Chapter 13
The following weeks were filled with small but meaningful moments. Daniel and I explored the city, sharing quiet dinners and spontaneous adventures. Every laugh, every shared glance chipped away at the walls I’d built around my heart.
But life, as always, had a way of reminding me that the past was never far away.
One evening, as I was leaving the studio, a familiar voice called out.
“Aurora.”
I froze.
Lucien stood there, looking different — older, wearier, but still that same man who once held my heart.
“Why are you here?” I asked, my voice barely steady.
“I came to talk,” he said. “To explain.”
I wanted to look away, to run, but something kept me rooted.
“Explain what?” I challenged.
He hesitated, then spoke quietly. “Everything. What happened, why I left.”
I listened, heart pounding, as he told me about the pressures from his family, the guilt, the mistakes he’d made.
When he finished, I felt a mix of emotions — anger, sadness, but also a strange relief.
“It’s too late, Lucien,” I said firmly. “You left me to survive on my own. I’ve found my own strength since then.”
He nodded, understanding. “I regret it every day.”
I took a deep breath. “Regret isn’t enough.”
With that, I turned and walked away, leaving the past behind.