Semua Bab When Love Crosses the Line: Bab 131 - Bab 140

The courtyard outside the church buzzed with cheerful chatter, but Amara walked through it as if she were drifting through smoke. The air carried the scent of fresh-cut grass and the faint perfume of lilies from the altar arrangements, but she barely noticed. Around her, children darted between legs in bursts of laughter, women in wide-brimmed hats exchanged compliments about their outfits, and men clasped hands in hearty fellowship. The service was over, but the Sunday ritual of connection had only just begun. For Amara, though, the joy felt distant, muffled, like a song played underwater. Every step away from the pew she had just left widened the hollow ache in her chest.Her mother’s hand slipped around her elbow, firm yet outwardly gentle, guiding her toward the waiting family car. Her father was already by the door, chatting with an old colleague, his booming laugh carrying above the hum of conversation. Her mother leaned closer, her whisper sharp enough to cut through Amara’s ha

Amara sat cross-legged on her bed, pen poised above the page. The lamp on her nightstand cast a soft pool of light across the paper, illuminating the restless scrawl of words that had already filled half the page. She wrote Liam’s name at the top, always the same beginning, as though addressing him directly might make the distance between them disappear.Dear Liam…The ink bled slightly into the paper fibers as her hand trembled. She poured her heart onto the page: her longing for the warmth of his arms, her anger at his silence, her confusion at being caught between him and her family’s expectations. Some nights, the letters were sharp, full of accusation and fury. Why won’t you fight for us? Why do you leave me alone in this battle? and other nights, they softened into pleading, Please don’t give up on me. I need you more than I can say.But every letter ended the same way: her handwriting breaking into uneven lines as tears blurred the ink, her final words scratched hastily before

The bar was dimly lit, with warm amber lights strung across the ceiling, giving the room an intimacy that felt almost conspiratorial. It was the sort of place where businessmen loosened their ties after a long day, and young couples leaned across tables with whispers. In a corner booth tucked away from the crowd, Liam sat with his best friend, Femi. Two glasses of lager rested between them, half-drunk, condensation sliding slowly down the sides.For a long while, they didn’t speak. Liam toyed with his glass, staring at the golden liquid as though the answer to his troubles lay somewhere inside its bubbles. Femi, who knew him too well, simply waited.Finally, Liam exhaled a heavy breath and leaned back against the cushioned seat. “I don’t know what I’m doing anymore.”Femi raised a brow, his dark eyes steady. “That’s not the Liam I know. The Liam I know always has a plan. Always has a blueprint.”“Not for this,” Liam admitted. His voice carried a rawness he rarely let anyone hear. “Wor

Amara lay on her bed long after the party had ended, her room bathed in the pale glow of moonlight streaming through the curtains. The engagement songs from the night still echoed faintly in her ears, laughter and clinking glasses lingering like a ghost she couldn’t shake. On her desk, the small velvet box sat unopened, its presence so heavy it seemed to tilt the room toward it.She turned on her side, staring at it, then turned back again, as though changing positions might ease the turmoil pressing on her chest. But nothing shifted. The box stayed where it was, silent, gleaming, suffocating.Her hand twitched. She reached out, picked it up, and held it against her chest, feeling the hard edges press into her palm. She thought of Darren, his smooth words, his flawless confidence, his certainty that life with him would be neat, respectable, easy. A future paved in gold, but one that felt like a cage.She closed her eyes, and Liam’s face rose in the darkness. His laughter, raw and unpo

Amara sat motionless long after the call ended, the phone heavy in her hand. Liam’s words echoed inside her, reverberating against the walls of her heart until they seemed to be carved into her very bones.If you choose me, I won’t stop fighting for us. Not ever.Her breath trembled in and out. She had wanted to answer him, to shout the truth that burned inside her chest, but the words had collapsed beneath the weight of fear. Her silence had spoken for her, though not in the way she wished.The velvet box still sat on the desk, the diamond inside catching the morning sun as though mocking her indecision. Darren’s certainty glistened in its facets, an entire future already shaped, already approved. A future that was not hers, but theirs.Her phone vibrated again, a single message lighting the screen.Liam: I’ll wait for you, Amara. But please… don’t let them decide for you.Her throat tightened, and she pressed the phone to her chest, as though she could absorb his voice through skin