Reclaiming My Broken Luna by Selene Souchon

Chapter 288: Tears of the Past Nova's POV "You don't mean that," I said, my voice trembling. "You've never seenthat way before. You've always seenas just... as just ' "As just a friend?" he interrupted, his voice pained. "I know. I made you feel like you didn't matter, like you were nothing more than a second thought. And I'm so, so sorry for that, Nova. I should have seen it sooner.

Astrid showedhow foolish I've been, how I've been chasing something that was never meant for me, while ignoring the one person who has always been there, right beside me." He took a step closer, reaching out to gently cup my face, his thumb brushing away a tear that had slipped free. "You're the woman I should have been fighting for, Nova. The one I should have cherished all this time. I don't deserve your forgiveness, but I need you to know that I see it now. I see you. And I'm so sorry for all the ways I've hurt you." His words pierced through the pain I had carried for so long, stirring up a whirlwind of emotions inside me. This was the apology I had never expected to hear, the acknowledgment of all the hurt he had caused. "I left because I thought it was the only way I could survive the pain, Drystan," I confessed, my voice trembling as I spoke the words I had held inside for so long.

"I couldn't bear being around you while you were looking at her like that... while you were loving her in a way I thought you could never love me." I continued.

"I thought if I got away, if I put enough distance between us, I could finally forget everything I felt for you." Drystan's expression softened, and I saw the guilt flicker in his eyes, deepening with each word.

His grip on my hands tightened, but he didn't interrupt, allowingto continue.

"But even when I was gone, I couldn't stop thinking about you," I whispered, my voice cracking as the tears welled up again.

"I couldn't stop wondering if maybe... maybe I could have done something differently, maybe if I had been stronger, I could have stayed.

But I couldn't, Drystan. I couldn't keep hurting myself, pretending that I was okay while loving someone who never saw me." His face twisted with pain, and he looked away for a moment, his jaw clenched as if struggling to hold back his own emotions.

"It's my fault for pushing you away, Nova. You are my mate. I should have never made you feel like you were invisible," he murmured, his voice thick with regret. "I wish I could go back and change everything." I shook my head, a small, sad smile tugging at my lips. "I didn't cback expecting you to change the past. I cback because I needed closure, because I thought if I faced you, if I told you how I felt, I could finally let go and move on with my life." Drystan's eyes widened slightly, and he looked back at me, searching my face as if he was afraid of what I might say next.

"And now?" he asked, his voice barely more than a whisper. "Do you still want to move on without me?" I paused, letting out a long, shaky breath. "I don't know, Drystan. Everything thought I knew has changed. But... when you toldthat you hally saw me, that yofinally realized what I meant to you, it maderealize that maybe, just maybe, we could have a different future. One where I don't have to carry the hurt alone anymore." His expression softened, and for the first time, I saw a glimmer of hope in his eyes.

He cupped my face again, his thumb brushing against my cheek, wiping away another tear. "I can't promise that I'll get everything right, but I swear never take you for granted again, Nova. If you'll givethe chance, I'll spend every day proving that I see you - that I cherish you." The sincerity in his voice, the raw emotion in his eyes, cracked something inside me, and I felt my own tears spill over, hot and unrestrained.

I reached up, placing my hand over his, letting myself lean into his touch, letting myself hope.

"I'm scared, Drystan," I whispered, my voice breaking as more tears slipped down my cheeks.

"But I want to try. I want to believe that this time, things could be different. That maybe we could find something real together." He let out a breath that sounded like it cfrom deep inside his chest, and before I could react, he pulledback into his arms, holdingtightly against him.

His own shoulders shook as he buried his face in my hair, and I felt the warmth of his tears on my skin. "Thank you, Nova," he choked out, his voice cracking with emotion. "Thank you for givinganother chance. I promise I won't waste it."

I wrapped my arms around him, clutching the fabric of his jacket as the tears, flowed freely between us.

O But these weren't the tears of hurt and rejection that had defined so much of our past.

They were tears of relief, of letting go, naging of finding a new beginning in the place where so many endings had En once been written. We held each other there, like it was both the first and the last time, as all of the pain and fear slipped away.

And as our tears mingled, a new sense of warmth bloomed in my chest a fragile, precious hope that maybe, after all the heartache, we could finally build something lasting.

en We were finally letting go of the past. We were stepping into something new, something beautiful, together.

For the first time, the future felt bright-filled not with uncertainty, but with the promise of everything we could become.