Chapter 4 Chapter 4

Chloe’s POV

Classes had gone smoothly, which didn’t always happen. I’d aced a pop quiz in literature, which earned me a rare nod of approval from Mr. Lawson.

All day long, I’d had this quiet hum of happiness in my veins.

When the final bell rang, I packed up my books, waved goodbye to my friends, and began the walk across town to my siblings’ school. The sun was warm on my face, and the breeze carried the scent of blooming flowers from the countryside.

Amelia and Eli’s school was only a few blocks away, but to get there, I had to cross one of the busier roads in town. Normally, I was careful. I always waited for the light, always checked both ways.

Mom drilled it into us constantly. Be cautious, Chloe. The world isn’t always looking out for you.

But today, my mind was somewhere else.

I was thinking about Amelia’s school play next month and how we’d need to figure out costumes. I was thinking about Eli’s birthday coming up and how maybe, just maybe, I’d have enough money from my coffee shop job to buy him a real soccer ball this year instead of a thrift store one.

I was smiling to myself, distracted, when I stepped off the curb.

The sound hit me first—a sharp screech of tires, the growl of an engine.

Then came the blinding flash of headlights.

I froze like a startled rabbit, my heart leaping into my throat.

And then the impact.

It wasn’t as bad as I’d imagined pain to be. More like a hard shove that knocked the breath out of me. My knees hit the pavement, and for a moment, everything spun.

When I blinked, the world tilted back into focus. A car door slammed. Heavy footsteps pounded toward me.

“Oh my God! Are you okay?”

The man’s voice was frantic, shaking. Then he was kneeling beside me, his hands hovering as if afraid to touch me and hurt me more.

“I….I didn’t see you! You just came out of nowhere!” he stammered, his face pale with horror. He was well-dressed, his shirt crisp and his watch gleaming, but his hair was mussed like he’d been raking his hands through it.

“I’m… I’m okay,” I managed to croak, though my voice didn’t sound like mine. My leg throbbed, and there was a warm, sticky feeling near my knee. My palms burned where they’d scraped the asphalt.

“You are not okay,” he said firmly. “Don’t move. I’m calling an ambulance.”

“No, don’t,” I protested weakly. “It’s too expensive…”

“I don’t care about that!” His voice broke, and his eyes filled with something I couldn’t quite read. “Please, just let me help you.”

Before I could argue, he scooped me into his arms.

I gasped, startled, my head pressing against his shoulder. He moved fast, almost running back to his car. People on the street were staring, whispering, but no one tried to stop him.

“I’m so, so sorry,” he kept saying, over and over, like a mantra. “I swear I wasn’t speeding. I just didn’t see you until….God, this is my fault. I’ll fix it. I’ll make this right.”

I wanted to tell him it wasn’t all his fault, that I should’ve been paying more attention, but the words wouldn’t come. My throat was tight, my body trembling from shock.

The ride blurred past in a haze of flashing lights and honking horns.

When we pulled up to the hospital, doctors nd nurses rushed toward us, taking me from him, asking questions, checking my injuries. I caught snippets of their conversation: “Superficial wound,” “no internal damage,” “keep her for observation.”

Relief flooded me so hard it made me dizzy. I wasn’t broken. Just bruised and scratched.

While they worked, the man was on his phone, pacing like a caged animal. “Yes, the parents,” I heard him say sharply. “Find them. Tell them their daughter’s at St. Mary’s Hospital.”

It wasn’t long before my Mom burst into the room, wild-eyed and breathless. Amelia and Eli trailed behindher, both crying.

“Chloe!” Mom cried, rushing to my side. She gripped my hand like she’d never let go. “Oh, baby, what happened?”

“I’m okay,” I whispered, though my voice wobbled. “Really, Ma. Just a scratch.”

Mom turned towards him, “You hit my daughter with your car?”

The man winced like the words were physical blows. “I….I did. I can’t even begin to express how sorry I am. It was an accident, but that doesn’t matter. I take full responsibility.”

Mom looked ready to explode but she calmed herself down and turned to look at me “you’re safe, that’s what matters,” she said softly, tears streaming down her face

The man took a deep breath, then dropped to one knee in front of her. It was startling, this wealthy, powerful looking man kneeling on the sterile hospital floor.

“Please,” he said hoarsely. “Let me make this right. I’ve already caused enough harm. I want to help your family.”

“We don’t need charity,” mom snapped, her pride flaring.

“This isn’t charity,” the man insisted. “It’s the least I can do. I can move you into a better home, away from that dangerous road. I can get Chloe into a safer school, somewhere she’ll thrive. I can even offer you a job,” he added, looking at mom. “Something stable, with benefits.”

Mom looked at us before she took in a deep breathe.

“That’s… too much,” Mom said, shaking her head. “We couldn’t accept that.”

But the man pressed his hands together like he was praying. “Please. If you refuse, I’ll never forgive myself. I have the means to help. Let me do this. Not for me….for her.” His gaze flicked to me, his expression raw with guilt.

My heart thudded.

I should’ve been scared or angry, but instead, a strange, breathless excitement bubbled in  my chest.

A new house. A better school,Crestwood Academy.  A life beyond the crumbling walls and peeling paint I’d always known.