<h4>Chapter 485: 485-One-Sided Love Is Painful</h4>


    <strong>Troy:</strong>


    For some reason, Fauna’s words struck me. As she stepped away, Haiden continued to grunt about her audacity, while I stared in indifference, wondering if what shaped our existence was different from hers.


    "Come on, don’t think too much about her. She’s crazy," Haiden remarked, rolling his eyes at her.


    "Are you sure she is?" I asked, watching him raise his eyebrow at me. "I mean, I just want to say that I’m kind of debating whether I am that clingy person too."


    The minute I said that, Haiden gestured with his hand and rose from the bed again. He moved to a chair, pulled another seat closer to the floormp in front of me, and sat facing me.


    "Don’t think about it. She’s our mate. That is the difference," he exined.


    As he tried to exin, it sounded like a bunch of excuses, to be honest.


    "Well, someone who has already made a decision. Haiden, I’ll tell you something. I have done the same thing. I have tried to cause a rift between the two of them many times. Even thest time they were together on the maind, they were fighting because of me, because I was ying games with them. So how am I better than Fauna?"


    " Oh wait," I snapped my fingers, almost like I had just gotten an idea.


    " I’m not better than her. In fact, I’m worse than her because at least she did not cause trouble or lie about things to break you and Clementine apart."


    As soon as I finished, a look of guilt started to show on Haiden’s face.


    "The thing is, I don’t know why I feel like that. If we do not stop and respect her decision now, we might even lose her as a friend. And I don’t want to do that, Haiden." I paused as a sense of sadness took over me.


    "It will be so hard for me to move on from her," Haiden admitted, sharing his feelings for her.


    I mean, I already knew that, and he knew that I loved her too.


    Haiden looked around before clenching his fist angrily. "This is all because of Oriana. She ruined my chance," he muttered, looking up to get a reaction from me. I guessed he was expecting me to believe that too.


    "No, Haiden. The truth is that she would have always picked Ian. We were too caught up in trying to have her instead of trying to win her. Because of that, we pushed her away. We pushed her beyond what we could even see. We all had our chances. We all had our moments. And Ian used his very wisely."


    I paused as I buried my face in my hands, then moved one hand to rub my neck.


    "Well, so next time when we see her, we are not going to expect her to choose us?" Haiden asked, his eyes showing a hint of sadness and tears.


    "I think she will respect us for respecting her decision," I replied.


    That was all I said before Haiden threw his head back and covered his eyes with his hands.


    It was not easy for us to do all that. Clementine was special. Too special for us. So losing her felt like losing a part of myself. But I was willing to do it. I was willing to let her fix her rtionship with Ian and not intervene to ruin the good moments for her anymore.


    "I think you’re right. I don’t want to push her further either, and I don’t want her to be sad because of the games I am ying or the games we are ying. So the decision will be in her hands. If Ian is who she has chosen, I will respect that. But damn, it is going to be so hard," Haiden remarked, rising from his seat and wandering around the room, pacing anxiously.


    While he moved, my cell phone rang again. I stared at the unknown caller and frowned. I had been receiving calls, and every time I picked up, I only heard grunting and scuffling from the other side.


    In the beginning, I thought maybe it was Clementine. But then I heard a quiet hello, and it did not sound like someone I knew. It was more like a whisper, and I thought maybe someone was just bothering me.


    I mean, ever since Orianas truth hade out, I had expected people to call us and tease us for not trusting our friend, or even just to apologize to us for what that woman had done to us. Or maybe it was Oriana trying to stir things up again.


    "You need to answer that call. Maybe it is urgent," Haiden urged.


    Finally, the constant ringing of my phone caught Haiden’s attention, and he told me to pick up the call.


    "All right, give me a minute," I said, picking up my phone and stepping toward the balcony. I noticed Haiden hurrying into the bathroom to freshen up.


    "Hello?" I answered, expecting the same kind of nonsense.


    And just as I had expected, the call cut off. I groaned and shoved my phone into my pocket when my eyes drifted into the distance.


    I watched Mariana and Fauna standing under a tree, as if they were having a very personal conversation. It seemed intense, and for some reason, it caught my attention.


    I knew for a fact that Fauna liked Haiden a lot, but I was curious to know why two princesses were having a conversation away from the main mansion.


    The two were speaking when I noticed Mariana’s eyes lift. She went silent, and Fauna followed her gaze. They both looked at me in silence before Mariana gave me a ssic and formal nod in greeting. Then Fauna did the same, bending her knees slightly.


    I wondered why Haiden did not want to give Fauna a chance. I mean, I would love for someone to care about me that much.


    One-sided love was sometimes very painful because when I watched couples, I wondered if Clementine would ever love me the same way.