That evening, the doctor stepped into Nick's ward with a smile. "Now, you don't need to stay here day and night," he said gently, looking at Luna and Alex. "Nick is stable. You may visit him only three times a day—morning, evening, and night. Bring him healthy, homemade meals for breakfast or dinner, and let him rest the rest of the time. You can go back to your studies, your jobs, your lives. He'll be safe here."
As if on cue, Nick's eyes fluttered open. His lips parted, struggling against the bandages and wounds across his face. His voice came out faint, like a whisper carried by the wind.
"Yes, Luna… you have to study… your exams are coming," he murmured, his swollen lips barely forming the words.
Luna's tears welled again, but this time, they were tears of relief. She wanted to throw her arms around him, but she stopped herself. Instead, she leaned forward, hugging him gently from a distance so she wouldn't hurt his fragile body. "I'll study, Nick… I promise. But you… you promise to get better."
Nick gave the faintest nod, his eyes closing in exhaustion.
The Return to Routine
After four long days at the hospital, Luna finally went home. That night, she combed her messy hair, looked at herself in the mirror, and whispered, "He's alive. That's enough."
The next morning, she returned to her university. Life slowly crept back into a fragile routine. She studied, gave her exams, and visited Nick in the mornings and evenings.
Alex, too, returned to his work. But things weren't the same anymore. Between them was a secret—the kiss they had shared during those desperate nights. It had changed everything. They texted late at night, shared smiles during hospital visits, and walked side by side as if the world around them had melted away.
They weren't just friends anymore. They were something more—something fragile but real. A quiet relationship blossomed, hidden under the shadow of Nick's recovery.
The Headache
But while Luna's exams ended and Nick's wounds began to heal, Alex's headaches grew worse. They weren't the normal ones anymore. Sometimes, he would feel a sharp stabbing pain that blurred his vision. Sometimes, his hands trembled.
One evening, unable to bear it, he went to a specialist. After listening to his symptoms, the specialist prescribed some medicines and then asked firmly, "You need an X-ray and a brain scan. We have to find the source of this damage."
Alex hesitated. He pulled out his old reports from the doctor he had visited months ago. The specialist scanned them, frowning. "These reports… they're not formal. Incomplete, careless. Whoever did this, did not do a proper check. We can't trust them."
Alex's chest tightened. "So… what do we do?"
The specialist's eyes were serious. "We'll go ahead with a full X-ray and scan. Only then can we be sure."
The Truth
Two days later, Alex walked into the clinic to collect his reports. His palms were sweaty, his heart hammering against his ribs. The specialist looked at the files, then at Alex, his expression heavy.
"Alex," he said quietly, "I won't lie to you. The scans show a growth… a tumor in your brain."
The room fell silent. Alex felt the world tilt beneath his feet, his breath caught in his throat. A thousand thoughts raced through his mind—Luna's smile, Nick's fragile state, his own laughter with them just days ago.
"A brain tumor?" His voice cracked.
The doctor nodded. "Yes. We will need further tests to see whether it is operable… or malignant. But it is serious."
Alex's vision blurred, not just from the headache this time—but from the weight of the truth.
He thought of Luna, of how she had just started smiling again after Nick's accident. He thought of Nick, still healing. And now… this.
He forced a weak smile, hiding the storm inside him. "No… I can't tell her. Not yet."
And so, while Luna studied and cared for Nick, and while Nick slowly learned to smile through his pain, Alex carried a silent storm inside him—one that none of them knew was about to change everything.