All Chapters of Forbidden To Touch, Fated To Love: Chapter 1 - Chapter 6

♥ AZALEA'S POV ♥Dario cheers first."Finally!" He throws both fists in the air like Elias just won something. "About damn time, man!"The sound of it hits me before the words even land — blood draining out of my face so fast the room tilts sideways. I open my mouth. Nothing comes out. There's nothing left in me to say.Elias leans in close, close enough that I can smell the alcohol and someone else's perfume on his skin."Accept it," he says, low, only for me. "Stop clinging to a bond you can't even feel anymore. We both know it's dead."I can't answer him. My throat has closed around every word I own.Around us, the rooftop erupts — cheers, murmurs, someone whistling long and low like this is a show worth applauding. Elias's smile stretches wider with every sound of it, feeding on the crowd the way he's always fed on attention.Then my sister's voice cuts through all of it."Took him long enough," Zinnia says, loud enough to carry, phone still raised. "Guess even fate has limits on

♥ RAYMOND'S POV ♥"I just want to see her, Raymond, please—" Jasmine's voice cracks down the line, thick with days of crying I can hear even through the phone speaker."I know. I know you do." I press my palm against my eyes, the hallway chair beneath me doing nothing for the ache that's settled into my spine after four days of hospital corridors. "Not yet, Jas. She needs to wake up first.""What if she doesn't? What if this is my fault, what if I should've just—""This isn't your fault." I say it sharp enough to cut through the spiral before it swallows her whole. "None of this is your fault. The second she's stable, you're the first person I call. I promise."Forrest appears at the end of the hall before she can argue further, two fingers pressed briefly to his own eyes before pointing toward her room."Jas, I have to go. Call you back."I hang up before she can object, already moving."She's awake," Forrest says, falling into step. "Barely. Don't expect much."She isn't awake for l

♥ AZALEA'S POV ♥He's tall — tall enough that he has to duck slightly under the doorframe — with a build that suggests he's spent real time training rather than just looking the part, dark hair pushed back like he ran a hand through it one too many times. And when he smiles at me, easy and warm, something in my chest does a small, humiliating flip.There's someone more beautiful than Elias.The thought arrives before I can stop it, and right behind it comes the familiar, exhausting wave of self-consciousness — the awareness of the hospital gown swallowing my frame, the IV taped to my arm, the fact that I probably look like something dragged out of a river. "Hi," I say instead, voice still rough. "I'm Raymond." He steps closer, hands tucked into his pockets like he's trying to take up less space in the room. "I'm glad you're awake."“Thank you, Raymond," I repeat, testing the name, searching my memory for it and coming up empty. "I'm so grateful for your help. I'm sorry, have we — do