In a turn of events that nobody at Forrester Creations saw coming, the fragile peace between Ridge and Eric collapses the moment Eric announces he is ready to return to work. After weeks of slow, painful recovery, Eric finally feels strong enough to reclaim part of the identity that has defined him for decades. His request is simple: let him come back in a limited role—design, mentor, contribute in whatever way he can. He approaches Ridge with humility, warmth, and a genuine desire to help, not to take over.

Ridge listens, but the shadows behind his eyes say everything. He still hears the memory of Eric’s labored breathing. He still sees his father collapsing in the boardroom. The trauma hasn’t faded; it haunts every decision he makes. Where Eric sees purpose, Ridge sees danger. For Ridge, the company isn’t just a workplace—it’s a battlefield of pressure, deadlines, and emotional strain that nearly killed Eric once. The idea of placing him back in that environment terrifies him.

When Ridge finally speaks, his answer is calm but immovable:
Eric cannot return.

The words land like a blow.

Eric is stunned. For him, Forrester Creations is not a job—it is the thread that stitches his life together. He explains that returning would not weaken him; it would restore him. His voice trembles as he tries to make Ridge understand that he needs meaning, not rest. That designing is not exertion, but oxygen.

But Ridge shakes his head. And that refusal slices through Eric in a way he didn’t expect.

For the first time, the mighty patriarch finds himself pleading. He begs Ridge to trust him, to let him decide what his body can handle. He’s not asking for power—just the chance to feel like himself again. But Ridge remains unyielding, locked in fear and guilt. Every word Eric speaks only tightens Ridge’s resolve.

Then Ridge reveals the truth—cold, blunt, and devastating.

He tells Eric that allowing him back would be an invitation for disaster. That one mistake, one late night, one moment of pushing too hard, could start the same spiral that nearly took his life. Ridge admits he cannot bear the weight of watching his father collapse again. He refuses to carry that guilt.

The room freezes.

Eric hears the words, but what wounds him is the tone—emotionless, almost clinical. Ridge speaks as if Eric’s greatest joy is a threat, as if the passion that built an empire is now a liability.

For a man who spent his life proving strength, creativity, resilience, the idea that his son views him as fragile or burdensome is almost unbearable. Eric stands there, devastated, realizing Ridge believes he is protecting him—but all Eric hears is dismissal. The company he built, the legacy he shaped, is now something he is being kept away from.

Ridge walks away believing he saved his father.

Eric stands alone believing his son just took away the last piece of himself he still had left.

And now the fracture between them deepens—quiet, sharp, dangerous.

As the dust settles over Forrester Creations, one question becomes impossible to ignore:

Did Ridge protect their relationship… or did he just push Eric away for good?