12.
epilogue
the lie in his eye

Every time we touched, it felt like the last time—holding onto something that felt so right yet so wrong at the same time.

Maybe that thing you muttered under your breath was actually what you meant.

"I don't see you that way."

Maybe you meant it. And Clemont and Bonnie were in the wrong for assuming otherwise.

But it was hard to let go. It was easy to forget how we started but meticulous to cut the string that bound us every time the darned three dots lit my screen with your name and that pretty grin on your sun-kissed photo.

Were the words you mumbled with your eyes somewhere else true?

Or did it start as a simple lie?

I held onto every word of yours. I felt so low, but you were there to burn away all the pain. You felt like the rain around my desert. You knew what to say before I turned to the blade.

But that one sentence...

It still rang in my head like a mantra that I so desperately wanted to forget.

I immersed myself in the extensive schedule that city life offered. I lit the midnight lamps, turned the cogs of my brain twenty-four by seven just to forget that sunlit day under the sycamore meadows.

Under our sycamore bark that held the 'A' and 'S' carved into it like dark blood against something so natural and innocent.

The crisp wind that day. Half past nine, and the summer heat smoldering the world around. The leafy canopy we lay under, fingers right there, barely grazing each other, but just there—I was cursed with the memories like aphantasia never existed.

Like I, Serena, was never meant to forget anything that was sensual.

You had asked me the questions you held the answers to. You had bound them so fragilely within strings attached that I didn't know where to poke and where to prod to get through.

Now I stand before the plain old horizons of flickering city lights, bustling crowds, children absent, and the one thing we shared in common—the skies we used to chase.

My musings were interrupted when my phone beeped with a message asking me to hurry home, but from... Ash?

I found him staring at the keyhole as if it had personally wronged him. Before I could call out, he noticed me approaching and threw an arm around my shoulder in greeting.

"I didn't know you were coming to Goldenrod?" I mused, opening the door and letting him in. Once, after kicking our shoes off and hanging the traveling coats on the stand, we collapsed onto the couch. "Soda?"

"I'll go with water," he requested, placing a few bags on the floor. I left for the counter to fetch him water and a can of soda for myself, occasionally humming as he explained his story. "I applied for a university in Ecruteak. It starts this week."

My brows furrowed, seeing the almost depleted stock of soda in the refrigerator. "How are you going to commute?"

"I've booked a dormitory from the facility. It's about a kilometer or two from the campus."

Trudging to the living room where he sat, I placed a tray of biscuits I had baked the night before and a glass of water before slumping opposite him.

"That's great, Ash."

The boy swallowed a gulp of water before nodding. He set the glass down on the tepoy, a serious expression shadowing his face. "Serena, I'm here with a purpose."

The atmosphere suddenly shifted to a thick one, one that foreboded an incoming storm. "What can I help you with?"

"How are you?"

Not gonna lie, I was caught off guard. Nonetheless, I answered, knowing exactly what he was seeking. "I'm fine. Great, even. I've got a couple of guy friends, and they're all good."

He reached forward, placing his hand over mine. "Sometimes, a lie can be convincing. Other times..." He hesitated, biting his lip. "It is seen easily."

My chest tightened, and I instinctively got to my feet, letting it take me to the fresh arena of the balcony. Footfalls followed before our hands gripped the banister.

"He was a good person." The words left in a hurried fashion. I didn't stop myself. "I still can't move on."

"You have all the time in the world."

My eyes flitted up to the skies—the only thing we shared in common. "Nobody would be so patient to wait a month or more, Ash."

"I'll wait an eternity."

My breath caught in my throat, hands turning pale with how hard they gripped the banister. I didn't dare look up from my blanched fingers.

"Falling out and falling in again?" A bitter chuckle escaped my lips. "I don't think you'd fancy that, Ash. You, of all people, in this eighty-billion population."

He laughed, the sound guttural and striking a chord within my ribcage. "Yes, I, of the eighty-billion population." I could feel his scorching gaze at my cheeks, or even lower. Then, as if the entire space had decided to fall silent to hear him speak, he proclaimed, "I'm rather surprised you didn't catch the lie in my eye the day you left."

My brain short-circuited. This time, I couldn't stop the involuntary lift of my gaze to him—to his determined expression towards the clear horizons. The outlines of skyscrapers and buildings danced lights around his face, reflecting the sunset.

"You can't play with me anymore," I whispered, not entirely trusting my voice. He stiffened but otherwise let me speak. "I'm not a kid. Not even a teenager."

"I never intended to toy with you."

Silence.

He sighed, turning to face me. Without forewarning, he advanced closer, letting our lips graze like he was testing the waters. Warmth blossomed at his touch, and I chose to call it quits.

"I told you, didn't I? I'm not letting you in," I echoed, stepping away from the boy. His face fell, but he quickly puffed his chest out and grinned.

"Wait," he said, stuffing his hands in his pockets. Whatever he wanted to say, he was carefully considering it. "I've been there too."

"Don't you know the feeling then?" I countered, feeling the stakes rising higher. If this was the way we were ruining our relationship, so be it. "Why are you trying to shatter me knowing that feeling?"

His lips quavered before he tore his gaze to the sky above. Perhaps that was what people meant when they said silence spoke louder than words or actions did.

"Two Aprils ago, I would have jumped to agree with you. But now..." He trailed off. We watched the sun set on this bustling city for a few heartbeats. "Now I realize that you moving on never did matter when you did it alone."

"What are you hinting at, Ash?"

His striking brown eyes hit me like lightning, warm yet piercing at once. The summer wind stirred a promise of us. "I lied when I told you I didn't like you. I faked it for the longest time about my feelings so that you could move on from Calem, from your traumas of losing people, but I can't run anymore, Bunny."

It was happening again. His chest collided with mine, our breaths mingled, the warmth of the right minds drenched with hormones and little to no control rushing in waves. I let myself be consumed by him this time, without any hesitation.

Clemont and Bonnie had been right. But before them, I had sworn I knew it.

I had loved and lost, but with him, I was pretty sure. All I had to do was realize how to define our relationship from being mere childhood friends to the truth.

No, we weren't the soulmates forced apart by distance and age.

I realized as much when we pulled apart for air, blushing and melting into the other's arms.

Because nobody ever was really far from you if you loved them enough.

"Bunny," he whispered, the wind pleading for more words. "I want to be close to you."

I found myself smiling against his hands; it wasn't a direct confession, but it was one nonetheless. "Ecruteak isn't far, Ash."

His skin crinkled under my palm, lighting a spark within my chest. "And I'm glad it isn't."

After all, Ash and I did chase the same summer skies.

~ fin ~

Author's Note !

The story is officially over, but I have written a few bonus chapters that take place before this book starts. The timeline goes in a descending order, that is from the most recent one (a few months before chapter one) to the oldest memory of Serena (before prologue). There is also one that takes place after the epilogue. It will be specified before the chapter starts, so stay tuned for them!

I would love to hear your thoughts on this book. Comment!

Your support means a lot to me. ^^

Thank you for reading till here!

Miyoko x