Chapter 233 Still Him


    Chapter 233 Still Him


    TESSA


    41


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    If there were two people in the world I considered integral to what I have in my life right now, it would be Arden and Owen. Arden made me realize that I shouldn’t settle for getting hurt and continue fighting for what’s right. She showed me that scars weren’t something to hide, but proof that I was still here, still capable of taking back pieces of my life that I thought were forever gone.


    And Owen-well, Owen was different. He helped me find myself in the quiet moments. He allowed me into this house when I needed somewhere to stand still for once in my life. This house wasn’t mine, and it wasn’t even his in the way it should have been, but it became a strange sanctuary. Having him here always felt strange, though, because I knew how much he still felt out of ce in his father’s walls. I could see it in the way his shoulders loosened whenever he prepared to leave. That sense of relief was something I recognized too well.


    That was what I felt now, standing by the door as he packed his bags.


    “I’ll see you again,” I said softly.


    Ca was taking a nap, her little breaths steady in the room. He smiled faintly and shook his head. “You shouldn’t bother waking her. She needs her rest.”


    “I know,” I murmured, trying to return the smile. “Where are you going this time?”


    “Another work trip.” His voice carried that usual evenness.


    “You like that, though, right? You’ve always wanted to travel the world.”


    A small smile curved his lips. It softened the heaviness in his expression. “You’re right.”


    “I’m really happy, Owen.”


    “It looks like I’m watching you achieve your dream. I’ll continue watching you from afar.”


    For a moment, it felt like the silence that followed was ordinary. But then his gaze locked onto mine, and suddenly the air grew heavier.


    “Can’t you be by my side in this dream?” he asked.


    My breath hitched. My fingers curled at my sides, and I couldn’t maintain his eyes on me. I turned slightly, letting my gaze fall somewhere safer.


    Chapter 233 Still Him


    ? CD


    41


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    I already knew, of course. I wasn’t someone who assumed things. I wasn’t reckless with feelings. But he had told me before, and not just in passing or in hints. Two years ago, during Ca’s birthday, he told me outright. That day was supposed to be full of joy andughter, but I’d felt the absence of aplete family. I’d tried to mask it, but Owen saw right through me. He always did.


    He sat me down that night, after everyone had gone home, and told me he could be that person. He said he would quit his job, stay here, and give Ca the father figure she deserved. That he would be the greatest dad he could be if I let him. His voice shook, but his words. never faltered. He told me how much he liked me, how much I deserved love. How much he wanted to give me that love.


    If I had been more fragile back then, I might have bitten into those words and held them tight. I might have said yes out of fear of being alone. But even in my brokenness, I loved him too much to do that to him.


    Because my love for him wasn’t the kind that asked him to sacrifice his dreams for me. It wasn’t the kind that tied him down with half-promises and half-hearts. He deserved more than that. He deserved the kind of love that left a man breathless, unable to believe that joy could be that full and overwhelming. He deserved someone who could stand by his side and match that devotion without hesitation or second-guessing.


    I wasn’t that person.


    Yet, standing there, with his eyes burning into me, a small gasp escaped my lips when he asked again, “Can’t it be me?”


    “Owen…” I muttered, his name catching in my throat before it could fully form the protest that was rising.


    But before I could say anything more, he shook his head. He already knew. I could see it in the small, resigned smile that tugged at his lips, in the softness of his eyes that dimmed even as he tried to keep them bright.


    “It’s alright,” he said, and his voice was so calm that it almost broke me more than if he had yelled. “I already knew. I still see it-in the way you look at him.” His lips pressed together, but he didn’t look away. “After all this time, it is still him.”


    My breath faltered, Words tangled in my throat, but before I could even begin to defend myself or exin what I didn’t even have the courage to admit out loud, he moved closer.


    “What-“I tried, but he didn’t let me finish.


    He stepped forward until there was barely a breath of space between us. His arms lifted slightly, then lowered. His voice was quiet when he asked, “Do you mind if I get a hug?”


    Chapter 233 Still Him


    41


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    My lips parted, and I swallowed back the ache in my chest. I could have said no-maybe I should have-but when I looked at him, all I saw was the boy who had let me stay when I had nowhere else to go. The boy who had watched Ca with a tenderness that melted all the edges of my fear. The man who had carried more than his share of unspoken weight just to make mine lighter.


    I pursed my lips, then smiled softly and nodded. “Of course,” I whispered.


    And this time, I didn’t wait for him to step forward. I pulled him into my arms. My chin rested against his shoulder, and I felt his warmth seep into me in that familiar way it always had.


    My hands moved slowly, patting his shoulder, then his back. A small, repetitive motion, something more like reassurance than affection. I knew it wasn’t what he truly wanted, but it was what I could give him, and I hoped it was enough for now.


    When I finally pulled away, I lingered just a second longer than I should have. My eyes swept over his face before I leaned forward, pressing my lips gently against his cheek.


    It wasn’t a promise, and it wasn’t love in the way he wanted. It was gratitude.


    “Thank you, Owen,” I whispered. “For everything.”


    He shook his head. A lopsided shrug followed before he slipped his bags onto his shoulders.


    “You’re acting like I’m leaving for good,” he said with a half-smile. “I’m still going to visit. I’ll just be… very busy because of this overseas work trip.”


    “Have a safe trip.”


    He gave a small nod. “Always.”


    He turned, walking toward the door. His steps were slow at first, appearing like he had made peace with something by the time his hand touched the handle. He was almost through the doorway when he paused.


    He didn’t turn aroundpletely, but just nced over his shoulder. “He has changed,” Owen said quietly. “But give him a hard time still. He needs to see what he missed all these years.”


    His words slipped into me like a key sliding into a lock I hadn’t even realized I had built. My mouth opened and closed, but nothing came out.


    So I stood there quietly while he gave a small salute with two fingers. “I’ll see you in a few, Tessa,” he said. O


    Then the door mmed shut behind him.


    Chapter 233 Still Him


    41


    +10 Free Coins


    The sound echoed through the house. I frowned, staring at it. For a strange second, a thought crawled into my head.


    Had the door been open all this time?