Lahat ng Kabanata ng The Luna He Made Wait Until She Chose to Leave: Kabanata 1 - Kabanata 7

For the first time, I realized how much I had wasted on this man in two years.Two years of being with him. Six months of waiting and watching him put Nora first. First it was the news of her pregnancy. Then it was her unstable condition. Then it was her checkups, her sleepless nights, her every complaint about the baby. There was always a reason. I was always the one who had to understand.I took a shower and let the hot water run over my face so I could not tell if the wetness was water or tears. When I got out, the apartment was silent. The food Theron had cooked was still sitting on the table, cold and untouched. I scraped it into the trash and opened my phone to order something I could eat.That was when I saw the post from Nora.It was a photo of her lying in a hospital bed. Her face was pale, almost gray against the white pillow. One hand rested on her slightly swollen belly. The caption said, “Please let the baby be safe.”Dozens of comments had already piled up. “Take care of

It was late at night when Theron returned from the hospital.Nora was fine. The healer said she had gotten too emotional and needed rest. She had held his hand on the bed, her eyes red. “Theron, do not leave. I am scared alone.”He waited until she fell asleep before leaving. Walking out of the hospital, the night wind crept into his collar. He thought of Elara’s calm eyes when she said, “I understand you.” For no reason, his chest tightened.He drove fast. He wanted to go home. He wanted to tell Elara that Nora’s situation was handled. Starting tomorrow, they could talk about the ceremony.The car stopped in front of the house. He pushed the door open. The whole house was quiet as an empty shell.He took out his phone and called her. No answer. He called again. Still no answer. He sent messages. One, two, three. All disappeared into silence. He stood in the living room, the phone pressed to his ear, listening to nothing. The silence pressed back. He had thought Elara truly understood.

When spring came, the project started to wrap up. Lysander and I worked well together. We grew used to each other. I could not say when it started, but I noticed myself looking for him in a crowd. I noticed myself smiling at things he said.One afternoon, I finished at the lab and walked toward the cafeteria. I saw someone at the gate.Theron. He stood outside the research station in a dark coat, wrinkled from travel. His face was thin. Dark circles hung under his eyes. I did not know how long he had been standing there. I did not know how he found this place.When he saw me, his eyes lit up. “Elara.”He walked toward me quickly but stopped a few steps away. He looked at me. His lips moved, like he wanted to say something but did not know where to start.“How did you find this place?” I asked.“I searched for a long time,” he said. “You would not answer my calls. You would not reply to my messages. No one would tell me where you were. I had to look everywhere.”I did not say anything.