Page 237 of Fractured Devotion
The future is unwritten.
And I am finally ready to meet it.
Chapter 65 – Celeste - Another Name for Freedom
I stand by the window of our new clinic, watching the morning sunlight spill across the worn hardwood floors. Outside, I can hear the faint rush of waves and the steady pull of the sea just beyond the street. This city isn’t far from Miramont. It’s close enough that its name still lingers in conversation, but far enough to feel like we’ve crossed some invisible line.
Everything here smells like fresh paint and coffee.
No bleach. No smoke.
No ghosts.
Just sunlight, salt air, and something close to peace.
I watch Alec from across the room. He’s bent over one of the new desks with his sleeves rolled up, arranging files with that careful, precise focus he carries everywhere.
His presence feels different here.
There’s no weight of expectation between us anymore. No tension stretched thin beneath every glance.
Only comfort.
Only choice.
My fingers skim the edge of the counter, tracing the smooth, polished wood and grounding myself in the simplicity of it.
This place is ours.
Small, modest, and unassuming.
But honest.
It doesn’t need walls thick enough to bury what we used to be.
It only needs enough space to hold who we are now.
Alec glances up, catching my stare, and the faintest smile tugs at his mouth. “You look like you don’t believe it’s real,” he says, his voice warm and steady.
I let a breath slip out, my lips curving just enough to answer him. “Maybe I don’t yet,” I admit.
He stands and crosses to me without hesitation.
His hands settle at my waist, confident and certain, pulling me close until there’s no space left between us. “It is,” he murmurs, pressing his lips to my temple.
“We made it real.”
I lean into him, letting the weight of it finally settle in my chest.
We did.
This is ours.
And for the first time, I believe we get to keep it.
The knock comes just as the sunlight shifts again, casting soft patterns across the floor.
I pull away from Alec, smoothing my shirt, and step to the door.
