d never do that... no matter how much he wants to" Chase’s voice cracked slightly, and he looked away, wrestling with his own feelings.

“So, what now?” his friend asked gently, watching Chase closely. “What’s the plan?”

“We do as Petal asked,” Chase replied quietly. “No more treatment. It’s what she wants.”

His friend fell silent, giving Chase a moment. Chase’s expression softened, pained. “I thought... I thought I was helping her. I know... I know the time we spent wasn’t perfect, but it was us. It was our time.” He sighed, his voice thick with regret. “I didn’t know I was hurting her this much.”

His friend tried to comfort him, but Chase’s shoulders slumped even further as he recalled Petal’s words. "She... she said I disgust her." There was a raw wound in Chase’s voice, his eyes glistening with unshed tears. “If she says that... maybe she’s right.”

Chase’s friend didn’t know what to say. He just placed a reassuring hand on Chase’s shoulder, squeezing it gently. The silence grew heavy, each second echoing with Chase’s self-doubt and regret.

“It’s enough,” Chase murmured finally, his voice barely above a whisper. “I’ve hurt her enough... I won’t do it again. She asked me to help her forget. I will. She deserves that.” He swallowed hard, as if steeling himself. “If she wants to be free of that pain, then she will.”

His friend frowned, sensing something in Chase’s voice. “What do you mean?”

Chase looked up, his eyes now focused with determination. “She’ll forget the Chase who hurt her, the man from her nightmares.” He stood up slowly, his jaw set. “I’ll become someone else for her—a new man. No trace of the old me.”

"And the nightmares?" his friend asked hesitantly, knowing the depth of Petal’s fear.

Chase’s gaze softened. “We’ll find a way to end them. But I won’t be the cause of her pain anymore. I’ll erase every piece of old me that triggers her memories.”

He turned to leave, not waiting for a response.

"Chase!" His friend’s voice held a final note of concern, but Chase didn’t look back.

Chase was already walking away, a man ready to rewrite himself for the woman he’d hurt—determined, at any cost, to give her the peace she needed.

.....

In the dimly lit room of an abandoned building, Chase found him—the man who’d been imitating him, his so-called “copycat,” leaning back against a wall with a twisted grin, eyes glinting with unhinged excitement. As Chase stepped closer, the man straightened up, his smile widening.

“Ah, there you are, Chase,” he greeted, his voice a mocking imitation. “You know, it’s actually fun being you. Today, I thought I’d take a little break—not because I was tired, but to create some suspense, just like you would. Adds to the mystery, doesn’t it?” He chuckled to himself. “We’d look more identical that way. Clever, right?”

Chase’s face was unreadable as he set a bag down on the dusty table, his gaze fixed coldly on the man.

The man’s eyes flickered with curiosity. “What’s this?” he asked, nodding toward the bag.

Without a word, Chase unzipped the bag, revealing stacks of cash.

The man’s smile faded, replaced with confusion. “What’s this for?”

“Your job is done,” Chase said flatly. “You can stop now.”

A slow, incredulous smile spread across the man’s face. “Stop?” He let out a deranged laugh. “Stop? We haven’t even begun! You think I’d just walk away now? I haven’t had this much fun in my entire life! The chase, the fear, the thrill… I should have done this ages ago. All those wasted years…”

Chase’s expression remained stone-cold, but his jaw tightened as he stepped closer.

The man studied him, still grinning. “Come on, Chase, you’re joking, right? We’re just getting started!”

Silence stretched between them as Chase simply stared, unblinking.

The man laughed again, amused by Chase’s lack of response. “Oh, relax. No one’s going to catch me.” He took a step forward, lowering his voice conspiratorially. “Actually, I’ve been thinking… maybe I should get even closer to you. You know, to really perfect this role.”

Chase’s eyes narrowed.

The man smirked. “Maybe I should kidnap a girl. That would be a nice touch, don’t you think? Or… wait.” He grinned as he saw the flash of anger in Chase’s eyes. “What was her name? Oh, yes. Petal. Should I kidnap her?”

Chase’s entire body went rigid. In an instant, he grabbed the man by the collar, slamming him back against the wall.

“Don’t you dare say her name,” Chase growled, his voice thick with fury.

The man’s grin only widened, unfazed by Chase’s anger. “Oh, touchy, are we? She’s the policeman’s daughter, isn’t she? You should’ve seen him, the poor man. He’s terrified you’ll go after her again.” He leaned closer, mocking. “But what do you think? Maybe she’d look good with me. She’s an angel, right? She’d be a perfect match for me.”

A muscle in Chase’s jaw twitched. Without another word, he pulled a gun from his pocket and, with a swift motion, fired a shot into the man’s thigh.

The man screamed, clutching his bleeding leg. “What the hell, Chase!”

Chase leaned down, his eyes blazing. “Don’t you dare say her name again, not with that filthy mouth of yours. She’s mine. Only mine.”

The man let out a harsh, pained laugh. “All this for some girl?” he sneered. “You’d shoot your own—”

“She’s not just some girl,” Chase interrupted, his voice cold and deadly. “She’s my everything.”

The man winced, but his smile crept back, a twisted gleam in his eyes. “And what if I don’t listen to you? What then?”

Chase pressed the barrel of the gun against the man’s chest. “You know I don’t miss.”

For a moment, the man’s smile wavered, his bravado faltering. He chuckled but fell silent, his gaze darting to the gun pressed against his chest. Chase’s intensity unsettled him, and a flicker of fear passed through his eyes.

Chase reached into the bag, pulling out a passport and tossing it down beside the money. “Your passport’s in there too,” he said coldly. “Get out of my sight. Disappear, before I lose what little patience I have left.”

With a shove, Chase released him, and the man collapsed to the ground, clutching his wounded leg. He watched, grimacing in pain, as Chase turned and walked away.

Despite the pain, a slow, twisted grin spread across the man’s face. He stifled a hiss, then let out a dark, throaty laugh, ignoring the searing ache in his leg. The room echoed with his laughter, which grew louder and more unhinged until he was gasping for breath.

“Oh, Chase,” he whispered, a dangerous glint in his eyes. “Just for a girl, you did this to your own brother? I think… I think it’s time I meet this Petal. Yes, I think I need to.”

He threw his head back, laughter spilling from his lips again as his leg throbbed with agony, a sick satisfaction twisting his features.

.....

The room was quiet as Chase slipped inside, careful not to make a sound. The soft glow of moonlight filtered through the window, casting a gentle light over Petal’s sleeping form. She lay peacefully, her chest rising and falling in a slow, rhythmic pattern. Chase approached the bed, heart pounding as he took in the sight of her relaxed face. He sat down beside her, the mattress dipping under his weight. One of her hands rested outside the blanket, and he gently reached for it, cradling it in his own.

He brushed a few stray strands of hair away from her face, his fingers lingering near her cheek. His voice was a soft murmur, almost a whisper, as he spoke. “I don’t know how I’ll do it… but, as you asked, I’ll make sure my old self disappears from your life. "He said "Isn’t it strange? Just yesterday, I was determined to make you remember me… and now, I’m saying I’ll make you forget me.”

A faint, bittersweet smile tugged at his lips. “This is my love, Petal. I know it hasn’t always been easy, or kind. The old me… he was toxic. That was all I knew back then. I thought that when we met again, I’d ask you to teach me… teach me how to love the right way. But instead, I tried to force my own idea of love onto you.” His voice caught, a hint of pain beneath the words.

He paused, as if weighing each thought, then let out a long sigh. “But that was yesterday. Today, everything is different. All those tricks, all that manipulation… it was wrong. I’m ashamed of how far I went. From now on, no more games, no more memories from the past. I’ll be better, a new me for a new us. No manipulation. Just love—the way I should have shown it from the start.”

"I told my brother to stop," he whispered softly, as if confessing a secret to her slumbering form. "There will be no more of my old self … no more copycat. " His voice grew softer, filled with a hint of hope. "And your father… he’ll be able to visit you again. I hope that makes you happy. I want that for you."

He hesitated, a flicker of fear crossing his face as he looked down, his thumb tracing gentle circles over her knuckles. “But there’s one thing I’m afraid of… What if he asks to take you back?” The worry weighed in his voice.

He closed his eyes, trying to calm the storm of thoughts.

He gave her hand a gentle squeeze, his thumb brushing over her knuckles. “I hope you won’t complain if I just… love you gently, simply. I want to give you that… if you’ll let me.”

Leaning down, he pressed a soft kiss to her forehead. His voice was barely above a breath. “I’m sorry, Petal. For all the pain I caused. I’m truly sorry.”

Author's Note: It's so funny—I was just looking at my story cover, thinking about how I had no idea what to write next. And the moment I thought that, the idea rushed into my mind, and here we are! Hope you enjoyed reading.