(Jasper’s POV)


    <b>+25 </b>Points


    Through the window, I watch her return to Dorian’s side. He wraps an arm around her, pulls her close, whispers something that makes her smile. Lily runs to her, babbling excitedly about the pretty ring.


    I get in my car and drive away, leaving behind the warmth, theughter, the life I could have


    had.


    The rain starts somewhere between the third red light and the parking lot of the church. Not a soft drizzle, but a cold, biting kind of downpour that makes it hard to breathe. I leave the car running.


    It’s as if the heavens know the pain I’m carrying.


    I don’t run. I walk–slow, heavy, like my bones are full of cement. My shoes p against the wet pavement. My coat is soaked through by the time I reach the old stone steps. I grip the iron handle of the door and pull.


    It gives without a fight.


    The church smells the same. Old wood. Dust. Faded incense.


    My chest cracks open the moment I step inside.


    The darkness is absolute, only broken by the faint, dust–motes–dancing light filtering through the stained–ss windows from the streemps outside.


    I stagger down the central aisle, the sound of my expensive leather shoes echoing with sickening finality on the marble floor.


    When I reach the altar, the ce where we knelt and tookmunion, and I copse to my


    knees.


    The tearse free, fueled by the oppressive silence and the weight of seven years of memory crashing down on me.


    11


    I am not a religious man. I don’t believe in a celestial judge. But here, in this sacred, quiet space, I feel judged, convicted, and condemned.


    “She said yes,” I choke out, the whisper swallowed by the vaulted ceiling. “She said yes to <i>him</i>.


    The loss is a physical cavity in my chest. It is a heartbreak so profound it feels like my bones are dissolving. The memory of the ring on her finger, the smile on her face, the way Lily nestled into Dorian’s neck–it all ws at my sanity.


    He didn’t just take my wife. He took the only family I ever had.


    I sit there, rocking slightly, utterly broken. The cold of the stone seeps into my very core, but the physical pain is a relief. A distraction from the void in my chest. I feel like I could sit here until morning, until I simply cease to exist.


    A sudden, sharp sound breaks the silence–the gentle squeak of the side chapel door opening, then a quiet, measured footstep on the marble.


    I freeze, my heart hammering against my ribs.


    Is it…?


    Hope rekindles in my heart. I stagger to stand, my eyes gravitating to the door before I’m even standing on my feet.


    A figure walks slowly up the aisle, moving toward me. My nerves string tighter, joy warring with nervousness, that quickly turns to despair the second the familiar perfume hits.


    Virginia.


    Of course she followed me. She must’ve been following me long before I even went to the


    bakery.


    I sink back to my feet, suddenly tired of everything.


    Of her, of the mess my life has be. Of life itself.


    “Jasper, are you okay?” she asks, her voice soft.


    “Go away.” Imand, emotionless. I want to be alone. For one freaking hour, I just want to be on my own, away from her and everything. But of course, she decides to ignore me. The soft fabric of her dress rustles as she settles beside me, her hand resting on my back.


    I flinch slightly at the touch, but I don’t pull away. I am too drained to move, to master any sort of reaction.


    “He proposed to her.” Not a question. A statement. Confirmation that she had been there, watching.


    “He’s giving her everything a woman could want. A new life. One offort and wealth.”


    :


    Still, I remain silent.


    “She’s moved on. She doesn’t even want you around Lily. She’s-”


    29 Points


    “I don’t need you to remind me,” I finally snap, rage and resentment burning through me. “I see it every time I close my goddamn eyes!”


    Virginia looks down, lips pressed in a thin line. “So what now, Jasper? Are you going to spend the rest of your life drowning in her memories? Sit in empty churches, cry over a woman who doesn’t even want you?”


    I blink back tears, staring her down as I grit through clenched teeth, “I loved her. I loved her more than I’ve ever loved anything. Anyone.”


    “She’s not the only one who loves you.”


    “I didn’t marry you.”


    The words slice the air between us.


    “That should be answer enough for you.”


    She winces, wounded. But I don’t care.


    “This church,” I continue, finally lifting my head, turning toward the high altar. My eyes adjust to the gloom, and I can faintly make out the shimmering colors of the stained ss above the chancel. “This is where I married Scarlett. Where I epted her as my wife, for life.”


    And then I see the very spot where I stood, watching Scarlett walk towards me.


    I close my eyes, the memory instantly conjuring images of her. “She was the most beautiful bride. Her dress–it was simple, silk organza, nothing ornate. But when the afternoon sun hit the window, the light shined on her. She was glowing, Virginia. Her eyes shining with a faith in me I…”


    I trail off, the lump in my throat too big to swallow.


    “I see her everywhere.” I end, a heavy sigh leaving my chest.


    Virginia goes quiet. I catch her eyes turning glossy, flickering with resentment, as she says more firmly. “You need to let go. Stop tearing yourself over a woman who doesn’t even care how much you’re hurting.”


    “It doesn’t matter if she doesn’t care,” I snap. “I gave her every reason not to.”


    Virginia looks like she wants to scream. Or cry. Or both.


    < Chapter 129


    425 Route


    “Jasper,” she takes a deep breath, forcing calm. “You and I–we’ve been through hell together. We know each other. We could have something real. Please, if you’d just try-”


    “I don’t want to try anything. I want to be alone.”


    Her face falls. <fnab33> Th? link to the orig?n of this information r?sts ?n FindN0vel</fnab33>


    “You need to go. Please, just leave me alone.”


    She stares at me, her pride flickering in her eyes like a dying me. Then she nods once, slow,


    and rises.


    “I won’t let you do this to yourself, Jasper. I will wait until you finally see me. I’ll always wait for you. Don’t you ever forget that.”


    She walks away, her footsteps echoing back up the aisle. The squeak of thetch closing is thest sound I hear before the heavy, ancient silence of the church descends once more.


    Violet Moon


    #Vote#!


    <b>1 </b>