جميع فصول : الفصل -الفصل 158

Ethan's POVThe car ride into the city felt strange in a way I couldn't quite explain.Grandpa sat beside me in the back seat, his walking stick propped between his knees, humming some old tune under his breath as the mansion disappeared behind us. Damian drove in silence, his eyes occasionally flicking toward the rearview mirror, though whether he was watching the road or watching us, I couldn't tell.I kept my hands folded in my lap, trying to look calmer than I felt.*A normal day.**Just try to have a normal day.*"You're too quiet," Grandpa said suddenly, turning his head toward me. "A young man going shopping should look excited, not like he's headed to his own funeral."I managed a small laugh. "Sorry. I'm just not used to this.""Not used to what? Shopping?""Being taken care of."The words slipped out before I could stop them, quieter than I meant them to be. Grandpa's expression softened, the teasing light in his eyes dimming into something gentler."Well," he said after a p

Author's POVAfter the movie ended, Grandpa walked out with a big satisfied smile, still recounting his favorite scene under his breath, clearly thrilled with how the evening had unfolded."Let's go for dinner. I know a place," he chimed, already moving toward the car with more energy than either of them expected from him.Adrian was staring at his phone screen, a message pulling his attention. Before he could say anything, Grandpa had already settled himself into the front seat beside Damian.Adrian exhaled, shaking his head faintly."He can be too much sometimes," he mumbled, more to himself than to Ethan. Though Ethan caught the words anyway, along with the faint, reluctant fondness buried beneath them.The car pulled up in front of the restaurant, its entrance glowing softly beneath strings of warm lights. Adrian stepped out first, adjusting his jacket, followed by Ethan, who lingered near the door, glancing back toward the car where Grandpa remained seated."Aren't you coming?" E

Adrian's POV Yesterday was my parents' anniversary. I woke before the sun had fully risen, the way I always do on this particular morning, my body remembering the date before my mind fully catches up to it. For a moment, lying there in the grey half light, I simply stared at the ceiling, letting the weight of it settle over me the way it does every year. *Twenty years.*Twenty years since the house stopped smelling like my mother's perfume in the mornings. Since my father stopped humming off the key in the shower, thinking none of us could hear him. I sat up slowly, pressing the heels of my palms against my eyes, willing the familiar ache in my chest to loosen its grip before the day even began. I don't celebrate it in any grand way. I never have. Each year, I simply cut a small cake, quiet and unceremonious, and distribute the rest among the beggars scattered along the street corners near the old chapel. It felt like the only honest way to remember them, not with speeches or can

Ethan's POV I woke to an empty room. The space beside me on the bed remained untouched, the sheets smooth and undisturbed, and for a moment I simply lay there, disoriented, blinking at the ceiling before the reality of it settled in. *Adrian isn't here.* I sat up slowly, glancing toward the small clock on the nightstand. Later than I usually woke, though not late enough to explain the silence pressing against the walls of the room. I freshened up quickly, pulling on the first clothes within reach before making my way downstairs, my footsteps echoing a little too loudly against the quiet corridors. Grandpa wasn't in the study. He wasn't in the garden either, no walking stick propped near his usual chair, no half finished cup of tea waiting on the table beside his newspaper. I walked into the dining room instead, settling into my seat as a plate of breakfast was quietly placed before me. I ate a few bites in silence before finally glancing up. "Mrs. Rosamund." She appeared almo