Rewriting The Billionaires Dark Fate Chapter 2

I cast my eyes downward, searching for the right words, but a knock at the door interrupted me.

"June?" The doctor stood in the doorway, his expression soft. "Your mother just woke up. She's asking for you."

The breath caught in my throat. I tore my hand from Rae’s grip and bolted out the door.

When I reached her ward, my heart shattered all over again. My mother lay there, her body reduced to little more than a skeleton beneath the hospital blankets. Her sunken eyes darted around the room in a blind panic until they found me.

My vision blurred. I dropped to my knees beside her bed, taking her frail, paper-thin hand and pressing it to my cheek.

"Mom. I'm here. I'm right here," I coaxed, my voice trembling. "Are you in pain? Tell me what hurts. I'll fix it. I promise I'll fix it."

Her dry, cracked lips parted. It took her several agonizing seconds to push the words past her vocal cords.

"June... let me... go." Her voice was a ghostly rasp. "No more... treatments."

"Mom, don't—"

"Go back to school," she wheezed, a single tear slipping down her hollow cheek. "Just... live your life, baby."

It felt like someone had taken a baseball bat to my ribs. The tears I’d been fighting spilled over, hot and fast. I wiped them away violently. I couldn't let her see me break.

"Mom, I have a plan," I lied, my voice painfully bright. "You're all I have left in this world. You have to stay alive so I have a reason to stay alive."

"June... you're so young. The bills... how are you supposed to..."

I gently dabbed the moisture from the corners of her eyes and gave her a watery smile. "Don't worry about the money. I found a way. You always said I was a terrible liar, right? So you know I'm telling the truth."

I stayed with her, murmuring sweet, empty promises until the exhaustion pulled her back into unconsciousness. I stared at the deep creases between her brows for a long, quiet moment. Finally, gripping the bedrail, I forced my stiff legs to stand.

When I stepped out into the quiet corridor, Rae was waiting.

He was sitting in his wheelchair, shrouded in the dim hallway light. I had no idea how long he had been sitting there.

I rushed over, instantly grabbing his hands. They were freezing. I stripped the scarf from my neck and wrapped it tightly around him, crouching down so we were eye-level.

"Why are you out here? The draft is freezing. What if your fever comes back?" I fussed, brushing a stray piece of lint from his shoulder. "I'm so sorry I made you wait. I'll go get food right now."

"The money Brianna gave you," Rae said suddenly, his eyes locking onto mine like heat-seeking missiles. "You used every cent of it for her hospital bills?"

My eyelashes fluttered. I wrung my hands together, suddenly hyper-aware of how pathetic I looked.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have helped Brianna hurt you just for a paycheck. But I was backed into a corner. I couldn't just stand by and watch my mom die."

"Then why did you spend what little you had left to save me?"

Rae reached out, his long fingers gripping my chin, forcing me to look at him. His brows were pulled tight. He was a man who understood spreadsheets, leverage, and power dynamics. He couldn't compute this.

Tears welled in my eyes, unbidden this time.

"I... I used to have an older brother."

The fingers holding my chin flinched. I pretended not to notice.

"He wanted to pay for my college tuition. He wanted to pay for Mom's meds. So he took a sketchy job down by the docks in the middle of a storm. He drowned in the river."

The tears spilled over, splashing silently onto the back of Rae’s hand. I stared up at him, my heart laid entirely bare.

"In every nightmare I have, I see his eyes when they pulled him out of the water. They were wide open. He died terrified. And when they pried his hands open, he was clutching a cheap little hair clip he bought for me."

My breath hitched. "So, Rae... I couldn't let you drown. I couldn't let you die because of me. My nightmares can't take another pair of dead eyes."

I leaned forward, resting my wet cheek fully into the palm of his hand. I looked up at him with total surrender.

"I regret everything I did to you. Please, Rae. Give me a chance to make it right. I'll do anything. I swear."

He didn't speak. The hallway was dead silent, save for the distant beep of heart monitors. Slowly, his thumb moved, tracing the curve of my cheekbone, wiping away a tear. It was a silent concession.

I stood up, gripping the handles of his chair, and wheeled him back to his room.

[The sky is falling! The MMC just texted his family's extraction team to stand down! If he doesn't go back to the Caldwell estate, when am I going to get my spicy dark romance plot?!]

[What is this extra playing at? Is she trying to seduce him to climb the social ladder? What a slut.]

[Hey, back off. The extra doesn't even know he's secretly a billionaire. From her POV, this is just two broken kids finding solace in each other. Honestly, the mom dying, the brother drowning... it's tragic. I'm kind of rooting for her.]

[I only read for the official canon couple! I'm reporting this to the system admins. We need a plot correction.]

The glowing text was fighting with itself, scrolling furiously. I ignored the vitriol, focusing entirely on that last comment. Plot correction. That made my stomach twist, but I shoved the fear down.

Back in the room, I carefully fed Rae a bowl of warm oatmeal. Once he was finished, I brought in a basin of warm soapy water.

"I know you got a change of clothes, but you fell into a dirty lake. You must feel gross. Let me give you a sponge bath."

Rae arched a dark eyebrow. "You're volunteering to bathe me?"

"Don't worry," I said smoothly. "I have to bathe my mom all the time. I know your legs don't work, but I can handle the heavy lifting."

With pure, clinical determination, I began stripping off his shirt and sweatpants. That’s when my clinical detachment evaporated. Rae was built like a Greek god. Every inch of his torso was sculpted, tight, and perfect.

My face caught fire. I let out an awkward cough, wrung out the sponge, and began wiping him down. I kept my eyes focused on the washcloth, completely professional, until I brushed past his waistline and noticed a very sudden, very obvious physical reaction.

I froze, my eyes darting up to his face. "Um... does this part... work?"

Rae, who had been aggressively staring at his phone to feign indifference, had a vein popping in his forehead. In one fluid motion, he grabbed my shoulder, pulled me forward, and pinned me flush against his bare chest. He leaned down, his lips brushing the shell of my ear.

"Why don't you try it and find out?" he murmured, his voice a dark, lethal purr. "Didn't you just say you'd do anything to make it up to me?"

"I..."

"So? Is this included?"

A shiver violently ripped down my spine. My whole body burned. I looked into his deep, predatory eyes, bit my lip, and leaned in, pressing my mouth to his.

The rest of the night was a blur of chaotic, breathless heat. Rae loved weaponizing his "paralyzed" legs, demanding I straddle him, letting him dictate the rhythm with his hands on my hips.

We stayed in that hospital for five days. Rae ran me ragged. During the day, he acted like a spoiled prince—making me massage his calves, feed him sliced apples, and fetch him coffee. At night, he was insatiable. I also discovered his surprisingly boyish side; after getting a blood draw, he sulked until I hugged him and gave him a dozen kisses to "make it better."

By the end of the week, his guard was completely obliterated. He followed me around the room with his eyes, calling me "June-bug," a far cry from the brooding, toxic billionaire the floating text obsessed over.

When he was finally cleared, I signed his discharge papers and wheeled him back to the edge of campus.

I crouched down in front of him, pulling his jacket tighter. "If you feel dizzy at all, call me. I'll come get you. I bought ribs for dinner. You just recovered, so make sure you come back to the apartment to eat, okay?"

He caught the slight waver in my voice. His eyes narrowed. "What about you? You don't have classes today?"

I looked away, staring at the pavement. "Yeah. No classes."

Before I could say another word, a sharp, manicured voice sliced through the air.

"June Evans! You actually have the nerve to show your face here? Did you forget you're not a student at this university anymore?"

Brianna strutted over, her designer bag swinging on her arm, looking at us like we were gum on her shoe. "God, the stench of poverty is making me nauseous. You two losers really are made for each other. Rae, the only trash willing to take you is June. If you ever thought you had a shot with me, you were dreaming."

Rae’s eyes went dead. For the first time, he didn't play the submissive victim for Brianna. He ignored her completely, his gaze fixed on me.

"Don't lie to me, June. Why were you expelled?"

I kept my head down, swallowing the lump in my throat.

Brianna laughed, a cruel, ringing sound. "I told her what would happen if she disobeyed me. She decided to play the hero and pull you out of the lake, making me look like an idiot. So, I made a few calls. The Dean expelled her this morning."

Rae’s hands gripped the armrests of his chair, his knuckles turning stark white.

I quickly reached out, covering his hands with mine. "It's fine, really! Now I have more time to pick up extra shifts. I can pay for Mom's meds, and I can help cover your tuition."

[I’M BACK FROM CUSTOMER SERVICE! Who cares if the extra slept with him? The canon couple MUST be together! Plot correction incoming!]