Chapter 44: complicated feelings

"Lucian…" she whispered, her voice breaking, the bouquet shaking in her hands. "Please... I'm sorry. I didn't know… I didn't know how much I was hurting you."

Lucian's eyes softened for a moment, but they remained distant, locked in a battle between the past and the present. "Avey…" his voice was calm, but there was a deep sadness to it, like a person who had given up on something they once cherished. "I begged you for years. I stood before you, just like you are now, and I gave you everything I had. And every single time… you pushed me away."

Avey shook her head, her sobs growing louder as she struggled to speak through the pain. "I didn't understand, Lucian… I didn't realize"

Lucian cut her off, his voice still gentle, but firm. "But now you do? Now that I've finally let go, you suddenly understand?" His words weren't accusatory, but there was a weight to them that made Avey's heart break even more.

"I thought you hated me,"