THREE YEARS LATER

The warm golden glow of the evening sun bathed the balcony in soft light.

The gentle breeze carried the faint scent of jasmine, swaying the sheer white curtains ever so slightly.

Aurora sat curled up on a cushioned chair, her hand resting over her growing belly, as Sebastian stood behind her, his fingers absentmindedly threading through her hair.

Three years had passed.

Three years since that night.

The night that had left scars, both seen and unseen.

Sebastian sighed, his eyes staring into the horizon.

“It still feels unreal,” he murmured, his voice low.

Aurora turned her head slightly, looking up at him.

“What does?”

He exhaled deeply, running a hand down his face. “That he survived.”

Adrian didn’t die that night.

Despite the blood loss, despite the sheer hopelessness in his eyes when he made that final decision, he had lived.

They had taken him to the hospital in time, and after endless surgeries, his body had healed. But his mind?

That was another story.

The doctors said the damage to his brain was irreversible.

A nerve responsible for memory had been severed. Adrien had forgotten everything.

The past. His crimes. His pain. Aurora.

To him, Aurora never existed.

The government didn’t let him walk free. He was still punished, for the kidnapping, for the attempted murder.

He remained locked away in a high, security facility, part prison, part rehab.

They said he was getting better, learning new things, adapting to a life without his past.

But to them, he was gone.

A life forever lost in the void of his own shattered mind.

Aurora shivered slightly at the thought.

"Do you think it’s better this way?"

Sebastian was quiet for a moment, then he nodded.

"He was a man who suffered too much. Maybe forgetting was his only way to be free."

Silence settled between them, heavy but not unbearable.

Then, a sudden kick against her belly made Aurora gasp softly.

Sebastian’s head snapped down in surprise. "Did...?"

She laughed, taking his hand and placing it over her stomach.

“He kicked.”

Sebastian’s breath hitched as he felt it... the faintest but strongest little movement beneath his palm.

His child. Their child.

His eyes softened, his lips curving into a rare, tender smile.

"He’s strong," he whispered, pressing a kiss to her forehead.

Aurora leaned into his touch, letting herself melt into the warmth of the present.

The past would always be there, lurking in the shadows.

But so would their love. Their new beginning.

And as the sun dipped below the horizon, painting the sky in hues of orange and purple...

Sebastian and Aurora sat there...

T H E E N D

Started: 27/2/2025

Completed: 15/3/2025