After the Last Tear: Rising from the Ashes of a Broken Marriage By Cassila K

Chapter 72

The countdown is almost over.

Two days.

Fall is here. The air is crisper now, with a freshness that wasn't there before. The sky is weighed down by thick clouds, and drizzle begins to form fog on the streets, making the sidewalks slippery.

I wrap my shirt tighter around me, the thin fabric doing nothing to keep out the cold. I slip on my slippers and walk downstairs slowly, carefully, as if delaying my final routine here.

And then-

A black umbrella tilts toward me, shielding me from the rain before I can even notice the drops hitting my skin.

"Always walk in the rain," comes a low, familiar voice. "Aren't you afraid of catching a cold?"

I pause.

He holds the umbrella handle tightly-too tight. The tendons in his fingers stand out, and his knuckles pale from the pressure.

Pax Brown.

No more pretending.

No more wearing faded hoodies or worn sneakers. No more carefully crafting an image of a struggling man. He stood before me now, radiating the quiet, gaily- bred wealth that had always been second nature to him.

But his face his expression-

That hadn't changed.

He smiled.

if nothing

if he wasn't standing before someone he'd been deceiving for two

the midst of a slow,

to me personally?" My voice was light, nonchalant. Detached, as if he'd shown up at my doorstep

the casual mask slipping in an instant. "Do you

I almost laughed.

he always decide the rules of our

much

in that hospital room, looking at me with cold, distant eyes, and said

you walk out that door,

And yet

He's here.

I'm sorry.

I didn't answer.

bought Nina - it was

could be

close-it would have been inappropriate not

I didn't move.

guilt and sincerity, so close to believability that he might have succeeded if I

time, I've been playing two

my friends, I'm reckless and arrogant. They expect me to be Pax

you..." His voice softened. "When I was with you, I

I stared at him.

felt like I was split in two. I didn't

His hands clenched into fists at his sides. "I didn't

Ah.