Liora remained seated beside him, quiet and composed, her laptop balanced neatly on her knees as she copied the surveillance footage onto a small silver USB drive. She moved with deliberate calm, every click precise. In her mind, she already pictured the parting gift she planned to leave behind—something unforgettable, something that would linger long after she was gone.
Midway through the transfer, Kaelen suddenly lifted his head, his sharp wolf senses sweeping through the house. His brows knit together slightly. “Why does it feel so… bare in here?” he asked, glancing around. “Didn’t you put up the decorations?”
“You said we shouldn’t make a fuss,” Liora replied evenly.
She wasn’t bothered. She knew better than anyone that Kaelen’s attention no longer lingered on anything that didn’t revolve around Marcella. Still, this time, his gaze paused on the countdown calendar hanging in the living room. A small chuckle escaped him.
“Funny how time works,” he said lightly. “Only seven days left until the ceremony.”
Liora closed her laptop and rose to her feet. Walking over to the calendar, she reached up and tore away two pages in one swift motion.
“It’s five days now,” she corrected calmly.
The torn pages fluttered to the floor. Written on them were two handwritten wishes: Ride the Ferris wheel together and Watch the stars side by side. Each one struck quietly, cruelly—because Kaelen had already done both of those things, just not with her.
A strange sensation flickered through Kaelen’s chest, brief but sharp, like the shadow of a memory slipping through his claws. He opened his mouth, as if to say something, but before he could, Liora’s phone vibrated.
She glanced at the screen, her mother’s name lighting up the display. “Excuse me,” she said softly, stepping out onto the balcony.
By the time she returned, Kaelen had already retreated into his own world, eyes fixed on his phone, fingers moving quickly—no doubt immersed in a conversation with Marcella.
“Who was that?” he asked absentmindedly. “I thought I heard something about visas.”
“Just work,” Liora answered lightly, waving it off.
He visibly relaxed. “Good. Don’t go planning any trips after the ceremony. I won’t have time for a honeymoon.”
“I know,” she replied quietly.
Ever since Marcella came back, Kaelen couldn’t stand being away from her for long—not even a single night. There was no room left in his life for anyone else.
They sat together in silence, the air growing heavier by the second. Kaelen shifted in his seat, an unshakable restlessness settling in his gut, foreign and uncomfortable.
Liora had always been like this—gentle, restrained, carrying herself with an elegance forged through necessity rather than ease. She never lashed out, never demanded attention like other she-wolves might.
But Kaelen knew that calm was something she had learned, not chosen. A shield she’d perfected over time.
Beneath it, she was still the same girl—fragile, starved for affection, always waiting for love that rarely came.
Before, every time he came home, she would run to him, eyes bright, arms wrapping around him as she eagerly recounted her day. She would talk endlessly, filling the space with warmth and sound, never caring whether he truly listened.
Now, the silence roared.
It pressed against him, wrong and unsettling. Finally, Kaelen put his phone aside and looked at her properly.
“You’ve done so much preparing for the ceremony,” he began. “Once it’s over—”
Liora interrupted him, her voice calm but sharp. “Where’s your ring?”
He stiffened. “The ring?” He hesitated. “I… don’t know. I probably misplaced it.”
The memory surfaced against his will. That night—Marcella seeing the ring, her expression darkening. He’d taken it off to soothe her, setting it aside carelessly, never bothering to retrieve it.
Kaelen opened his mouth, guilt flickering in his eyes, ready to explain—but Liora spoke first, dismissive and detached.
“If it’s gone, then it’s gone. Just buy another one.”
She didn’t wait for a response.
In her heart, she already knew how the story would end. After she left, that replacement ring wouldn’t be meant for her. Kaelen would choose something exquisite—something perfect—for Marcella instead.
This ring, their ring, had been doomed the moment Marcella returned. Whether it disappeared now or later made no difference at all.
Kaelen had long taken Liora’s patience for granted—her endless tolerance, her willingness to bend until she nearly broke.
But her indifference now unsettled him deeply. It felt as though he hadn’t just lost a ring, but something far more precious, something he couldn’t name.
The unease clawed at him, persistent and unfamiliar. And for the first time, Kaelen resolved to do something—anything—to fix what was slipping from his grasp.
