The frozen heart

Epilog

The city buzzed with life as Anne weaved through the crowded sidewalks. Cars honked in the distance, blending with the chatter of street vendors and the rhythmic hum of people going about their day. The towering skyscrapers seemed to press down on her, their glassy reflections capturing fleeting moments of her movement as she hurried to work. Her bag bumped against her side with each step, a constant reminder of the precious burden it held.

The Frozen Heart.

It was safely tucked away, its once ominous weight now replaced with a quiet sense of finality. She had done it. The story had ended.

Anne adjusted the strap on her shoulder and quickened her pace, dodging an oncoming cyclist and barely avoiding a puddle from last night's rain. Her life here, in this bustling city, felt like a distant echo of the world she had left behind. The stark contrast between the vibrant streets and the silence of the rift Kaiden had screamed into clawed at her heart.

She couldn't help but think of him. His icy eyes, so filled with anguish in those final moments, haunted her thoughts. It had been the only way. She repeated this to herself, trying to ease the ache that settled in her chest every time his face flashed in her mind. It had to end. The story had to end.

And it had. Kaiden hadn't died. The story hadn't claimed him as it had every other hero before her. By sacrificing herself, by stepping into the role of the hero and bringing it to its conclusion, she had saved him.

The thought brought a bittersweet smile to her lips as she stopped at a crosswalk, waiting for the light to change. Around her, people hurried past, their faces set with purpose or lost in their own worlds. Anne wondered if any of them carried stories like hers, burdens as heavy, or memories as vivid.

But none of them knew what it was like to leave someone behind in a world so far away it might as well not exist. None of them could understand the pain of watching Kaiden crumble as she made her choice.

The light turned green, and she stepped off the curb, blending back into the flow of the crowd.

She reached for the book in her bag, fingers brushing against its worn spine. Kaiden, she thought, her steps slowing as the noise of the city grew distant in her mind. She had promised herself she wouldn't open it, not yet. But she couldn't stop wondering. Had he forgiven her? Did he understand?

Anne let out a soft sigh as she continued down the sidewalk. She had made the choice for him, for both of them. She had ended the endless cycle, the curse that had plagued them and that world. But it came at a cost—leaving him there, alone.

She paused in front of her office building, her hand tightening on the strap of her bag. Her reflection stared back at her from the glass doors, tired but resolute.

"I hope you forgive me, Kaiden," she whispered under her breath. "I hope you find peace... and maybe even happiness."

The weight of the book seemed heavier in her bag, as if it too carried his memory, his presence, lingering with her even now. Anne took a deep breath, stepping through the doors and into the office, ready to face her world again.

But she knew, deep down, a part of her would always remain in that other world. The world where she had loved and sacrificed. The world where Kaiden lived on, carrying a piece of her with him, just as she carried a piece of him here.