This Means Love!

Chapter 1: Part 1

The bridge stretched across the shimmering Mandovi River, glistening under the golden light of the setting sun. The evening air was thick with humidity, carrying the distant scent of sea salt from the beaches of Goa. Mary held the steering wheel, the radio softly playing a nostalgic tune from the 80s. Her phone lay on the passenger seat, buzzing with a call she was already deep into.

“I promise, Jason,” Mary said, her voice slightly distracted as she reached over with one hand, “I’ll get home before dinner. You just have to believe that I’m not always late.”

Jason chuckled on the other end, his laughter crackling through the phone speaker. “You always say that,” he teased, his tone affectionate. “What are you doing now, anyway?”

Mary’s lips curved into a smile. “Just looking for the paperwork I was supposed to sign this afternoon. I swear it was here somewhere…”

Her smile faltered as she turned her attention away from the road for just a split second, rummaging through the clutter of documents on the passenger seat. That moment stretched longer than it should have, the car drifting slightly in its lane.

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On the other side of the bridge, Freddy gripped the wheel, his knuckles pale, and his vision swimming. The empty beer bottles rattled on the floorboard as he swerved, the alcohol in his bloodstream making the world feel like a spinning top. The Goa night felt endless, and the regret was already creeping into his dulled senses.

“Damn it,” Freddy muttered, blinking hard to try to focus. The blurred outlines of approaching headlights appeared far too soon. His heart lurched as he spotted Mary’s car.

“Shit,” he whispered, yanking the wheel. But his reaction was too delayed, too clumsy.

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Mary barely had time to lift her head, the echo of Jason’s voice calling her name still resonating in the background. All she saw was a blur of headlights. Then the impact hit with a force that made the world shatter.

The collision sent shockwaves through the metal frames of both cars. Glass shattered like a thousand tiny stars scattering into the twilight. Flames erupted as the two vehicles twisted together in a gruesome dance, metal screaming and bending as the cars burst into a violent blaze. The fire roared, feeding on the remnants of what had been mere moments ago: laughter, hope, and promises.

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Mary’s phone was thrown clear of the wreckage, skidding to a stop on the edge of the bridge, miraculously unharmed. The screen still glowed with Jason’s contact information; his name was displayed as he tried to call again.

“Mary?” Jason’s voice came through, laced with growing panic. “Mary, are you there? Can you hear me?”

But there was only silence. The gentle crackle of the line and the faint, unstoppable roar of the flames echoed in the distance.