The gate to the garden clicked shut behind me as Evelynne left, but I didn't move.
I stood still beneath the moonlight, as if letting go of the handle meant letting go of her.
My fingers still tingled where Evelynne had touched them. Her hand had been warm, soft—too trusting. Too full of light for someone like me.
I finally turned away and began walking up toward the palace. Slowly. Like if I moved too quickly, I might shatter something fragile between us.
Inside, the hallways were silent, steeped in gold and shadow. The torchlight flickered, dancing against the tall stone walls. Every step echoed, too loud in the hush of night. Too loud against the scream in my chest.
She had pulled me into our secret world tonight without hesitation. Had smiled like she always had—like nothing had changed. Like she didn't know I was breaking.
And when she leaned on me under the tree… it had taken everything in me not to tell her.
I'm leaving.
I'm going where I might never come back.
But she had looked up at me with such innocent peace in her eyes…
How could I destroy that?
I stopped near the window at the turn of the staircase and pressed a hand to the cold glass. Outside, the stars were scattered across the sky like they were the night we first made our promise to never leave each other.
I let my forehead rest against the frame.
I hated myself for lying. For holding her while knowing this was the beginning of the end.
My heart ached—truly ached—for her.
Not just the princess. Not the future queen.
But Evelynne.
The girl who once held my pinky with her own and told me she'd never marry someone who didn't make her happy like I did.
The one who snuck sweets into my pocket during state dinners.
The one who still believed in me, even when I didn't believe in myself.
She deserved someone who could stay.
Not someone who vanished under the cover of duty and guilt.
And yet… I couldn't stay.
Because if I did, I know I would never be able to walk away again.
I would choose her. Always. Even if it meant burning everything else down.
I closed my eyes and whispered her name.
"Evelynne…"
The taste of it was soft and bitter, like honey steeped in sorrow.
I thought of the letter in my drawer—the one I wrote in case I couldn't say goodbye. The one I kept rewriting every night because nothing ever felt enough.
Tomorrow, I told myself. Tomorrow, I'll tell her everything.
But deep down, in the part of my heart that only beat for her, I already knew—
I couldn't bear to watch her break.
Not yet.
THE NEXT MORNING
Sunlight streamed through the tall palace windows, painting golden streaks across the floor. The sky outside was a perfect wash of blue—cloudless and bright, the kind of day that called for freedom.
And Evelynne wasn't about to waste it.
She barely knocked before swinging my door open, her voice already bubbling with excitement.
"Rowy!"
I stirred beneath the sheets, half-dreaming, half-aware, until her voice hit me fully.
She was already by my bedside, cheeks flushed pink from the morning air, eyes gleaming.
"You're still in bed?" she said, mock-scandalized. "The stables are already being prepared. I made them saddle Ember for me. You know what that means."
I blinked blearily, still caught in the haze of dreams and memories. She was glowing in the morning light—her dark hair pulled into a loose braid, riding coat hanging half-off one shoulder, and a smile that made my chest twist in ways I wasn't ready to face.
"…That I'm about to get left behind," I mumbled.
"That's right." She grinned, tugging at my blanket. "Come on, lazy boy. We haven't gone riding in weeks. I even packed berries this time—real ones, not those sad, palace-approved dried things."
I sat up slowly, my shirt slightly rumpled, hair tousled, eyes still heavy from everything I hadn't said the night before.
But Evelynne didn't notice.
She was already moving around the room like she had every right to be there—opening my wardrobe, tossing a pair of boots onto the rug, humming some tune I didn't recognize but would never forget.
"I had a dream last night," she said suddenly, throwing a look over her shoulder. "That we were little again. Running through the woods without guards chasing after us, and no one calling me back for etiquette lessons."
I smiled faintly. "Sounds like a dream I'd want to stay in."
She paused at that. Just for a second. Her smile faded—just the tiniest flicker—and her eyes rested on me, softer now.
"You okay?" she asked gently.
My breath caught. I looked at her, and my heart cracked a little more.
You.
You're everything I'm about to lose.
I swallowed it down. "Yeah. Just… tired."
Her smile returned, but gentler this time. She stepped closer and touched my wrist lightly—warm and familiar. "Well, I want to race through the forest before the sun gets too high."
I nodded, forcing a small smile. "Alright. I'll be down in ten."
She beamed. "I'll hold you to that."
And with a playful spin on her heel, she dashed out of the room, her laughter trailing behind like sunlight through curtains.
The door clicked shut.
I sat still.
My chest ached.
I reached for my shirt with trembling hands, knowing I'd follow her, knowing I'd ride beside her and pretend like nothing was wrong.
Because today… Today was still hers.
And for as long as she still smiled like that—I would give her everything I had left to give.