Maria.
My heart started beating loudly against my chest. Not the steady rhythm I was used to, but a frantic pounding, as though it were trying to break free from my ribs. Each thud echoed in my ears, drowning out every other sound around me.
The corridor seemed to blur.
And then…The academy.
The memories came rushing back without warning.
Images flashed across my mind so vividly it felt as though I had been thrown back in time. The smell of hay. The sharp scent of polished leather saddles. The wide training field bathed in afternoon sunlight.
I had been so blind back then.
So foolishly, hopelessly blind.
I loved him.
That was the truth I had refused to question.
I loved him enough to ignore the cracks, I loved him enough to silence my doubts, I loved him enough to keep quiet when I should have spoken.
I told myself it was loyalty.
I convinced myself it was patience.
If I stayed by his side…If I didn't complain…If I endured quietly…One day, he would see me.
