The ceremony ended after half an hour, and Harper and Daria were officially declared husband and wife. As they walked down the aisle, everyone threw confetti and congratulated them before rejoining them at the reception in the hotel.
Later that night, Harper asked me to dance while Daria dragged Caleb to the dance floor. “He’s a good man, Nyah, and he loves you,” Harper said with a smile. “I can tell from the way he looks at you.”
I smiled as I watched Caleb dance.If he only knew the truth.
“Don’t be scared to let him completely in.”
I was taken aback for a second. “I’m not,” I stuttered. “I mean, I won’t.”
“Nyah, getting over you was the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do. It took a long time.” He let out a quiet breath, watching our feet move slowly across the floor. “The distance… and my career… they drove a wedge between us. Eventually, it ended what we had.”And the other woman, but that wasn’t something he needed to hear now… or ever.“But believe me when I say this,” he continued softly, firming his hold on me just slightly as we slowed, almost coming to a stop in the middle of the dance floor. “You’ve done more for me than I could ever properly thank you for. You helped me reconnect with my mother when I didn’t even realize how much I needed it.” His voice softened further. “You and Lucas will always have a special place in my heart. And if you ever need me—anytime, for anything—I’ll be there.”
I knew he meant every word. The song came to an end, and I looked back up at him, kissed him on the cheek, and smiled. “Thank you. That means a lot.” I put my arm in his and walked toward Caleb and Daria.
Harper shook Caleb’s hand. “You’re a lucky man.”
“And so are you,” Caleb said, looking at Daria and then back at him.
While Caleb checked on Lucas, Christine came and sat down beside me. She took my hands in hers and whispered, “I was hoping it would have been you up there with Harper.” She paused and looked at me again. “He told me you ended things. You know, he would have left everything and come back from New York if you told him you loved him. You didn’t want to shatter his dreams, so you let him go. Isn’t that right?”
I looked at her, squeezed her hands, and said, “He deserves all the happiness in the world, Christine. He truly does.”
I could never tell her the truth—especially not when the rift between her and Harper had been caused by her own infidelity toward his father. The irony that Harper had done the very same thing to me would have been unbearable to lay at her feet. Not today. Not on the happiest day of her life, and her son’s. Some truths weren’t meant to be spoken. Not when silence was kinder.
Harper and Daria left to catch their flight at the end of the night.
Caleb and I swayed on the dance floor with Lucas tucked safely between us, his small hands curled into ours as the night’s final song played softly in the background. For the first time in a long while, I allowed myself to believe that comfort and longing could exist in the same breath.
Caleb’s visitsdecreased slightly as work kept him busy and constantly on the move, flying in and out of cities.
One night in early December, after he surprised Lucas and me by stopping by for dinner, a sadness fell over me as he got ready to leave. I tried to hide it, but the distant, empty look on my face betrayed me.
“I’ll stay for a bit longer if we watch a movie,” he said gently.
I smiled and putAnna and the Kingon Netflix. The screen came alive with Jodie Foster’s face, the opening music filling the room, and somewhere halfway through the movie, exhaustion pulled me under. I drifted off without realizing it and slipped straight into a dream.
“No, no, you can’t do this to me!” I was running, my lungs burning as my screams tore out of my throat. This can’t be real. It’s not possible. My feet felt heavy, like they were sinking into the floor with every step. “Get your hands off me!” I screamed, kicking wildly, my voice breaking with terror.
The air was thick and stale, heavy with that musty smell that made my stomach churn. I knew it before I saw it.
Dauphin.
The walls closed in around me, dim and familiar, and there it was—the old, torn couch shoved into the corner, its fabric ripped and sagging like a silent witness.
“GET OFF ME! GET OFF ME!”
My body felt icy and weak, my limbs slow and unresponsive, panic crashing through me in violent waves. Escape was the only thought left in my mind.
I fought with everything I had. I kicked. I punched. I clawed at him—at Jeremy—but it was like hitting smoke. He kept coming. His hands were slick with sweat, his grip iron-hard, his breath hot against my skin. No matter how hard I struggled, I couldn’t break free. My muscles screamed, my vision blurred, and fear wrapped itself around my throat until I could barely breathe.
Then I heard it.
Caleb’s voice… distant at first, muffled, like it was coming from underwater.
“It’s a dream, Nyah. I’m here. It’s only a dream. You’re safe. I’m right here.”
Where are you? Why won’t you save me?I twisted away and ran toward the sound of his voice, my heart hammering, desperation clawing at my chest. I called for him, but my voice came out thin and useless. No matter how fast I ran, I couldn’t reach him. The darkness stretched endlessly around me, swallowing everything.
I jolted awake with a strangled gasp, my body jerking violently as though I’d been thrown back into myself. My chest heaved, air scraping painfully down my throat.
