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Haven jumped up, the letter falling to the bedroom floor as she bolted down the two flights of stairs, tripping over her feet along the way. Tears flowed from her eyes as she burst into the foyer, hesitating briefly when she accidently kicked Carmine’s broken, discarded guitar.
After fumbling with the keypad, furiously pressing numbers until she got the code right, she opened the front door. Cold air blasted her and stole the breath from her lungs, her bare feet slapping against frozen wood as she ran out onto the icy porch.
The Mazda was still parked out front, the windows covered in a thin layer of frost. Last night’s snow had already started to melt, but a few white patches remained on the car. It was untouched, unmoved, and the sight of it made hope sweep through her.
“Carmine?” she called, her shaky exhale a cloud of fog. “Where are you?”
“He left.”
She swung around at the sound of the voice, her heart beating wildly. Dr. DeMarco stood in the doorway, sympathy shining from his eyes. Haven’s stomach churned ruthlessly at the sight of it. No. No way. Nuh-uh.
“You’re wrong,” she said. “He didn’t.”
“He did.”
“No!” she yelled. “He’s still here!”
“He’s not.”
“I have to change his mind!”
“You can’t.”
His voice lacked all trace of emotion, the words coming out as if there was simply no room for argument, but she couldn’t accept them. It couldn’t be too late.
She waved frantically toward the Mazda. “His car’s still here!”
“He didn’t drive.”
“He wouldn’t leave it!”
“He left it for you.”
“There’s no way! He loves that car!”
“He loves you more.”
Haven lost her composure at those words. Tears streamed down her cheeks as a loud sob ripped from her chest, echoing through the quiet yard. Her knees buckled and she collapsed on the porch, shaking her head.
“That’s not right,” she cried. “It can’t be right. He wouldn’t just leave!”
Dr. DeMarco continued to stand there, not moving from the spot in the doorway. “I’m sorry.”
“Sorry?” she asked with disbelief. “You’re sorry?”
Before he could respond, he was shoved out of the way as Dominic burst past him. He crouched down on the porch and pulled Haven into his arms, softly shushing her as he glared at his father.
“Dominic,” Haven said. “Make him come back!”
“I can’t,” Dominic said. “I tried, Twinkle Toes, I really did, but he wouldn’t listen.”
Haven started sobbing harder, hiccupping as she tried to catch her breath. She was splintering, her heart ripping from her chest as she shattered into a million tiny jagged pieces.
“You need to calm down,” Dominic said, stroking her hair softly. “Take a deep breath, will you? It’s going to be okay.”
“How can you say that?” she asked desperately. “I need him!”
Dominic squeezed her tighter. “No, you don’t. I know it feels like it, but you don’t. You’re strong. You’ll be just fine on your own.”
