All Chapters of Ava, My Heart: Chapter 21 - Chapter 30

Alexander shut the door slowly. Quietly. Like if he made one sudden move, the entire apartment would fall apart...just like everything else tonight.The silence hit him like a punch to the chest.Ava was gone.She had walked out not more than forty minutes ago, her eyes wet, her shoulders trembling, and her heart... broken. And he had just stood there…watching. Wanting to stop her. Needing to. But frozen. Powerless in the one moment that mattered most.Alexander stepped into the kitchen, yanked open the liquor cabinet, and grabbed the vodka. No glass. Just the bottle. But then he hesitated. No. Not like that.He grabbed a tumbler, filled it halfway, and took a long, slow sip. The burn grounded him. Reminded him he was still here. Still breathing. Even though it didn’t feel like it.Christ.He leaned against the counter, one hand gripping the edge, the other clutching the glass. He stared ahead, not really seeing anything.He loved that woman. He loved Ava like his life depended on it.

The faint chatter of children was outside the classroom windows, mixing with the chirping birds and occasional rustle of wind. Ava stood at the front of her fourth-grade classroom, her hands chalk-dusted and her curls pinned up in a quick bun that morning at Chelsea’s place. She hadn’t planned on teaching today...not after the night she’d had...but here she was. In her favorite place, standing in front of the kids who always managed to pull her back to life.“Okay, little stars,” she said, clapping her hands to get their attention. “Let’s head to the bulletin board and write one thing we’re proud of this week.”The children lit up, rushing to grab their markers and sticky notes, eagerly writing things like “I helped my mom with the dishes”, “I learned to tie my shoelaces”, or “I didn’t cry when I scraped my knee.” Their joy filled the space, and Ava smiled, the first real one all day. She knelt beside one of her students who was stuck on what to write.“Write about how you remembered

Ava sat cross-legged on Chelsea’s oversized couch, clutching a throw pillow to her chest, the weight of the day still lingering in her thoughts. The city lights outside blurred together, soft car horns in the distance, but her mind was elsewhere...back at the school. Her fingers nervously toyed with the rim of her tea mug as the silence stretched between them.Chelsea padded into the room, bare feet making no sound on the wooden floor. She carried two steaming mugs of tea, and a grin spread across her face when she saw Ava sitting there, clearly deep in thought.She handed one mug to Ava and plopped down beside her. “You look like you’ve been holding in a secret for hours. Spill it. I’m dying here.”Ava smiled, her lips barely curving as she looked into her tea. “He came to school today.”Chelsea’s eyes immediately lit up. “Who? Alexander Reed?”Ava nodded, staring at her mug. “Yeah. He just showed up. Didn’t text, didn’t call. Just stood there. Watching me.”Chelsea straightened up,

Ava gripped the steering wheel as she drove through the early evening traffic, the sun dipping low behind the buildings. Her fingers still tingle from the card she had read just minutes ago…Alexander’s handwriting, his words, so full of love and devotion. The gesture had touched something deep inside her. She was on her way home now, eager to see him, maybe throw her arms around his neck and kiss him until he smiled that boyish smile she adored.Then her phone rang.She hit the hands-free button, still thinking about him.“Hello, ma’am,” came a voice she recognized instantly. It was Alexander’s occasional driver. He didn’t sound right. His voice trembled. “It’s Mr. Alexander. He…he was attacked. He’s at the hospital. He was stabbed…”The world spun.“What?” Her voice cracked. “What did you just say?”“He’s in surgery right now. We’re at Rosemont General.”She couldn’t breathe. Her chest tightened as her foot slammed down on the accelerator. The car jerked forward, horns blared behind

By evening, Deidre Reed had done exactly what she said she would.The man who had stabbed Alexander was caught and dragged into custody. Not just him…the entire group that had jumped into that fight, throwing punches like it was some kind of street game, were picked up one after the other. Their faces were bruised. Their mouths swollen. The station reeked of sweat, blood, and regret. All because they had picked the wrong man.Alexander Reed.A name that carried weight in every circle, from corporate boardrooms to the dusty corners of the city’s underbelly. And behind that name stood his mother…Deidre.She walked into the police station in her sharp black pantsuit like she owned the place. No badge, no title. Just power. She didn’t need to shout. Her presence alone forced the officers to stand straighter, to speak more clearly. To respect her.She wasn’t running the investigation…the officers were. But it was no secret that Deidre had poured a mountain of money into speeding up the pro