Saturday, August 26th
Cat
It’s late Saturday morning when I get released from the hospital.
Despite the transfusions to make up for the severe blood loss I suffered, I feel weak and tired when Ronan helps me out of the wheelchair and into his car.
My body aches all over, but especially my lower abdomen, where an inches-long incision will soon become a scar.
A permanent reminder of what happened. What we lost.
I can’t even walk upright, each of the three steps from the wheelchair to the car slow and hunched over.
I would’ve preferred going back to Ronan’s apartment, but between his classes and work, I know he wouldn’t be around much. My mom wants someone to keep an eye on me at all times for the next couple of weeks anyway, and I don’t have the strength to argue.
Luckily, I don’t anticipate having to miss much school—a week at most, since there are no classes next week and the fall semester of my sophomore year in college starts the week after that.
“Do you have to work tonight?” I ask Ronan as we pull up to my house just before noon.
He hesitates, chewing on his bottom lip. “Well… technically, no. Shane offered to cover for me. But…” His eyes flick to mine, cautious. “If it’s okay with you, I’d kind of like to go in. I could use the distraction.”
He says it like a confession. Like something he’s ashamed to admit.
And as much as I want him here—want him beside me every second—I get it. He’s hurting, too. Devastated. And he copes by moving, by doing, by distracting himself. Healthy or not, I’m not about to lecture him on grief when I haven’t even figured out how to handle my own.
“Yeah,” I say softly. “Okay.”
Ronan gives me a small, grateful smile, then rounds the car to help me out. The moment I’m upright, he scoops me into his arms and carries me to the house.
My parents are already waiting.
My dad opens the door for us, greeting us both with a warm smile, his whole demeanor radiating a kindness toward Ronan I haven’t seen in… well, ever.
“I put fresh linens on your bed, Kitty,” my mom says sweetly, already moving to lead us upstairs.
“Ronan,” my dad calls after us, “I’d like a quick word with you once you’ve deposited Cat upstairs.”
Ronan nods, then follows my mom up the stairs to my room, carrying me like I weigh nothing. He gently lowers me onto my bed, adjusting me against the stack of perfectly fluffed pillows.
“Be right back, I guess,” he says with a touch of skepticism.
As Ronan steps out of the room, my mom trails after him, thankfully leaving the door wide open. Which means I can hear everything my dad says to him next.
“You know,” my dad begins, his voice low, “I really wanted to hurt you when you broke up with Cat.”
My heart stutters. I frown, already shifting in bed, tempted to make my way downstairs and tell him to knock it off.
“I don’t blame you, sir,” Ronan says, calm and sincere. “It was a stupid move on my part. Probably the dumbest thing I’ve ever done, because Cat… she’s the best thing that ever happened to me.”
There’s a pause. A long one. And when my dad finally speaks again, his voice has softened. “Yeah. She is.”
Another silence settles between them, heavy with all the unsaid things.
“I wasn’t sure I could forgive you for hurting her,” my dad says.
“Even after she did. I was hell-bent on hanging on to that grudge. You didn’t see her cry herself to sleep every night for two months.
And as a father… watching that, knowing there was nothing I could do to take her pain away? That was hell. Pure and simple.”
Ronan doesn’t rush to respond. When he does, his voice is thick.
“I’m sorry,” he says. “I know it doesn’t make a lot of sense, but I never wanted to hurt her. I only ever wanted to keep her safe.”
“I believe you,” my dad says without a hint of doubt. “I know you’ve been through a lot. Things no kid should have to go through. And I know that stuff shaped you. How you think, how you love, how you protect. Your heart was in the right place, even if your choices didn’t always reflect that.”
Ronan is quiet. I can almost picture him standing there, eyes lowered but listening closely.
My dad clears his throat. “I wasn’t able to wrap my head around that until now.
I was hurt for Cat. You see, Ronan, the thing is that I, too, want nothing more than to keep my children safe, and I wasn’t so sure that Cat’s heart was safe with you.
She’d already been through something awful with that other guy, and then you came along.
And damn, she fell so fast and so hard for you, only to have her heart ripped out of her chest again.
As a dad, that pissed me off enormously.
And then you two got back together, but I guess I wasn’t so quick to forgive you. I was cautious, you know?”
“I could tell,” Ronan says earnestly.
“I bet you could.” My dad chuckles dryly.
“I was hard on you. I’ll admit that. From the moment I heard about you over two years ago now, I decided I wasn’t okay with you in Cat’s life.
I judged you before I ever met you. I’d heard about your past, and instead of giving you a chance, I focused on every little thing that could confirm what I’d already decided: that you weren’t right for her. ”
He pauses again, this time longer.
“And I ignored everything that showed me how wrong I was. I didn’t want to see the truth.
I didn’t want to see that you were good for her.
Really good. And when you told us Cat was pregnant…
” He laughs under his breath, low and rough.
“It’s a good thing there were witnesses, because I was about ready to strangle you. ”
He chuckles again, but this time it’s tinged with something softer.
“But even then, I admired the way you took the heat. You didn’t flinch.
You stepped up. Over the last few months, I’ve watched you work your ass off.
You’ve taken the weight off Cat’s shoulders.
You’ve gone to every doctor’s appointment, made sure she had what she needed, was taken care of, all while juggling work and a full course load at school. ”
My chest tightens with love for Ronan. My dad’s right. Ronan did step up. No hesitation. No question. Despite the clear boundary he had set, he didn’t let his fears prevent him from being the softest version of himself with me.
“What really impressed me,” my dad goes on, “was how you kept your cool when I lost mine. I laid into you more than once. I lashed out at you, but you never retaliated. And slowly, I started to see the truth. You’re a good guy, Ronan. A good man. A really good man.”
His voice falters for the first time.
“Then the hemorrhage happened. And I saw it—your fear of losing her. It was written all over you. The way you held her hand for hours, never letting go. You didn’t rest. And when she cried…
” He clears his throat again, voice thick now.
“You were the one who held her together, even though it was clear your own heart was broken. You’d just lost your son, and still, your first thought was Cat.
You fought for her. You’d fight for her with your dying breath.
And that… that’s all a father could ever ask for his daughter. ”
There’s a moment of silence, then my dad says, a little unsteadily, “I’m glad you held your son, Ronan.
And I’m glad you told her to listen to her heart.
You gave her that permission to let go. So…
all that to say, Ronan, I forgive you.” My dad releases a sound, a strangled mix of a sob and a chuckle.
There’s a rustling kind of jingly sound, and then he says, “Here.”
I have no idea what’s happening.
“You’re working tonight?” my dad asks.
“Yeah,” Ronan says.
“What time are you done? Two-thirty?”
“Yeah, around then. Fridays and Saturdays usually run later. Takes time to clean up and get the stragglers out.”
“Okay, well, if you care to, just let yourself in,” my dad says. “I can’t say I’m a huge fan of the two of you in the same bed before you’re married, but I guess that ship has very obviously sailed. So I might as well accept the reality of your relationship with Cat.”
There’s a pause. His voice softens.
“And the reality is that she needs you right now. So if you’re comfortable, just stay with us until Cat’s back on her feet and the two of you can figure out your next steps.”
Another pause, then more briskly: “But, please—for my peace of mind—leave the door to her room open.”
“Sure, no problem,” Ronan says with a quiet chuckle.
When he rejoins me a couple of minutes later, he holds up a silver key, his expression a mix of disbelief and awe.
“Your dad gave me this and told me to let myself in when I get off work tonight,” he says, sitting down beside me and kicking off his shoes. He pulls his legs up and settles in next to me like he’s been doing it forever.
“Yeah, I heard,” I say, grinning. “Sounds like he’s coming around.”
“Or it’s his way of trying to control the situation,” Ronan says.
I burst out laughing. “Probably both. So, are you coming back here after work?” I ask hopefully.
“That’s the plan,” he says, pulling me into his arms.
I lean into him, breathing him in—that familiar mix of sun, ocean air, and clean laundry. He goes quiet, and I can tell he’s thinking hard about something.
“Penny for your thoughts?” I say, watching his beautiful profile.
He smiles a little. “I don’t know if this is a good time to bring it up,” he says, turning to face me.
“It is,” I say, nudging him. “Whatever it is.”
He laughs. “Of course it is. You never think there’s a bad time.”
“Because there isn’t.”
“Alright,” he says, then looks me dead in the eye. “I want you to move in with me.”
I blink. “I thought I already kind of… did?”