Promises She Can't Afford To Break

“Aldren, stop running or you’re going to be late for school!”

Seraphina’s voice followed him down the narrow hallway, breathless but firm, though the small smile tugging at her lips betrayed her.

“I’m not running!” Aldren called back, his laughter echoing as his tiny feet thudded against the floor.

“You are absolutely running,” she shot back, stepping into the living room just in time to see him dart past her with his backpack half-zipped and one shoe barely on. “And you’re going to trip, fall, and then blame me for it.”

“I won’t!” he insisted, skidding to a stop and turning to her with bright, stubborn eyes. “I’m fast.”

“You’re reckless,” she corrected, crouching in front of him and pulling him gently closer. “Come here.”

He huffed but obeyed, letting her fix his uniform, straighten his collar, and tie his shoelaces. Her fingers lingered for just a second longer than necessary—like she was memorizing him.

“Mom,” he said suddenly, softer now.

She glanced up. “Hmm?”

“I don’t want to take the school bus home today.”

Her hands paused.

For a brief moment, something unreadable flickered across her face—hesitation, calculation… fear.

“Aldren—”

“I want you to pick me up,” he added quickly, looking at her with that quiet seriousness that always undid her. “Can you come get me yourself?”

Seraphina swallowed.

Her gaze dropped briefly to his small hands gripping the edge of his backpack, then lifted back to his face. There were a hundred reasons she shouldn’t promise that. A hundred risks in something so simple.

But there he was.

Looking at her like she was his whole world.

“…Okay,” she said softly.

His face lit up instantly. “Really?”

She nodded, forcing a smile that felt steadier than the storm rising inside her. “Yes. I’ll come get you.”

Aldren’s eyes narrowed just slightly. “Promise?”

That word hit harder than it should have.

Seraphina hesitated—just for a second.

Then she exhaled.

“I promise.”

He studied her like he was making sure she meant it… then finally grinned, satisfied.

“Okay!”

She pressed a kiss to his forehead, smoothing down his hair. “Now go before you actually are late.”

He laughed again and ran toward the door.

“Aldren—walk!” she called after him.

He slowed—barely.

Seraphina followed him outside, the morning air cool against her skin. She adjusted his backpack one last time, dusted imaginary lint off his shoulders, and crouched to his level again.

“Be good, alright?”

“I’m always good,” he said confidently.

She raised a brow. “Debatable.”

He giggled and her chest tightened.

God, she loved him.

“Go on,” she murmured, brushing her thumb lightly across his cheek.

He turned and headed toward the waiting school bus, climbing in with the same excitement he had every morning.

Seraphina didn’t move.

She never did.

She stood there, watching, arms folded lightly around herself, eyes fixed on him through the window until he found a seat. Until he looked out and waved.

She waved back.

Only when the bus pulled away… only when it disappeared down the street…

Did she finally turn.

****

The list crinkled slightly in her hand as she walked through the small supermarket aisles, her eyes scanning each item carefully.

Milk. Bread. Juice.

Her lips pressed together as she glanced at the last few things written in an uneven, childish handwriting.

Chocolate cereal

Strawberry biscuits

The juice with the cartoon lion

Seraphina sighed quietly.

“Aldren…”

She didn’t need to check the prices to know those weren’t things she should be buying today.

But she added them to the cart anyway.

Because he had asked.

Because she had promised.

Her fingers tightened slightly around the cart handle as she moved down another aisle, her mind drifting—running through the day ahead, the time she needed to leave to pick him up, the things she still had to avoid—

Her shoulder collided with something solid.

“Oh—!”

The impact sent a few items slipping from her hands, clattering softly to the floor.

“I’m so sorry,” she said quickly, already crouching to gather them. “I wasn’t looking—”

A hand reached down at the same time.

Steady. Controlled.

Too close.

Her breath caught and she froze.

Slowly… she looked up.

And the world seemed to turn sideways.

Kael.

The name slammed into her chest before she could stop it.

He stood over her—taller than she remembered, broader, sharper. Time hadn’t softened him. If anything, it had carved him into something more dangerous.

His gaze met hers briefly—cool, distant, uninterested.

Unrecognizing.

He didn’t know her.

Of course he didn’t.

Seraphina forced her fingers to move again, quickly gathering the last item. “I’m sorry,” she repeated, keeping her voice steady, her head slightly lowered. “That was my fault.”

“It’s fine.”

His voice was deeper now. Colder.

She nodded, rising to her feet, keeping her expression neutral even as her pulse pounded violently beneath her skin.

Don’t look at him.

Don't react.

Don't—

As she straightened, the collar of her blouse shifted slightly.

Just enough.

Enough to reveal the faint curve of a pale, crescent-shaped scar just below her collarbone.

His eyes flicked to it.

Paused.

Only for a second.

Then moved away.

Seraphina felt it anyway.

Felt the weight of that glance like a spark too close to fire.

“I’ll just—” she gestured vaguely, stepping back. “Excuse me.”

He didn’t stop her.

Didn’t question her.

Didn’t recognize her.

And somehow… that hurt more than anything else.

She turned and walked away, each step measured, controlled, even as her heart threatened to tear straight through her chest.

Don’t run.

Not here.

Not now.

But the moment she turned the corner—

her composure cracked.

Her grip tightened around the cart, her breathing uneven as one thought echoed louder than everything else.

He's back.