"The last kiss had the taste of a cigarette. Bitter and sad smelling..."
From Selena's perspective
A knot of unease twisted in my chest as I stepped onto the cold sand. The wind tugged at my hair, and the ocean whispered secrets I didn't want to hear. I scanned the beach, clutching the blanket tighter in my arms.
But Felix wasn't there.
He was supposed to be waiting for me—right here, right where I left him.
I took a few steps closer to the water, my eyes straining to find the silhouette I knew so well. But darkness swallowed everything beyond the shoreline. A strange panic rose in me, quiet but sharp.
Why wasn't he here?
Why couldn't I see him?
"Felix!" I called, my voice catching in my throat. The only answer was the crashing of waves. "Felix!" I called again, louder this time, the blanket slipping from my grasp. "Felix!!!"
The night was still. Too still. Time seemed to stop—and I knew with a terrible clarity that when it started again, something would change. Something might break.
Then, from the corner of my eye, I saw it: his phone, half-buried in the sand, its screen glowing faintly.
I dropped everything and lunged for it, snatching it up with trembling hands.
The screen lit up, and I gasped.
It was a video call.
His mother's face filled the screen, pale and tear-streaked, her voice frantic.
"Selena, save him! Save my son!"
My blood ran cold.
My heart stopped.
Her voice echoed in my skull, but the world around me went quiet. I stood frozen, the sound of my own breathing louder than the wind.
I turned toward the shore again—and saw them. His shoes. Abandoned. Alone.
But no sign of him.
Tears stung my eyes, hot and useless.
"Felix?! Felix, please answer me!" I screamed, my voice cracking. "Felix, where are you?!"
I ran toward the waves, stumbling blindly. The ocean opened up before me like a mouth.
"Felix, darling, please—please answer me!"
The cold water swallowed my feet, then my calves, then my thighs. I didn't feel the chill. My body was numb with fear. I waded deeper, frantic, arms shaking, heart pounding like it might burst.
Find him. Find him. Find him.
I would give anything to bring him back.
He was my only, my first, my everything. I couldn't lose him.
When the water reached my chest, I still didn't stop. My teeth were chattering, my skin raw, but I kept moving.
And then—
"Selena!"
Arms wrapped around me from behind, pulling me close.
"I'm here," he whispered, breathless and shaking. "I'm with you. I'm fine… Everything is fine."
His voice—hoarse and trembling—broke something in me.
I snapped out of whatever trance I'd been in and finally felt the cold bite into my skin. My lips quivered, and I looked up to see the waves swelling around us.
"I'm with you," he repeated. "Let's go back to shore. Please."
I turned slowly, facing him. His eyes were glassy, red from tears. His hair, soaked and clinging to his forehead, glistened under the moonlight. My hand reached up instinctively, brushing it back.
"I thought something happened to you," I whispered. My voice cracked under the weight of my fear.
"I'm fine, my love. I'm here." He pressed his forehead to mine, grounding me, holding me there. "Let's go back."
We trudged out of the ocean together, each step heavy, every inch of our bodies shivering from cold and adrenaline. He picked up the blanket and wrapped it around us both, drawing me into his arms as though trying to warm me with his soul.
"Why didn't you answer when I called?" I choked out. "Why did you let me think… think you were—?"
"I'm sorry," he said, voice thick. "I didn't mean to scare you. I needed to come to my senses. I won't lie… for a moment, I thought about doing something I'd never be able to undo."
My breath caught.
"But then a wave hit me hard. Pulled me under. And in that moment, something snapped into place. I realized that this world—the cold, the ocean, the pain—it's real. That you are real."
His arms tightened around me, and he looked at me with a new kind of clarity in his eyes.
"I remembered how much I love you. How much I'd hurt you if I gave up. You're my anchor, Selena. Everything you've done, all of it… you did it to save me. My mother tried to destroy me again, but the thought of you—of us—brought me back."
He paused, breath shaking.
"I know now that Lucas and you tried to protect me from the truth, from her. And yes, for a moment I doubted everything. I thought maybe none of this was real. But I came back. Because you are real. This life with you is real. And all those terrible things—those are the illusions. The lies I believed in for too long."
I sobbed into his chest, wrapping my arms around him tightly.
"I love you, Felix," I whispered, barely able to speak. "I love you madly. Don't ever do that again. Please."
"I love you too. More than I'll ever be able to say." He kissed the top of my head. "And I swear to you, I'll fight every shadow inside me. You are my one and only, Selena. Always."
*
One Year and Six Months Later – Selena's Perspective
Tears welled in my eyes as I watched my best friends standing in front of their wedding cake, exchanging vows. They had lived like soulmates for years, but for Lily's sake—and maybe a little for tradition—they decided to make it official. Their parents, once hesitant and wary, finally breathed a collective sigh of relief.
I glanced sideways at the man I loved, my heart catching in my throat for the thousandth time.
His blond hair had grown out again, reaching his shoulders, catching the sunlight like threads of gold. He looked radiant. Free. The kind of beautiful that made the whole world seem quieter for a second.
He caught me looking and squeezed my hand, flashing that flirtatious smile that never failed to melt me. There was something softer in him now. Something whole. He still had a long road ahead, still carried the weight of things that might never fully disappear—but he was healing. Slowly, patiently. And because of that, he could truly live.
He hadn't spoken to his mother since that day.
After she got hold of his number—illegally—and nearly pushed him over the edge again, Lucas had gone into protective overdrive. He stormed in, made sure their mother was served with a restraining order, and for the first time in their lives, Felix didn't have to face her alone.
Lucas. Complicated, sharp-tongued, and cynical—he'd changed too. Not by much, but enough to notice. He still wasn't the easiest man to talk to, still preferred silence over small talk, but he had softened in his own gruff way.
And somehow, after a year of back-and-forth, Hannah managed to win him over.
Their story was a battlefield. He tested her relentlessly, needing to be sure she wasn't just another woman chasing his name or his money. But Hannah never backed down. She was strong, steady, and knew exactly what she wanted. And in time, he realized she was exactly what he needed, too.
Now, they bicker constantly—but it's affectionate, full of fire and laughter. They have that impossible kind of chemistry. The kind people envy. And Lucas—cold, guarded Lucas—he finally learned how to smile like he meant it.
And Sebastian?
He's still the boss's right hand. Still loyal. Still waiting for the love of his life to show up. But I believe she'll find him, the way love found the rest of us. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow—but someday, she'll walk into his world and stay.
As for me and Felix… we're happy.
We don't have all the answers. We don't know where life will take us. But we do know one thing: we want to face it together.
He's the man I want by my side, now and always. The man I want to walk down the aisle with, to laugh with, to cry with.
And that moment?
It's coming soon.