Finally, Selara dropped the mask entirely, revealing her true intentions.

“You’ve always loved him, haven’t you?” I asked, my voice calm but steady, carrying the weight of years of unspoken frustration.

Selara met my gaze without hesitation, her confidence radiating like a challenge.

“Well,” she said lightly, tilting her head as if she were admitting to some innocent truth, “I’ve always thought of him as a friend, someone I grew up with. But after these last few days… I think I might feel something more than just friendship.”

I inwardly scoffed.

“Love isn’t wrong, right?” she continued, her tone deceptively casual, as though life had forced her into this position. “Even if you’re still dating him, it’s not a guarantee that you’ll end up married. So… why not let me have him now?”

I couldn’t help but snort.

Finally, she was being honest. No games, no pretenses—just pure selfishness wrapped in polite words.

“Funny,” I said, a smirk tugging at my lips, “I was planning to. Go ahead, take him.”

After all, people like Kael were meant to be with people like her. Nothing more, nothing less.

Her confident smile wavered for a fraction of a second, but I gave her no chance to recover.

“However,” I added smoothly, tilting my head with deliberate calm, “I get to choose my own clients, too. So you’ll need to find another photographer for your big day.”

I didn’t wait for her response. I turned and walked away, leaving her standing there, speechless.

---

After everything Kael had done that morning, I hesitated to return to the apartment. I had even blocked his number. Selara’s words had confirmed what I already knew—I had no reason to stay there anymore. Seven days remained before I left, and most of my things were already packed or sent ahead, leaving only essentials behind.

That night, I decided to go back to my mother’s house.

When she opened the door and saw me standing there with my bags, her surprise quickly melted into a warm, welcoming smile.

“I missed you,” I whispered, wrapping her in a tight hug. “Can I stay with you before I leave for Melbourne?”

Her arms tightened around me immediately. “Of course, my dear. You’ll always be my little girl.”

Her warmth, her gentle voice, reminded me of something I had forgotten I needed. Since college, I had insisted I was independent, capable of standing on my own. Yet, here I was, seeking comfort in my mother’s arms.

The next morning, over breakfast, I finally told her everything.

“I’m going to start over, Mom. A new identity. I’ll even take your last name. Is that okay?”

She listened quietly, her eyes soft and understanding. Without a second thought, she smiled and nodded.

“If this is what you’ve thought through, I won’t question it,” she said gently.

“Thanks, Mom,” I murmured, grateful for her unwavering support.

---

Three days later, my mother had to leave for a sudden business trip.

“Since you’re home, can you stay and watch the house while I’m gone?” she asked, sipping her coffee. “The maid will be here, but I need someone to help feed the puppies.”

Her two tiny, energetic wolves—her pups—barked and yipped playfully from their corner, spoiled beyond belief.

I laughed softly. “Of course, Mom.”

She nodded, satisfied, then added another task. “Also… I need your help relocating your father’s grave.”

I paused, taken aback.

“The cemetery is being renovated. I thought it would be better to move him to a larger plot, in the city center,” she explained.

I thought for a moment. Originally, I had planned to stay in Melbourne for only a year, but maybe I could settle there long-term.

“Should we move him to Melbourne then?” I asked cautiously.

My mother reached over, squeezing my hand gently. “No, dear. This is where he was born. He would want to stay here. If you ever miss him, you can always come back.”

I nodded, feeling a bittersweet weight in my chest.

After dropping her off at the airport, I drove straight to my father’s gravesite. I carefully gathered his urn, framed photos, and the small keepsakes left with him. With my mother’s car, I decided to swing by the apartment one last time to collect a few remaining items. I also wanted my father to see where I had lived during college, even if only in memory.

But as soon as I opened the apartment door, I ran into them. Kael and Selara.

Kael’s eyes widened the moment he saw me. He stepped forward, curiosity written across his face.

“Railey… where have you been staying these past few days? Your room is empty. What does that mean?”

I shrugged casually, my tone deliberately indifferent. “Oh, I heard from Selara that you two have already set a wedding date. Isn’t it about time for me to move out?”

Kael snapped toward Selara, confusion crossing his features.

Selara lowered her gaze immediately, feigning innocence. “Sorry, Kael. My butler was planning to hire her as our wedding photographer. Maybe that’s how Railey found out.” She turned back to me, putting on her sweetest apologetic smile. “But I already told Railey our marriage is only an act.”

I smirked. So this was how she lied to Kael—both of them perfect in their deception.

Kael exhaled sharply, turning back to me. “Railey, I’ve already explained. Everything is just an act. Why won’t you believe me?”

“Oh, I understand perfectly,” I replied, tilting my head innocently. “That’s exactly why I made it easier for you to act. If your parents walked in and saw you still living with me, imagine the chaos that would cause.”

Kael ran a frustrated hand through his hair. “Railey, my parents would never come here. I would never let them. What more do you need to believe me?”

His desperation was almost comical.

“Right now,” he continued, attempting to regain composure, “Selara and I are figuring out how to get out of this arranged marriage. Can you just calm down?”

Selara took the opportunity to step in, voice dripping with calculated sweetness.

“That’s right, Railey. We’ve even been thinking of going abroad with you,” she said, her eyes glistening with faux sincerity. “That way, you can marry Kael in secret, without his parents knowing.”

I blinked, unable to hide my incredulity.

“We?” I asked, my voice dark with humorless disbelief.

Kael answered quickly, as though it had all been planned. “Yes, the three of us. My parents will think I married Selara, but in reality… it’ll be you.”

I couldn’t help the dark chuckle that escaped my throat.

“The three of us go together?” I repeated, voice dripping with mockery. “How… convenient.”

Selara’s usual confidence crumbled, replaced by melodrama. She dropped to her knees before me, clutching my hand in feigned desperation.

“Railey… if it’s only the two of you, what about me?” she whimpered, her voice thick with calculated distress. “My parents would be furious. I’d have nowhere to go.”

As she spoke, she shook my arm deliberately, gripping it tightly.

I yanked my hand back instinctively. The urn I had been holding slipped from my grasp.

Time seemed to stretch and warp as the porcelain vase hit the floor, shattering violently into countless jagged fragments. The ashes inside scattered across the tile like drifting shadows, carried on invisible currents.

For a fleeting moment, everything froze. Even the noise of the city beyond the apartment felt muted.

Then Selara let out a high-pitched, theatrical scream as she flailed backward, landing directly on the sharp shards.

“Argh!” she shrieked, her voice laced with pain—and maybe a little satisfaction.

A few slivers of glass had pierced her wrist, a thin line of blood trailing down her skin, and I barely had time to flinch before a searing pain shot through my own foot. A shard had found its way to me as well.

But nothing hurt more than seeing the remains of my father’s urn scattered across the floor, his ashes now strewn like wind-blown dust.

Before I could move, Kael lunged toward Selara, his arms wrapping around her in frantic protection. “Selara! Stay with me! Are you okay?” His tone was sharp, panicked, desperate.

And then, in an instant, his gaze snapped toward me. Rage twisted his handsome features.

“Why would you bring something so dangerous into this house? Look at what you’ve done! Did you mean to hurt her, Railey?!”

I froze.

Did he just call my father’s urn “dangerous”?

He didn’t ask what had happened. He didn’t even glance at me to see the pain etched into my own skin, the glass embedded in my foot. He didn’t care that Selara had fallen on it deliberately. He only saw the opportunity to blame me.

Selara whimpered softly, curling closer to him. Her breath hitched and her eyes rolled back before she fainted entirely.

“Selara? Selara!” Kael’s voice cracked as he shook her gently, then lifted her into his arms without even a look at me. He stormed toward the door, the weight of urgency propelling him forward.

But before he disappeared from the apartment, he shot me one last, searing glare.

“If anything happens to her,” he hissed, “you’ll pay the consequences, Railey.”

I stood frozen, surrounded by shards and my father’s scattered ashes, the cold of the tile pressing against my knees, and yet Kael didn’t care. He didn’t see me, bleeding and shaken. He only cared about Selara, the girl who had engineered her fall for attention.

A hollow emptiness spread through me. I crouched slowly, my fingers trembling as I began to gather the broken pieces of the urn, handling each shard as though it could somehow absorb my sorrow.

Tears blurred my vision, hot and relentless, my throat tight with unspoken grief. “I’m sorry, Dad,” I whispered, the words barely audible.

I couldn’t decide which hurt more—the fact that my father’s urn lay shattered at my feet or that Kael had betrayed me once again. After everything I had endured, why did it still sting to watch him choose Selara over me? Why did the old, familiar ache of disappointment still gnaw at my chest?

As I collected the ashes and pieces, the bitter truth struck me like a jagged stone. I had been gone for days, hiding at my mother’s house, yet Kael had never once sought me out. He knew exactly where I was, but he didn’t come. He never cared to.

From the beginning, I had known—he never intended to formalize what we had. That was why he had insisted we hide our relationship from my mother. But I had been foolish enough to believe him. I had trusted that he would do the right thing on my graduation day, that he would finally claim me properly.

But the past twenty-four hours had made it clear: it had always been me doing the reaching, the calling, the mending of things that were already broken. And this time, I was done.

Hands trembling, I scooped up the urn fragments and ashes, inhaling shakily before straightening. I gathered my remaining belongings, loaded them into the car, and prepared for the final trip to move my father’s grave.

The next day, I went to the U.S. Embassy to collect my approved visa, passport, and new identification. Stepping out of the building, a lightness washed over me, a fraction of the burden I had carried for years lifting away. Yet why did my chest still ache?

Night fell, and with it came a gnawing emptiness. All the years I had wasted on Kael’s whims, the blind loyalty, the silent compromises—they came crashing down all at once.

For the first time in my life, I went to a club. I had spent years performing the role of the good girl, the perfect girlfriend, and in the end, none of it had mattered. Kael had abandoned me too many times. Tonight, the roles were reversed—I was the one leaving him behind.

At first, I was cautious. Every man who approached, I kept at arm’s length, instinctively wary. But as the hours passed, as the alcohol warmed my veins and dulled my edges, I let myself loosen, allowing the music to take over, to blur the sharp angles of the day.

Someone moved closer. A tall figure with dark, unreadable eyes and a smirk that seemed both mischievous and knowing. He didn’t touch me, only watched, gauging, waiting.

“Are you new here?” he asked finally, his voice low, casual.

I turned toward him, eyes narrowing slightly. “Why do you ask?”

“You’re looking around too much,” he said, a chuckle tugging at his lips. “People who come here often don’t do that.”

“Maybe I like to observe,” I replied, tilting my head, keeping my tone neutral.

“Or maybe you’re trying to forget something,” he offered, his gaze sharp, almost penetrating.

A humorless laugh escaped me. “Aren’t we all?”

Understanding flickered in his eyes, subtle but undeniable. He extended a hand. “Then how about we forget together?”

I hesitated briefly, then, without thinking, took it. Even tipsy, I maintained a sense of control, knowing my boundaries. When the room began to spin faster than I could handle, I stepped back carefully.

The last thing I remember was him asking if I needed a ride, his voice calm, patient, offering.

The next morning, I awoke in a bed that wasn’t mine, the sunlight cutting across unfamiliar sheets.

I slowly lifted myself up, rubbing at my temples, trying to make sense of the fragmented memories of the previous night. My dress was still clinging to me, a little wrinkled, and my heels had been abandoned near the doorway, evidence of my late-night fatigue. Clearly, I had booked the room myself, so I had no one to blame.

Still, the pounding in my head made it impossible to stay idle, so I dragged myself toward a nearby café, craving something warm to soothe the lingering fog in my mind. By the time I arrived, the lunch crowd had filled the tables, the hum of chatter almost oppressive.

A steaming bowl of soup was set before me, the aroma sharp and comforting, and I stirred it slowly, hoping the warmth would revive me. Just as I brought the spoon toward my lips, a familiar voice cut through the din.

“Railey,” it said, low and unreadable, carrying a weight I didn’t want to reckon with. “What are you doing here?”

I snorted, not looking up. “Eating. What else does it look like?”

He ignored the sarcasm, scanning me with an expression I couldn’t read. “You don’t look well. Are you sick?”

“Why do you even care?” I muttered, stirring my soup with deliberate indifference.

Kael sighed and slid into the seat next to me. “Railey, I…”

“Save it,” I interrupted, my tone sharp. “Go back to your colleagues. You don’t have to pretend to care here. Everyone already knows you’re marrying Selara. Don’t waste your fake concern on me.”

His jaw tightened, ready to retort, but the words died in my ears as a wave of dizziness hit me. My vision blurred, my spoon slipped from my fingers, and the last thing I registered before everything went black was the panic etched across his face.

When I finally opened my eyes, I was in a place I knew—the apartment. A cool, damp towel rested against my forehead, carrying the faint scent of Kael’s cologne.

Slowly, I turned my head, only to find him sitting close by, brows knit with worry.

“You’re awake,” he murmured, reaching out to adjust the cloth.

“What…?” I croaked, confused.

“You fainted at the café,” he explained softly. “You had a fever, so I brought you home.”

I frowned, attempting to push myself upright, but his hand pressed gently against my shoulder, stopping me. “Don’t move too much. Just rest, alright?”

I wanted to argue. I should have. But the softness of the blanket around me, the gentleness of his touch, and the exhaustion dragging at my bones made resistance impossible.

He tended to me for hours. He coaxed me to drink warm water, dabbed my forehead with a damp cloth, and tucked the blanket around me whenever I shifted.

And despite my own fury at him, a small, dangerous part of me felt safe again.

He prepared a bowl of porridge quietly, blowing on the spoon before lifting it toward my lips. “Here, eat a little,” he coaxed.

I hesitated, then took a small bite. Relief softened his features, and for a moment, I felt it again—that intoxicating, perilous pull that had kept me bound to him for so long. That lingering sense of being loved, of being wanted.

But which Kael was this? The one who treated me with care, whose gaze held me as though I were everything to him, or the one who had always abandoned me for Selara?

A part of me yearned to believe in the Kael sitting before me, the one I had first fallen in love with, the one I had trusted so completely.

“Railey, you’re burning up,” he murmured, worry thick in his voice.

I shivered on the campus bench, despite the warm afternoon sun. “It’s just a mild cold,” I replied, trying to downplay it.

“Just a mild cold?” he muttered, crouching in front of me. Without hesitation, he shrugged off his hoodie and draped it over my shoulders.

I laughed weakly. “And what about you? Don’t you get cold?”

He smirked. “Do you think I’d ever let my mate freeze while I’m warm?”

Back then, I had been his priority. He would pick me up after class, leaning against his car with a lazy grin, always waiting. We’d wander aimlessly through the city, steal kisses when no one was looking, lose ourselves in cafés for hours, as if the world existed only for us.

I blinked back to the present when he brushed a stray lock of hair from my face.

“You should rest,” he whispered. “I’ll be here when you wake up.”

My body surrendered, the exhaustion weighing too heavily to resist. I closed my eyes, unsure whether I was drifting into sleep or slipping back into the dangerous orbit of his gravity.

Morning arrived. I found myself curled against him, his arm somehow having become my pillow. His eyes fluttered open as I stirred, a small gasp escaping him.

“Railey,” he murmured, still thick with sleep. His hand instinctively reached for my forehead, checking for a fever.

Feeling it had broken, he exhaled sharply, then pulled me into a tight embrace. “Thank God,” he whispered into my hair. “You scared me yesterday.”

I searched his eyes, craving the truth in them. Did he still love me? Could I trust him again?

Then, the ringing of his phone shattered the fragile calm. The name on the screen twisted my stomach into knots. Selara.

I clenched my jaw, words slow and deliberate. “Kael… can you stay here with me and ignore her?”

He didn’t hesitate. “Sorry, Railey. I need to answer this. She probably needs me at the hospital.”

Grabbing his jacket, he rushed toward the door, phone to ear, and left me staring at the empty room. There it was. His true nature—unchanged.

I let out a bitter, humorless laugh. “I must have lost my mind yesterday,” I muttered. Then, curling my fingers into the blanket, a small, grim smile spread across my lips. “Well… there’s nothing left to regret about leaving him.”

I reached for my bag, pulled out a sheet of paper, and wrote the final words I would ever speak to him. Placing the letter neatly on the nightstand beside the old bank card he had once given me, I felt a strange weight lift.

That afternoon, I headed to the airport, meeting my mother, freshly returned from her business trip.

“You parked the car?” she asked, checking with her usual carefulness.

“Yes, Mom. Valet,” I replied.

She smiled, reaching out to adjust my coat as though I were still a child off to school. “Take care of yourself. Don’t forget to call me regularly, okay?”

I swallowed the lump in my throat, hugging her tightly. For all the years I had been moving, chasing dreams, it had always been her—my mother—who had stayed by my side.

As I stepped back, her eyes glistened with tears, reminiscent of my graduation day. But this time, I didn’t cry. This time, I felt relief.

Because I had finally, irrevocably erased him from my life.

From this moment on, I would chase my own sun, free from the shadow of Kael.