Her Home, His Heart | ✓

☆*✿FIFTY-SIX (56)❀*★

♪♪And all along I believed I would find you

Time has brought your heart to me

I have loved you for a thousand years

I'll love you for a thousand more ♪♪

ᴺᴼᵂ ᴾᴸᴬᵞᴵᴺᴳ [A thousand years] - [Christina Perri]

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After breakfast, Esmé moved to the kitchen under the disguise of wanting to clean up. After a few arguments from Vera and Vinko about her washing up, they let be.

Her little plan of staying within her thoughts dashed out of the window the instant Zora and Luka walked into the kitchen.

"What do you guys want?"

"The truth," Luka said and hopped onto a counter.

Esmé stopped washing the plates and turned to the duo. "The truth about what?"

"About whether you're happy to be back home with us."

"What are you even talking about, Zora? Of course, I'm happy to be back home."

"Then that's good to hear but..."

"Something is still off, isn't it? You're back home, but there's still a certain longing within you."

"What are you guys rambling on about and since when did the two of you become psychological analysts?"

"We have become nothing of the sort, Iva, but I can read you to a certain extent. Some things have definitely changed about you, but it doesn't mean I can't smell your guilt from a mile away."

"What are you feeling guilty about, Ivana? You said you would not let me live in my guilt just yesterday. You would not allow it, so why on earth are you absorbing your guilt?"

Esmé sighed as they hit the nail right in the head. How was she to tell them how she felt without being cruel?

"What is it? We know it has something to do with the doctor but tell us now."

"It is difficult to just say it like that. I know I shouldn't hold on to this guilt, but I can't help it. I got a new family when I didn't remember who I was and I love them, but having them feels like I'm betraying all the hurt you guys all went through when you thought I died. There's nothing that makes me feel worse than that. I never want to undermine your pain and it sucks that one way or the other. I'm doing just that."

Zora walked towards her and stopped right in front of her. "Look, if I say I'm not hurt that you would prefer to get that family for the time you knew them than your memories, I'd be lying. But you should also remember something, I have been the one who has always wanted you to find the right person you would sneak looks at like you do to this doctor after all wasn't I the one who prompted you and Luka to go out with each other?"

Esmé turned to Luka at this. It was one of the other things that were plaguing her mind.

As if sensing the projection of her thoughts, Luka hopped down from the counter and walked closer to her.

"You don't owe me or any of us anything, Ivana. You need to understand that. Yes, everyone each went through their own share of grief and in a way so did you. Don't think you owe me your life because I stayed around. I didn't stay with your family because I thought you were coming back. You were supposed to be dead and so I didn't expect you to come back for me. So if that man out there is the one for you, don't let him go. I've never seen you look at any man the way you look at him, and I am so glad that he looks at you in exactly the same way. So please, trash this guilt that's eating you up and do what you want to do."