CHAPTER 424

ARIA’S POV

I came here expecting a discussion, nothing more.

“Adam, I’m leaving now.”

“Let’s have a quick bite and then you leave, please.”

His voice is hesitant at first, then determined, as if he’s been holding back all these thoughts for too long. He blurts out what has been weighing on his heart, and it catches me off guard. He reminds me of the island, of what we shared before the pirates showed up, and the way things felt between us back then. It was just the two of us in that moment—no chaos, no external pressure, no past to haunt us. It was raw, it was real, and we were so close to something... different. Adam asks, his voice low but steady.

“If you hadn’t lost your memory... if none of that had happened, do you think things would have turned out differently?”

His question hangs in the air, and I don’t answer right away. Of course, I’ve thought about it before. Those moments on the island felt like a new beginning, a chance for us to reconnect, maybe even rekindle something th