The Lie That Broke Us

Chapter Twenty – The Lie That Broke Us

Ronan’s POV

I stood outside her door for a long time.

The wind was soft. The moon was full. Everything looked calm, but inside me… everything was falling apart.

I had never felt this kind of pain before.

Not when I lost my parents.

Not even when Sasha died.

This—this was worse.

Because I was about to hurt the one person I swore I would protect.

The only one who made me feel like I could be more than just a fighter.

Selene.

I closed my eyes and tried to breathe, but my chest was tight.

I didn’t want to do this.

I hated this.

But I had no choice.

Sasha gave me an offer.

If I said the words… if I told Selene she meant nothing to me, Sasha would step down.

She would leave the Alpha seat and stop causing trouble for the pack.

That was all I wanted—for Selene to lead without chaos.

She deserved that.

But at what cost?

I knocked on the door.

No answer.

I knocked again, softer this time.

“Selene,” I said quietly. “It’s me.”

The door opened slowly.

She was there.

Wearing a simple dress. Her hair was loose around her shoulders. Her eyes looked tired—like she hadn’t slept.

But when she saw me… her face changed.

Like she was trying not to smile.

Like part of her still hoped.

That hurt the most.

Because I was about to kill that hope.

“Hi, what are you doing here again, Ronan, or you are here with Sasha?,” she shouted.

“Hey.”

We stood in silence for a moment.

I wanted to hug her.

I wanted to tell her I loved her.

I wanted to say that everything would be okay.

But I couldn’t.

So I stepped inside.

“Is everything okay?” she asked, now worried.

I didn’t answer.

She sat on the edge of her bed, waiting for me to speak.

I sat on the chair across from her.

Far. Distant. Cold.

I had to be cold.

Because if I showed even a little softness, I’d break.

I looked at the floor. Then at the wall. Anywhere but her.

Finally, I spoke.

“I came to tell you something.”

She leaned forward, eyes wide.

“What is it?”

I bit the inside of my cheek.

“Everything between us…” I started.

My voice shook. I had to look away.

“It wasn’t real.”

She blinked.

“What?”

“You were just… something I held onto,” I said. “After Sasha. I was broken. I didn’t know how to move on.”

Her lips parted. Her hands gripped her dress.

“Ronan…” she whispered.

“You reminded me of her,” I said. “That’s the truth.”

Her whole body went still.

Tears were already in her eyes, but she hadn’t blinked yet.

“You said I was your first,” she whispered. “You said I was your only.”

I looked down.

I couldn’t face her.

“I lied.”

The word burned coming out.

She stood slowly.

Like her legs weren’t steady anymore.

“You… never loved me?”

“No,” I said, too quickly. “It was comfort. That’s all.”

“Was the kiss comfort?” she cried. “Was the way you looked at me, was that fake too?”

I didn’t answer.

I couldn’t.

She walked toward me, hands shaking.

“Ronan, I gave you everything. I gave you my heart. My body. My trust. I stayed even when you pushed me away.”

“I know.”

“I wanted nothing else but you. You were my home. Kael, and now you, I am just a substitute? I thought you would fight for me till the very en”

Tears ran down her face now, and her voice cracked with every word.

“Was I just something you used to forget her?”

“Yes.”

Another lie.

And it hurt.

It killed me.

She gasped, like the air had been punched out of her chest.

“Then why did you promise me forever?” she whispered.

“Because I didn’t know what I wanted,” I said.

Another lie.

I knew what I wanted.

I wanted her.

But I couldn’t say it.

She covered her mouth with her hand. Her body shook.

“Ronan… please.”

She fell to her knees.

“Please don’t do this. You coming to safe me every time is also fake?”

“Sasha is the one I want,” I forced out. “She was always the one.”

She cried.

Not loud. Not screaming.

But soft, broken sobs that made me want to fall apart too.

I wanted to tell her the truth—that I loved her more than anything.

That I was doing this so she could be free.

So she could lead the pack and not have Sasha breathing down her back.

That I would carry this lie forever if it meant she could rule in peace.

But she wouldn’t believe it. Not after this.

So I stood up.

“Goodbye, Selene.”

She didn’t answer.

She stayed on the floor, arms around herself, shaking.

I walked out.

Closed the door.

And then…

I ran.

I ran until the trees blurred around me.

Until I couldn’t breathe.

I dropped to my knees in the forest.

And I cried.

For real.

For the first time in years.

I sobbed like a boy who lost everything.

Because I had.

I lost her.

I gave her up.

Not because I didn’t love her—

But because I loved her too much.

And now…

She’ll never know.