"Casper, your dad wants you to come over and make a toast," Nova said, her smile as sweet as ever, while she gently rested her hand on Casper's arm.
It was like he'd been hit by lightning. He yanked his arm away and took a couple of steps back before turning on his heel and hurrying outside.
Dillon didn't waste a second and followed him out.
"Casper, what's going on? What happened?" Nova called after him, her face full of confusion. When no one answered, she stomped her foot in frustration, muttering, "Where did he go? This is so weird."
In the hospital morgue, Eliza lay silently under a white sheet.
Casper's legs almost gave way beneath him.
Aaron, who had arrived earlier, reached out to steady him. "My condolences."
"She... died?" Casper’s eyes were red, filled with disbelief. "No, she must be pranking me. She told me she'd wait for me when I left this morning... This can't be real. She must be joking."
"Mr. Casper, please calm down," Dillon tried to support him, but Casper shrugged him off and rushed to the gurney, lifting the sheet.
Eliza’s face and body were covered in blood. The blood on her forehead had already clotted, and her skin and lips had the unmistakable pallor of death.
"Mr. Casper, please don't look," Dillon said, covering her again with the sheet.
Casper shook his head, stumbling backward until he hit the hard wall. All his strength seemed to drain away as he slid down to the cold floor.
"Eliza, who the hell gave you permission to die? Who... allowed this..."
Aaron walked over slowly, crouched down to meet his eyes, and handed him something. "The doctor just gave me this. It's Eliza's. You should keep it."
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