Chapter 6

I woke to a deafening silence. The room was still, cold. My head throbbed faintly, but the sharpest sensation was the death grip on my wrist.

Kane.

He was seated beside the bed, his eyes locked on me—haunted, unmoving.

“Julia…” His voice was gravelly, raw. “I didn’t know there would be an avalanche. I swear, I didn’t mean for any of it to happen.”

His grip tightened like he was terrified I might disappear again—like he was clinging to the last piece of his sanity.

“You can scream at me. Hit me. Hate me if you want,” he murmured, Adam’s apple bobbing as emotion strained his voice. “But please... don’t shut me out. Just—just stay awake.”

Before I could speak, the door burst open.

Bang!

Lilian stormed in like a whirlwind of tears. Her face was flushed, her eyes swollen red.

“Julia… I’m so sorry.” Her voice trembled. “It’s not Kane’s fault, he left you behind for me. He didn’t think you’d get hurt. He didn’t know...”

Her words came in a rush, thick with guilt—or a carefully curated performance of it. “You have no idea how crazy Kane got when he heard about your accident. He broke through the rescue lines. He injured himself looking for you.”

I stared at her blankly, feeling the absurdity build like bile in my throat.

Kane stood and pulled her into his arms like it was instinct. His hand gently cradled her back. “The healer said you shouldn’t cry. It’s not good for the baby.”

The baby.

I almost choked.

I nearly died buried under snow, and his first concern… was whether she was crying?

The bitter laugh that bubbled in my chest never made it out.

“Get out,” I said.

Kane blinked. “Julia—are you being emotional again?”

I turned to him, my voice steady and hoarse, each word laced with steel. “Do you seriously not get it? I said… get out.”

Then I grabbed the glass on the nightstand and hurled it at the floor. It shattered, a harsh, satisfying sound. Finally, they moved.

He paused in the doorway, looking back at me like I was a wounded pup throwing a tantrum.

He still didn’t see it.

He never saw it.

Kane always believed no matter what he did, I’d forgive him. That I’d fold, that my love would catch him.

Not this time.

---

The next few days, he started acting like a guilty man. Like he was trying to win me back through sheer persistence.

He brought flowers. Pastries. Apologies wrapped in sweet words and fond memories.

He laughed like old times, told stories from our youth, even reminded me of the time I crashed into a ditch during my first driving lesson. His charm was effortless, practiced.

But I didn’t laugh. I didn’t even flinch.

He was trying to drag me back to the past.

But some things don’t glue back together. Some cracks… stay broken.

---

On the day I was discharged, he was already waiting at the door.

In his hand was a light training whip.

“Still mad?” he said, half-grinning. “Here. Use it. Hit me if it’ll make you feel better. Just… let’s forget all this, okay?”

I stared at him—at that face I once knew like my own—and didn’t recognize it anymore.

“Julia,” he tried again, softer this time, “there’s a banquet tonight. Jennifer’s hosting. Everyone will be there. I want to take you. Please—don’t be mad anymore.”

I didn’t say a word. I just got in the car. Not because I forgave him. But because I no longer cared.

He tried to fill the silence during the drive, tossing out jokes and old memories like candy. But I just stared out the window, the chill of the glass more comforting than his voice.

When we arrived, the villa was glowing with light and laughter. But the first thing I saw when I stepped inside?

Lilian, draped in Jennifer’s arms, beaming like the queen of the evening. Kane noticed my gaze and reached for my hand.

“Jennifer asked to see her,” he explained quickly. “We didn’t tell you because we didn’t want you to be upset. But you’ve never really held grudges, have you?”

I pulled my hand away, gently. “You’re overthinking it.”

He paused—really paused—for the first time, as if he finally understood that something had shifted.

But just as quickly, the moment passed. He plastered on his usual smile, the one that assumed everything was still okay.

He still thought I was the same Julia.

Still believed that I’d never leave.

Jennifer’s smile vanished the second she saw me.

“She might be Luna now,” she said coolly, “but Lilian has already fulfilled her purpose. Unlike Julia… who never had the courage to accept the responsibility.”

I didn’t argue.

I didn’t need to.

Once upon a time, this woman used to invite me for tea. She called me elegant. Wise. A perfect match for Kane.

Now? I was the woman who said she didn’t want pups.

I still remembered that dinner. That turning point.

I hadn’t even finished speaking when Kane jumped in: “She’s scared of the pain. Don’t pressure her. I’m not in a rush. We’ve got time.”

He said it with a laugh, like we were always on the same page. Like we shared some secret bond no one could shake.

He even squeezed my hand that night and whispered, “If you never want kids, I’ll take the burden for you. Always.”

And I believed him.

But now?

He was in the kitchen, crouched over the stove, stirring a pot of prenatal soup with such care you’d think she was his Luna.

As if I’d never even existed.

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