Among The Falling Embers

𝑴𝒚 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝒉𝒂𝒔 𝒃𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒕𝒐 𝒎𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒄𝒂𝒖𝒔𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒘𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒅𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒃𝒆 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒅 𝒃𝒚 𝒎𝒆.

⋆ ── ⋆ ── ⋆

"𝘠𝘰𝘶'𝘳𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘧𝘪𝘴𝘩, 𝘯𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬𝘴 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘺𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘧."

Tears mercilessly rolled down on her cheeks as the said words echoed. Placing a tender kiss on her child's forehead, she softly caresses baby's cheek, "Yes, I'm selfish. Selflessly marrying him for my child. For my own selfishness!"

⋆ ── ⋆ ── ⋆

Letting go of what was never meant to be-they say it's the right thing. But for her, it wasn't so simple. Betrayal had left her hollow, her spirit scattered like ashes in the wind. Still, she walked forward, believing strength alone would carry her. But even the fiercest flame dims. And just when she was about to fall-he caught her.

Just as he had always hoped to.

But she wasn't the woman he once knew.

The fire in her eyes had turned to embers, burning low beneath the weight of everything she had survived. Yet even in her quiet ruin, something unspoken called to him. Their story hadn't begun with grand declarations-but in the stillness between heartbeats, in the silences they never understood.

He moved on for love.

She moved on for her child.

But the spark between them never truly died.

Now, destiny hovers-like smoke in the aftermath, like warmth that lingers among the falling embers. Will fate rekindle what once was? Or will love, changed but not forgotten, rise again in a quieter blaze?

Only time-and the final stir of ash-will tell.