All I wanted was to understand.
A word. A glance. Something.
But he kept avoiding me.
Day after day.
Class after class.
Until I couldn't take it anymore.
---
It happened after Legacy History.
The room emptied out, and I walked faster than usual, heart pounding like it had something to say. I saw him in the hallway, alone, flipping through some papers.
Perfect.
"Gael!"
My voice was louder than I meant it to be.
He turned around slowly. His face didn't show surprise. Not anger either.
Just… emptiness.
"Yes?"
"Are you seriously going to keep pretending you don't know me?"
He sighed.
Not out of annoyance, but… resignation.
"I'm not pretending," he said, calmly.
"I'm trying to forget."
I froze.
"Is it that easy for you? To forget everything?"
"No."
His voice sharpened now.
"It's not easy. But it's better than going back to what we were."
"To what we were?"
"To what broke us."
My lips trembled, but I forced myself to speak.
"What if I don't want to forget?"
He finally looked at me. Really looked.
"Then hate me.
If that's what you need to move on, do it.
But don't ask me to carry something that wasn't my fault."
It hurt.
More than I wanted to admit.
Because there he was—Gael Dravien—looking at me with those ash-gray eyes, acting like the past meant nothing.
But his voice…
It shook.
Just a little.
Enough to know he was lying.
And I… I pretended not to notice.
Because sometimes, pain is easier than asking for the truth.