Unraveled

Chapter 16

The sun bathed the park in golden light, casting a warm glow over the grass where Caleb and Isabelle lay sprawled out. A soft breeze rustled the leaves overhead, while laughter and distant conversations floated on the air. Caleb lay on his back, arms crossed behind his head, eyes closed, letting the warmth of the day sink into his skin. He wasn't thinking of anything in particular, just savoring the rare, peaceful afternoon with Isabelle.

She sat beside him, idly playing with the silver locket around her neck. That familiar piece of jewelry had been with her for years now, a gift from a boyfriend she'd had back in college. Caleb watched her fidget with it, a soft smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.

"You still wear that thing?" he asked, his tone teasing. "Didn't you break up with that guy ages ago?"

Isabelle looked down at the locket, fingers tracing the delicate chain. "Yeah," she replied with a small laugh. "I did. But I still like it. It reminds me of... I don't know. A time when things felt different. Less complicated."

Caleb chuckled. "Different how? That guy was a jerk, wasn't he?"

Isabelle shook her head, her smile fading into something more wistful. "Not really. He wasn't all bad. He was... charming in his own way. Had these piercing blue eyes—hard to forget."

Caleb raised an eyebrow, watching her closely. "Piercing blue eyes, huh? Sounds like you liked him more than you let on."

Isabelle shrugged, twisting the locket between her fingers. "Maybe I did. But it wasn't meant to be."

She didn't elaborate, and Caleb didn't press. He knew Isabelle had always kept parts of herself guarded, especially when it came to relationships. They'd grown up together, summers spent in each other's worlds, but she'd always had pieces of her life she kept to herself.

Caleb lay back down, staring up at the sky. "Guess I get it," he murmured. "Sometimes you hold onto things because they remind you of when everything made sense."

Isabelle didn't respond right away, her gaze still fixed on the locket. "Yeah," she said quietly. "Like Mom and Dad."

The mention of their parents—her parents, his aunt and uncle—hung in the air like a weight. Aunt Claire and Uncle Jonathan had been everything to them after Caleb's parents died. They'd taken him in, treated him like their own, and for a while, life had felt stable again. But then they were gone too, leaving Caleb and Isabelle as each other's only family.

"You think about them a lot, don't you?" Caleb asked gently, glancing over at her.

"All the time," Isabelle replied, her voice barely above a whisper. "It's just... strange, you know? Knowing it's just us now."

Caleb nodded, a lump forming in his throat. "Yeah. I know."

They sat in silence for a moment, the weight of their shared loss pressing down on them. Caleb felt the familiar ache in his chest, the one that always surfaced when he thought about his parents—and Isabelle's. That ache was a part of him now, something he carried with him every day.

But as always, Isabelle was there, grounding him in the present, reminding him he wasn't alone.

"You think we'll ever stop missing them?" Caleb asked, his voice soft.

"I don't think so," Isabelle answered. "But maybe that's okay. Missing them means they mattered."

Caleb smiled at that, though it was tinged with sadness. "Yeah. They mattered."

The sound of children playing nearby filled the brief silence. Caleb watched a group of kids dart across the park, their laughter bright against the warm air. A pang of nostalgia swept over him, remembering when life had been simpler—before the accidents, before everything changed.

Isabelle tucked the locket back under her shirt. "At least we have each other," she said, her voice light but sincere. "No matter what, we'll always have that."

"Yeah," Caleb agreed, sitting up and nudging her playfully. "You're stuck with me."

Isabelle laughed, bright and familiar. "I wouldn't have it any other way."

They shared a smile, the tension between them easing. The warmth of the afternoon settled over them, wrapping them in comfort and familiarity. For a brief moment, it felt like nothing had changed—that they were still just Caleb and Isabelle, sitting in the sun, teasing each other like always.

But the peace didn't last.

Out of the corner of his eye, Caleb noticed two figures approaching from the edge of the park. They moved with purpose, their strides long and unhurried. Unease flickered in Caleb's chest, instincts alerting him that something was wrong.

"Hey, Izzy—" Caleb began, but before he could finish, one of the figures reached them, grabbing Isabelle's arm in a rough, sudden motion.

She gasped, eyes wide with shock as she tried to pull away. "Caleb!"

The second figure was on Caleb in an instant, pinning him to the ground before he had time to react. His arms were twisted behind his back, duct tape binding his wrists tightly. He struggled, breath coming in ragged gasps, but he was no match for his attacker.

"Let her go!" Caleb shouted, voice hoarse with fear. But his words were swallowed by the chaos.

The last thing Caleb saw before the world went dark was Isabelle's terrified face, her fiery hair haloed in the sun as she was dragged away, her hands still clutching the silver locket.