All Chapters of For What Still Burns : Chapter 1 - Chapter 4

PrologueThe applause is thunderous as I step off the stage, my valedictorian medal swinging against my chest with each hurried step. The sound wraps around me like a second skin—familiar, comforting. I've spent four years at Blackwood Academy chasing this moment, this validation, this proof that I belonged here just as much as the legacy kids with their trust funds and family wings named after them. And then I see him. Damien. My boyfriend of three years is on his feet, clapping harder than anyone, those stupid dimples I love so much on full display. His Blackwood-blue tie is loosened around his neck, his graduation cap slightly askew because that’s just who he is, my adorably messy boy. When our eyes meet, he mouths, "That's my girl," and my cheeks flush with equal parts pride and embarrassment. I roll my eyes but can't fight the smile tugging at my lips as I slide back into my seat beside him. "Hey, pretty baby," he murmurs, his knee pressing against mine beneath the chairs. H

DamienI watch her walk away. Like I did six years ago, rooted to the spot because I do not know how to fix this –to fix us. She didn’t even flinch when she saw me. The thought lodges in my throat. I’d imagined this moment a thousand times—what I’d say, how she’d react. But Aria Laurent had looked at me with the same polite detachment she’d give a stranger who bumped into her at the market. The emerald silk of her dress catches the light one last time before she turns the corner, leaving me in the gala’s golden haze. A small hand tugs my sleeve. “Daddy, can we go home now? I’m tired.” Theo’s voice snaps me back. His bowtie hangs loose, his curls rebelliously escaping the gel I’d carefully applied earlier. There’s a smudge of chocolate on his cheek from the dessert table he’d raided when he thought I wasn’t looking. I kneel to fix his collar. “Soon, buddy. But we have to say goodbye to Grandma first.” He groans, flopping against me. “But she talks forever.” “That’s because she’s