All Chapters of Désiré Me 2: Chapter 181 - Chapter 187

I nod. She clenches her teeth. I see the anger rising in her. "He said it came little by little. Like an obviousness they didn't want to see." "Fuck, what an asshole." "He's not an asshole. He's lost." "Stop defending him." "I'm not defending him. I'm saying what he told me. He was sincere. He was almost crying." "What does it change that he's crying? What does it change that he's sincere? He hurt you. He's hurting you. Period." "I know." "And now, where is he?" "I kicked him out. I told him to go back to the hospital. To go back to her." "You shouldn't have." "Why?" "Because you just sent him straight into her arms. Because you told him 'go where you want to be'." "That's where he wants to be." "You don't know that. Maybe he wanted to stay. Maybe he wanted to fight for you." "He should have fought before kissing her." Aurélie She sighs. She runs her hand through her hair. She's thinking. I know her. She's preparing something. "Okay," she says. "We're going to do th

AurélieIt's 4:17 a.m. Seline is sleeping on the couch, curled up under a too-thin blanket. Me, I'm sitting in the dark, back against the hallway wall, phone in hand.I look at her message. "You are my sister. You always will be."My sister.That word that should protect. That bond that should be sacred. That thing we imagine indestructible until the day someone tramples it.I think back to that conversation. Two years ago. At my parents' house. Summer."You know, Béatrice, I'm really lucky with Lorenzo. I'm happy.""I know. It shows.""You too, one day, you'll find someone.""Maybe. In the meantime, I'm enjoying life.""Promise me something.""What?""Promise me you'll never meddle in my relationship. That you'll never try to... I don't know... take my place.""Aurélie, what kind of stupid question is that?""It's not stupid. I know stories. Sisters who... well, you know. Promise me.""I promise. You're my sister. I would never do something like that. Never."Never.I type. This time

BéatriceI get up without making a sound. I go to the living room. I sit on the floor, back against the couch, like Aurélie a few hours earlier.I think back to that promise. The summer one. The one where I swore."I would never do something like that. Never."I believed it. At that moment, I really believed it. I thought those feelings would eventually pass. That I would meet someone. That everything would sort itself out.But feelings don't always pass. They settle in. They dig their hole. They become a habit, an addiction, a drug.Him. His laugh. The way he runs his hand through his hair. The way he says my name. Everything. Everything is etched into me.How do you stop loving? How do you extract someone from your skin?I open my phone. I look at the conversation with Aurélie. I scroll up. I see our messages from before. The jokes. The photos. The "I love you, my sister." Everything that was simple. Everything that became complicated.She's right.The thought imposes itself, clear,

Lorenzo She's crying. Softly. Silently. Like she always cries. "I'm sorry," I say. "For what?" "For everything. For hurting you. For loving her. For still loving her." "Do you love me, you and me?" "Yes. But it's different." "I know. That's why it's complicated." We stay there, hand in hand, watching the rain against the window. Outside, the world continues. Inside, we're trying to rebuild something we broke ourselves. And in Portugal, there are my children growing up. And there's her. Always her. --- Béatrice Night. The twins are sleeping. The apartment is calm. I look at my phone. The draft is still there. The one I wrote a year ago. The one I never sent. "You were right. About everything." I reopen the message. I reread it. A year later, it's still relevant. I could send it. Now. Tonight. Tell her I'm sorry. That I think of her. That I wish things were different. But I don't. Because it's too early. Because it's too late. Because I don't know. My phone vibrate