CHAPTER 24

A New Beginning-or the End?

"You're leaving?" Adrian's voice was barely above a whisper, as if he couldn't quite believe the words himself. He stood at the edge of the campfire, its shadows dancing across his face, his eyes searching hers for an answer that seemed impossible.

Flora did not know how long she sat staring into the fire, the crackling flames offering no comfort, no answers. The moment weighed upon her, and words that had swum in her head broke free.

“I don’t know what I’m supposed to do anymore, Adrian.” She looked up, meeting his gaze. His presence was both comforting and suffocating all at once. He had always been there, always. But now… it felt different. "I can't keep holding on to something that doesn't make sense anymore."

He didn't say anything right away. The silence stretched between them, thick and suffocating. Adrian looked like he wanted to say something, but the words wouldn't come. He was a man of action, always. But this. this was different.

"You don't have to do this, Flora," Adrian finally said, his voice low, vulnerable. "We've been through too much for you to walk away. If you stay, I'll make it work. I'll fix things, I swear."

But she could feel the cracks in his voice. And, damn it, she was tired. Tired of pretending she wasn't falling apart, tired of being tied to the past. The war was over. The battles, the loss-it was done. But now came the harder part: what to do next.

"You say you'll fix it, but. we've been broken for too long," Flora said, her voice shaking, though she tried to keep the tears from coming. "I don't think you can fix this. Not without changing everything. And I don't know if I can trust you to change. Not anymore."

Adrian took a step closer, desperation clinging to his eyes. "I will. I promise, Flora. I'll do whatever it takes."

Flora swallowed hard, her throat constricting. She wished so much to believe him. But all the lies, the broken promises, and the betrayal that had finally been piled onto them were too heavy to take away.

"You cannot just keep fighting to fix things by throwing yourself into the fight," she said softly. "You have been running from the truth for so long, Adrian; I am not even sure if you know who you are anymore. And I. well, I need to find out who I am, too."

For a moment, Adrian's expression faltered, as if her words hit him harder than he was ready for. He shook his head, running a hand through his hair. "Then we do it together. We rebuild. We'll figure it out.

Flora looked up at him, her heart breaking all over again. It was easier to want that-to want to believe in the fairytale where they both lived and made it through. But real life was messy, and sometimes there wasn't a happily-ever-after.

I need space, Adrian. I need to be on my own for once. To find my own path," she said, the words final, though they tore her apart to say.

"Flora…" Adrian's voice cracked as he reached out, his fingers brushing hers. "You're not alone. You don't have to do this alone.

In an instant, she realized something. Flora did not want to be anyone's shadow anymore-not even his. She wanted to be the girl who defined her future. And she could no longer keep their ghosts of past experiences prescribing her life.

"I have to," she whispered, pulling her hand from his final painful act of self-preservation.

Adrian stood there for a moment, staring at her as if he was waiting for her to take it back, as if somehow, this wasn’t the end. But she wouldn’t take it back. She couldn’t.

“You’re choosing this over us?” Adrian’s voice was raw with emotion, though he tried to hide it behind the cold exterior he’d mastered over the years.

Perhaps there's nothing left to choose," she whispered, her hard gaze trying to ward off the ache in her chest. "Maybe there was nothing to fix from the very start."

He said nothing. He couldn't. There were no more words between them anymore.

Suddenly, a voice cut through the night air. "This is hard, isn't it?" asked a familiar-sounding soldier who turned out to be Rhea, with which both seemed astounded. The woman had stood only a few feet away from them, crossing her arms across her chest. "Sometimes, the tough choices are exactly what we ought to make,

Flora nodded mutely, trusting herself no more to say a word. The soldier was right. It was hard, but it was necessary.

Adrian turned then to look at Rhea, his jaw tight. "You think this is easy for me? You think I want to let her walk away? She's been the only thing worth fighting for, and now she's leaving.

Rhea didn't bat an eyelid. "You cannot make her stay. At times, you need to let go, no matter how the earth beneath your feet is falling away. Everyone makes their choices."

Flora swallowed hard, then looked once again at Adrian. Pain and a resolve to end it were the mixed elements on his face; there was nothing left to be said now, nothing more. They were at the end of a road that they could no longer walk together.

"I will be gone by morning," she called out in a breaking voice, turning to make her way. "I have to find my own way."

"Flora…" Adrian called after her, but she didn't turn. She couldn't.

The next morning, Flora packed her things in silence, making sure to leave behind the few reminders of her time with Adrian-moments she could never forget but had to leave. She did not want to run away from her past, but she couldn't stay in it either. It had to be different now.

As she was about to leave, a hand touched her arm.

"Wait."

Flora turned around to see Adrian standing there, his face worn and tired but his eyes steady. He wasn't the man she had known all those years ago, and she wasn't the woman he had fallen for. They'd both changed.

"Don't go," he said, his voice quiet but insistent. "Not like this. Let's just. let's talk about it. We don't have to decide everything today.

Flora closed her eyes. It all felt so overwhelming, the weight of it all. "You don't understand, Adrian," she whispered. "It's not about us anymore. It is about me, and what I need. Can't keep waiting for you to be someone else. I need to figure out who I am. Without you.

With a deep breath, she then turned away, aware she was making the right decision yet somehow feeling that she walked away from a part of herself.

He stood still while Flora vanished from sight. His heart, aching he knew she had to move along, could no longer wait to see him changed and things made right. Both of them would have to turn to their different paths.

But as the sun began to rise, Adrian felt something stir inside him—a new sense of purpose, maybe even a new beginning, or perhaps, the end of everything he’d known. But whatever it was, it was something he had to face on his own now.

Back at the camp, Rhea stood watching, arms folded. “You think you’ll be, okay?”

Adrian didn't say anything after that. He just stared straight ahead; thoughts heavy with his own decisions. "I don't know, but I must find out."

"Then we'll be here when you are ready," she said, flashing him a very small, very understanding smile.

Adrian nodded; his chest tight. That wasn't all. Not now. But at the moment, he had lots to figure out-and a future to rebuild.

And somewhere out there, Flora was doing the same thing.