Chapter 25

Lately Nani found Sky reaching for him more, staying close even when there wasn't a reason to. It was the little things. Staying at Nani's place longer than usual, making excuses to see him between work, dragging him out for late-night drives.

Tonight was no different.

"Let's stay out a little longer." Sky murmured, tugging at Nani's sleeve as they walked along the riverfront.

Nani raised an eyebrow. "It's almost midnight, Sky."

Sky just grinned. "And? Are you suddenly an old man who sleeps early now?"

Nani huffed a laugh but didn't argue. Instead, he let Sky lead him toward the water's edge, where they sat on a bench. The lights shimmered against the dark waves, but Sky wasn't looking at them, he was looking at Nani.

"Why do I feel like you're up to something?" Nani asked, side-eyeing him.

Sky shrugged, leaning against Nani's shoulder. "Can't I just want to spend time with you?"

Nani didn't respond right away, but Sky could feel the way his body tensed just slightly. He probably knew. Knew that their time together was running out. Sky exhaled softly. He wanted to freeze this moment, hold onto it with everything he had. But time didn't work like that.

"You're acting weird." Nani muttered, but his arm shifted, draping over Sky's shoulders like he was trying to hold him in place.

Sky sighed, his fingers playing with the fabric of Nani's sleeve. "It's just... I don't want to miss anything before I leave."

There. He said it.

Nani was quiet for a long moment before he finally spoke, his voice softer than usual. "I don't want you to miss anything either."

Sky forced a smile, even as his heart twisted painfully. "Then let's make the most of it."

Nani let out a quiet breath, shaking his head like Sky was impossible. But then, he did something unexpected. He pulled Sky in, wrapping both arms around him, holding him tight like he could stop the world from taking him away. Sky closed his eyes, pressing his face into Nani's shoulder, letting himself sink into the warmth, into the familiarity of being held.

Because in that quiet, in the way Nani held him, in the way he pressed a lingering kiss to Sky's forehead, it was a promise. A silent vow that even if time was slipping through their fingers, Nani would be there, holding on until the very last second.

--

The day Sky was supposed to leave had come, and the reality of it hit him harder than he expected. It wasn't supposed to feel this heavy, this final, but it did. He had spent so many months thinking about what his future would look like, what this next chapter would be, and now that it was here, he didn't feel ready.

Prim had agreed to accompany him to the Italy since Nani had urgent matters at his company to attend to until everything is settle.

They arrived at the airport a bit later than expected. The flight was in the early afternoon, and Sky had assumed he had plenty of time.

Prim casually chatting with the others customer while Sky absentmindedly looked around the terminal. But it wasn't until the flight attendant arrived, a sense of urgency in her voice, that Sky's stomach dropped.

"Excuse me, sir." the attendant said, looking down at his ticket. "Your flight is departing in thirty minutes, and you haven't gone through check-in yet. You need to hurry to the gate."

Sky froze, his eyes wide in shock. "Wait? I thought my flight was at 12:30."

Prim, who had been standing beside him, glanced at her phone. "Sky, the flight is at 11:45. You mixed up the time."

The flight attendant's patience was running thin as she ushered them toward the security checkpoint. Sky's heart pounded in his chest as he struggled to keep up.

As they rushed through the terminal, Prim pulled out her phone and quickly dialed Nani's number but there is no answer, Prim change to Win's number but none of them answer so she leave a message instead.

Sky's stomach twisted at the thought. He had wanted to see Nani, wanted that final moment with him, but now it seemed too late.

They reached the gate just in time, and Prim handed her ticket over to the flight attendant as she quickly scanned her ticket.

"I should have known the time." Sky murmured, running a hand through his hair. "I should've checked earlier."

The flight attendant returned, tapping her watch. "Sir, we need to board now." Sky looked at Prim, his heart pounding in his chest.

The door to the gate was already closing, and there was no more time to waste.

As they walked toward the plane, Sky felt a pang of emptiness. He had expected this moment to be filled with warmth, with comfort, with Nani's familiar presence. But instead, it felt cold. He hadn't even gotten to say goodbye.

Once on the plane, Sky settled into his seat by the window, staring out at the runway, his thoughts a million miles away. The engines started to hum, and with each passing second, his chance to see Nani slipped further away.

As the plane began to taxi, Sky leaned back in his seat, trying to hold onto the thought that, somehow, Nani was still with him, even if just in spirit. This wasn't goodbye forever. It couldn't be.

"I'll be back." Sky whispered to himself, a quiet promise that he would keep.

--

The meeting room door clicked open just as Win was about to check his phone again. Dew stepped out first, his shoulders slightly hunched, as if carrying the weight of the entire situation.

As they walked down the hallway toward the elevator, Win's phone buzzed in his hand. He quickly glanced at the screen. It was a message from Prim.

Prim: Sky and I already at the gate. Call me when you can.

Win's heart dropped. His first instinct was to tell Nani, but something held him back. What could he say? How could he explain it? Dew noticed Win's sudden stillness and raised an eyebrow. "What's wrong?"

Win's lips parted, but the words didn't come out at first.

"Sky's gone. Nani didn't get the chance to say goodbye." Win finally said, swallowing the lump in his throat. Win couldn't imagine how Nani gonna piss off at him because of this.

Dew's expression softened, and his voice lowered. "Nani's the one who booked the flight for Sky, right?" Dew asked, his voice almost careful. "Do you think it's possible he could've mixed up the time like Sky did?"

"You think he planned it?" Win said that, more to himself than Dew.

Dew nodded slowly "Maybe. Maybe he knew it was the only way he could let Sky go. Without seeing him leave, without having to say goodbye."

Just then, Nani walked out of the meeting room, his gaze flickering between Win and Dew with narrowed eyebrows. "What's going on?" he asked.

"Khun Nani, letting him go without a goodbye, it's too much for your innocent kid. If saying goodbye is really that hard for you, why don't you just move there with him?"

Nani paused, his eyes hardening for a moment before he shook his head, a dismissive gesture. Without a word, he turned and started walking toward his office, Lisa trailing closely behind him.

Win and Dew exchanged a glance, and Dew silently followed Nani, with Win also came with Dew. Win's chest tightened. He still didn't like the idea of Nani pushing Sky away like this.

When Nani entered his office, hoping for a moment of peace. But, as usual, peace was hard to come by when Win and Dew were involved.

"Hard day, Nani?" Win asked, his voice light but filled with that familiar mischievousness. "Or is it the weight of the guilt finally catching up to you?"

Nani brushing past them to sit at his desk. "Can you both leave it? I don't have the energy for your jokes right now."

Dew stepping forward. "Oh, come on, Nani. We're just trying to understand why you are avoiding Sky."

Nani's eyes narrowed, and he leaned back in his chair, trying to ignore them. "I'm not avoiding anything."

Win didn't let up, sliding into the chair opposite Nani. "Really? Because it looked like you were , Skipping the goodbye, letting him leave without a word. You sure that's the best choice?"

Nani's fists clenched under the desk, but he didn't look up. "What do you want from me?"

Dew raised an eyebrow. "It's not what we want, Nani. It's about what you want."

Win nodded in agreement. "You're a tough guy, Nani, but this is different. You can't pretend it doesn't hurt. Maybe you're too scared to see him go, but avoiding it won't make it easier. You know that, right?"

Nani's jaw tightened, his gaze still fixed on the desk. "It's not about that. It's better this way. It's the only way I can deal with it."

Dew sighed, moving closer, his voice softer now. "You think letting him go without seeing him is going to make you feel better? It's just going to leave a hole on Sky, Nani."

Win crossed his arms, giving Nani a pointed look. "You're not doing yourself any favors, man. Sky might be sad, thinking he just missed the chance to say goodbye, believing it was just bad timing. But the truth is, you planned it that way. And in the end, the only one truly hurting is you. Heartless, huh? Feels more like you're just breaking your own heart."

The weight of their words hit Nani harder than he expected. His shoulders sagged, and he rubbed his temples, trying to gather his thoughts. "I can't... I can't watch him leave. Even I know he will come back to me."

Dew's expression softened, and he stepped forward to clap Nani on the shoulder. "It's okay, man. He will be back, just bear with it for a few year."

"Just... give me some time, alright?" Nani muttered.

Dew and Win exchanged a look before nodding. Without another word, they left the office, leaving Nani alone with his thoughts.

--

Flashback

The airport was always a place of movement, people rushing, planes taking off, the noise of distant voices blending with the hum of announcements. But for Nani, it had always felt like a place of silence. The kind of silence that made his chest tighten, the kind of silence that spoke louder than any words.

Nani was just a kid then, but even at that young age, he knew what was happening. His parents were no longer the same, no longer the pair who laughed together, who whispered in the kitchen at night. The distance between them had been growing for months, and now it had come to this: the final goodbye.

His sister, Prim, stood next to him, clutching their hands together, her small face scrunched up in confusion and sadness. She didn't quite understand what was going on, not fully. But Nani did. He felt it in the pit of his stomach, the weight of it.

Their father stood by the gate, his suitcase in hand, his face a mixture of exhaustion and resignation. His posture was stiff, as if trying to hold together whatever was left of his family. But Nani could see it, the way his father avoided their eyes, the way he kept looking away.

Their mother wasn't there.

Nani glanced at Prim, who kept looking toward the exit, waiting for their mother to show up, to be there with them. But Nani knew. He knew she wouldn't come. She couldn't bring herself to.

He remembered the look in her eyes when she told them she couldn't make it. It wasn't just sadness. It was something deeper. A kind of quiet devastation. She loved them. But she couldn't face him, not what he did to the whole family. He started a new family when he went to work aboard and he came back only to divorced Nani's mother.

"Dad..." Nani's voice cracked, and he hated himself for it. He wasn't supposed to be the one who felt this way. He was supposed to be strong. But at that moment, with his heart breaking into pieces, he wasn't strong. He was just a child, watching his world crumble.

His father kneeled down, ruffling his hair as if that would make it better. "I'll be back soon, Nani. You and Prim take care of your mother. You hear me?"

Nani nodded, though the words didn't comfort him. They never did. Not when the goodbyes always felt like a lie. How could something so final ever feel like it wasn't?

And then, their father stood, gave a tight smile, and walked toward the gate, leaving them behind.

Prim still didn't understand. She cried, not fully grasping the weight of what was happening, asking if he would be home soon. But Nani, though he felt the sting of his own tears, didn't cry. He was trying to be strong, trying to hold on to whatever dignity he could, even if the pain was too much to bear.

He stood there, watching his father disappear through the gate, and it was then that he truly understood something that would stay with him for the rest of his life: goodbyes weren't just words. They were scars. Scars that cut deeper than anything else, scars that didn't fade. And the worst part was that they weren't always given the chance to heal.

His father left without a second glance, and Nani, standing there in the cold, empty terminal with only his sister beside him, realized that saying goodbye, saying it out loud, was like a nightmare he could never wake up from.

Nani could still hear the echo of his mother's voice, her silence, the way she couldn't bring herself to say goodbye. That memory had etched itself into his heart, becoming a part of who he was. He hated airports. He hated goodbyes.

Nani still couldn't facing it. Even he knew Sky was different. he wasn't like his father. And yet, Nani felt that same ache deep inside him, the one that made him want to run, to avoid the pain of watching someone walk away.



My babies are still the best. 😭🫂