Henri’s gaze falters.

He opens his mouth to answer, but the words refuse to come. Instead, he lowers his head, crushed beneath the weight of his guilt.

Catarina continues, her pain spilling into every word.

“You hurt me, Henri. And even then, I kept trying to believe there was something good inside you… but every time I got closer, you pushed me away.”

Henri closes his eyes for a moment, as if her words strike him straight through the heart.

When he looks at her again, his eyes are glistening w