The Silence Between Us

No one knew Summer Vale.

Yes, he was young — just 26 — and one of the world’s youngest billionaires. After his father’s sudden death, he had taken over the Vale Corporation with a mind sharp as steel and a heart no one could read. He multiplied the company’s profits, expanded into international markets, and became the man everyone wanted to work with.

But no one saw him smile.

He wasn’t rude. Not exactly. But he was distant. Cold. Untouchable. Meetings were brief. Social events — avoided. His face was always calm. Always unreadable.

His assistant, Tim, often said:

“He’s not made of stone. He’s just holding something in.”

But what that “something” was, no one dared to guess.

Summer sat in his sleek glass-walled office, locked in a video conference with major European investors. His tone was precise. His delivery was flawless.

Then Tim entered, holding his phone, eyes wide with urgency.

“Sir… It’s about Nora. Her nurse just called. It’s bad this time. No one can calm her down.”

Everything stopped.

Summer didn’t say a word. He stood, closed his laptop mid-call, and was out the door within seconds.

The ride home was silent. He stared out the window, the city lights blurring into rain. His thoughts, however, were loud — chaotic.

Nora… again. Why is this happening to her? Is it because of me?

She wasn’t just a cousin. She was like a sister. Like a part of him. They had grown up together, sharing everything — laughs, secrets, pain. She was strong once. Bright. Always smiling.

Until the day he left. The boy she loved. The boy who vanished.

That day shattered her — and maybe, it shattered Summer too.

When he arrived at the house, chaos met him.

The front door was wide open. Inside, the living room looked like a war zone — broken plates were scattered on the floor, the mirror in the hallway was smashed, and the sound of someone sobbing echoed upstairs.

Nora’s mother rushed to him, her face soaked in tears. “Summer, she’s locked herself in the cupboard again! I can’t… I can’t get her out!”

He held her gently, but his expression never changed.

“I’ll take care of it.”

Upstairs, the destruction was worse.

Her room looked like a storm had passed through it. Torn clothes, broken vases, and shattered glass from the window. And from inside the dark wooden cupboard came soft thuds and panicked breathing.

He walked slowly to it.

“Nora,” he said gently. “It’s me.”

No answer.

He placed his hand on the door. “Please come out. I told you… I haven’t stopped looking for him. I will find him. Just give me more time.”

Still nothing.

His voice lowered. “What if he came back today? And did you like this? Would you want him to walk away again?”

A moment passed. Then another. And finally, the cupboard creaked open.

She stepped out, her eyes red and swollen. Her hands trembled. Her voice, broken.

“No… I don’t want him to leave again,” she said in panic. “Look, Summer… I came out. I’m a good girl. See? Please tell him…”

Summer swallowed hard. His heart screamed, but his face stayed still.

How had she come to this? Once the strongest person he knew, now reduced to a frightened shell of herself. All because of love. Because he left without a word. Because she couldn’t find him again, no matter how hard she tried.

He helped her to bed, brushing her hair gently from her face. The nurse entered quietly, gave her a calming injection, and Nora slowly drifted to sleep.

Then the doctor arrived.

Summer didn’t wait. “It’s been three years. Why is she still like this? Why aren’t your medicines helping?”

The doctor sighed. “Sir… her body is healthy. But her mind is stuck. She’s traumatized. She keeps reliving that moment — the moment he left her. It’s not just heartbreak. It’s fear. Abandonment. Pain that has no shape or logic.”

Summer clenched his fists.

“She doesn’t need more medication,” the doctor continued. “She needs something real. Something human. If we can find that boy again… if she sees him, there’s a chance she might start healing.”

There was silence.

“I’m trying,” Summer said quietly. “But I don’t even know where he went.”

And then — only in his mind, where no one could hear it — he whispered:

I want to see him again, too.

Why? Was it only for Nora? Or was there something else Summer wasn’t saying? Something deeper?

No one knew.

Later that night, Summer sat on the living room sofa, staring at the ceiling like it held answers.

Then he reached beneath the cushion… and pulled out a hidden diary.

He opened it slowly, carefully, like a sacred object. His eyes scanned the pages, and something in them changed. His cold expression softened. His lips trembled. And for the first time, his eyes filled with something unspoken.

Not fear. Not anger. But longing.

This diary held a piece of the past.

Something important.

Something missing.

Maybe even the truth?