Alessandro's POV
Five years ago
The ground was still damp. I stood in front of a small grave at the far end of the cemetery, away from the others, no family plots, no names anyone would recognize.
Just one...…..
Aria Valen...…
The letters were carved simply. My jaw locked as I stared at it, like if I looked long enough, the name would blur and disappear but It didn't.
I crouched slowly placing the flowers down with care. White lilies... her favorite. She once said they looked soft but strong. That they survived longer than people expected.
"I'm late" I muttered quietly.
"Again."
My voice sounded wrong out here. I sounded dumb, talking to myself with no one answering but then.... I didn't care.
I stayed there longer than I should have. Long enough for the caretaker to start glancing in my direction.... Long enough for my phone to buzz unanswered in my pocket.
I didn't move...…..
Because this...,,,,,
This was the only place I was allowed to miss her.
Everyone thought I moved on.
They didn't know about the nights I drove through the city until dawn, hoping to see her face in a crowd. They didn't know about the calls I made to numbers that no longer worked or the places I searched until my hands shook and my chest burned.
She vanished.
No trace, no explanation.
Just a flimsy message that didn't sound like her.
Don't look for me.
I laughed once dry and broken staring at the grave.
"You promised..... you promised to be by my side no matter the obstacle we faced."
I pressed my palm flat against the earth. I had searched until there was nothing left of me but rage and exhaustion.
Until the silence convinced me of the worst. Until this.......
This was all I had left...….
I closed my eyes...…,
Her face came to me the way it always did... Laughing.... Hair everywhere...….. Eyes bright...….. sitting on my lap, telling me how our house would look one day. Light colors, warm floors, a place that didn't feel like a cage.
I swallowed hard....
"I would've taken you away," I said voice breaking
"You know that right?"
"I would've chosen you."
The wind moved through the trees, leaves rustling softly.
I stayed until the sky darkened, until my body went numb. Then I stood straightened my coat, putting my mask back on and walked away like a man who knew how to survive without a heart.
Aria's POV
I woke up late, emotionally exhausted. The room was flooded with morning light, pale and calm. For a few seconds, I didn't move. I just lay there staring at the ceiling, listening.
Silence...…..
No Alessandro...
My heart dipped instinctively before I noticed it.Then I turned my head.
A tray sat neatly on the side table beside the bed.
Breakfast...….
Toast..... fruits...… A cup of tea already covered so it wouldn't go cold too fast and a folded piece of paper.
I hesitated before picking it up. The handwriting was exactly the way I remembered clean and masculine.
I have an important meeting this morning.
Eat your breakfast.
Lorencio has already left for school.
Have a good day at work.
That was it...…
It wasn't filled with endearments neither was it romantic but then I could hear him in every word...….. trying so hard not to show too much...….. holding himself back a bit.
I pressed the note lightly against my chest, my heart fluttering regardless.
He cared... That much was undeniable... but caring didn't erase history.
I sat up slowly wrapping the duvet around myself. The room still smelled faintly like him ..... his cologne, clean sheets, familiarity I hadn't asked for but never stopped craving.
I should have felt relief.
After everything… after the confrontation, the truth, the forgiveness spoken in fragile fragments...….. I should have felt safe.
The man I had loved for years was here, present and trying. So why does my chest still ache?
Why did fear curl quietly beneath my ribs like it had found a permanent home there?
I love Alessandro.
That truth hasnt changed, no matter how much time had passed.
But love wasn't the problem... The past was...….. The nights I cried alone....The months of silence...….The feeling of being abandoned when I needed him most.
Those things don't disappear just because breakfast is served and a note is left.
I swung my legs off the bed my feet touching the cold floor grounding me back into reality.
Im not the same woman anymore and he isnt the same man either.
I took a bite of the toast chewing slowly staring at the empty side of the bed...….
Finally, he's here...….
But letting him back in?
That was a different battle entirely and I wasn't sure yet if my heart was ready to fight it.