Chapter 61: It Was Him

The accident happened on Layla's twelfth birthday. Her parents were at work and couldn't get home, so they called to let her know. Heartbroken, Layla burst out crying and insisted that they had to be back in time to celebrate her birthday. In her young mind, it was a promise, and she wasn't going to let them break it. Having no other choices, her parents raced back through the pouring rain, but tragedy struck—they had a car accident on the way home. From that day on, Layla's birthdays turned into reminders of loss. She began to be afraid of rainy days, thunderstorms, and anything that brought back memories of that fateful birthday. Fast forward to a rainy day a few years later, Layla found herself having a panic attack while hiking in the wilderness. That's when Ashton showed up like a knight in shining armor and saved her, becoming her beacon of hope and savior. As she leaned on Ashton more and more, she found herself dreaming of marrying him. "But then I realized that he wa