CHAPTER 25 Aug 13, 2025 I tried to wipe the tears away, but my hands were shaking too badly. Every breath burned. Every thought slammed against the next. He chose her. He didn't even look at me. And I let him. I let him. The ache in my chest was worse than any cut, any bruise. Because it wasn't just about the choice. It was about the silence. The way he'd let me walk away like I was no one. Like what we had wasn't real. I didn't hear the footsteps until they were too close. "Marianne?" I looked up. Riven. He stood a few feet away, frowning, his whole face tightening when he saw me. He stepped forward like he wasn't sure if I'd push him away. "What happened?" he asked. "Did he-did he hurt you?" That broke something in me. "No," I said. "Not like that." Riven crouched in front of me, his voice softer now. "Is it true? He chose her?" I nodded, and his hand clenched on his knee. He was quiet for a moment, then he looked at me with something warm and fierce in his eyes. "Then good," he said. I blinked. "What?" "Good," he repeated, breathless, almost smiling. "Because now you don't have to pretend. We can finally-Marianne, we can be together now." The world tilted. "What?" I said again, but sharper this time. He reached for my hand. "We never got to finish what we started. But now there's nothing in the way." "Are you serious right now?" I snapped, yanking my hand back. He looked startled. "I thought you-" "You thought I was what ? That I was waiting for you to swoop in and collect me like some consolation prize?" "That's not what I meant-" "I loved him, Riven," I said, voice rising. "I gave up everything for him." "You're crying in a hallway," he shot back. "He didn't choose you." "Because I told him not to!" I stood, shaking now-not from heartbreak, but fury. "Because it was the only way to protect him. And you show up like this is some win for you?" "I'm not trying to win," he said, standing too. "I just want-" "What you want doesn't matter." That shut him up. The silence stretched, sharp and tense. I wiped my face, even though the tears kept coming. Then a new voice cut through the air. "Well," Clarissa said from the end of the hall, "this is cozy." I turned slowly. She was leaning against the wall like she'd been there the whole time, arms crossed, smug as ever. "Don't stop on my account," she said. "I love a good love triangle. Though it's not much of a triangle if one of you already lost." "Why are you here?" I asked, exhausted. She stepped forward, each footfall precise and echoing. "To offer something. A gesture of goodwill, if you will." I didn't answer. I didn't trust myself to speak. Clarissa smiled. "I want you in the wedding." The words landed like ice water. She waited, watching the disbelief settle over me. "You're my sister, after all," she said sweetly. "It wouldn't feel right without you there. Front row. Preferably smiling." I said nothing. She leaned in, voice a whisper now. "He might love you, you know. But he chose me. And in the end, that's all that counts." She pulled back, satisfied, and turned on her heel. "Wear something muted," she called over her shoulder. "Wouldn't want you drawing attention." And just like that, she was gone. I stood there, trembling, surrounded by silence and the pieces of everything I couldn't hold onto. Riven didn't speak again. And for once, I was grateful.