Delayed Regrets: He Regretted Only After Her Death Novels & Stories

On the day of our engagement party, my fiancée showed up with her ex-boyfriend in matching outfits. Then she took the microphone and made a very public declaration. "Lance, even if I'm engaged, my heart will always belong to you." Every head in the room turned my way, and it was obvious they were all enjoying the show. I calmly slipped off my suit jacket and gave a small smile. "Well, the stage is already set. Why not make this your engagement party instead?"

“They're taking everything down.” Aiden gave a small shrug. “That's what happens when a wedding stops being a wedding.” Damon's mouth twitched faintly, but there was no real amusement in it. Aiden studied him. “Do you regret ending it?” Damon's eyes moved toward him. “No.” The answer came immediately. Aiden nodded. “Then that's one thing you don't have to question.” Damon lowered his gaze to the coffee in his hands. “I don't regret ending it. I regret that I ever allowed myself to believe I was making the right decision for the wrong reasons.”

"Emily Walker. But that's my former name. Academy regulations require graduating students to use their unit numbers as their official designations." The whole family's expressions darkened. They went into the study and talked in words I couldn't understand: "PTSD... depersonalization... long-term therapy..." After that, things got strange at home. They started tiptoeing around me. On Sophia's birthday, they made a difficult decision: to send Sophia away. This would be Sophia's last birthday with us. The living room was filled with balloons. A two-layer cake sat on the table. Sophia walked over to me, still gentle and sweet. "Happy birthday, big sister."

Could it be that…the intruder that tried to molest me was the prince and Eden had saved me from him? Everything was happening too fast for my liking. He went back to the burial ground, and the grave was done. But before lowering my body to the sand, Freya stepped out, not crying, not happy either. “I regret everything I did to my sister” she swallowed, pausing to look at my corpse. “I thought love could be forged, I thought I could rush destiny, but I guess I was wrong” “Me too” Mum said, also stepping forward. “I thought I have nothing to lose by maltreating Kira for Freya. I thought my other child would be there even if anything happens. But here I am, I lost two children at the same time”

The way his fingers flexed against his thigh, as if holding back something unspeakable. Regret. I could see it creeping in, settling heavily on his shoulders. He was mourning the years he had lost, the moments he had missed. I wished there was something, anything I could do. But time doesn’t pause, doesn’t rewind. No matter how much we wish to hold on, it always slips through our fingers.

As I stared at her drunken, tear-streaked face, I felt as though a knife stabbed my heart. I used to think that even though our marriage wasn't based on love, we would still learn to love each other after marriage. But Elliot's arrival made these five years feel like a rash mistake. I let out a bitter laugh, wanting to argue back. Yet, my throat felt choked, as though something was stuck. That time, I couldn't help but question her. "Do you regret being with me that much? What do these five years mean to you, then?" She only smiled foolishly, staring off into the distance in a daze, as though she could see the vision she longed for in the void.

“I’m sorry... s-sorry... I don’t know why I hesitated to tell you I loved you. Sorry for being blind. Sorry, it took me too long to see your worth.” I took a deep breath. But it didn’t help. The pain was still there. The ache in my chest, the weight on my heart. I had so much more to say. So much I wanted to undo. But in the end, I could only say one word. Sorry. But he’ll never hear it. No matter how many times I repeat it. No matter how many tears I shed. Nothing will change. He's gone. He’s dead. And all my regrets…

Like fire wrapped in silk. And I was burning. Elvis stood beside me in the war chamber, going over reports, but my mind was elsewhere. “She hasn’t asked to see me once since the wedding,” I muttered. Elvis didn’t respond right away. Then, cautiously, he said, “My King… do you think she might remember?” I turned sharply. “Remember?” He shrugged, looking nervous. “Things… from before. If we were truly granted a second life, like you believe, what if she…?”

Her voice was breaking, "In the worst possible way. By the time I made up my mind to tell him how I felt, it was too late. I live every day in regret, wishing I could turn back time." She had her back facing me but her shaking shoulders were enough to tell me she was sobbing. "I don't want you two to go through the same fate as I did so please...do what you must," I looked down at my fingers as I pondered deeply on her story. Will I end up regretting this? I looked back up and asked, "what happened to him? Did he marry another person?" I asked her and she shook her head. "He..." She swallowed. "He died." She replied, almost breaking down in tears.

When I stepped out, he looked up from his phone. His gaze paused, then lowered, and then stilled on my chest. His eyes lingered on my collarbone where faint marks of hickeys glared back at him. Something flickered in his expression, not pride not satisfaction, but something darker. Regret. He looked away first. “We’re late,” he said. “I’m sor—.” He turned and started walking before I could finish my sentence. I followed slowly and carefully, biting down on my lips as pain flared between my thighs.