Love Fades With Bygone Days Chapter 13
He stared at the message for a long time.
In the end, he typed back a single sentence.
“I’m looking for someone. I can’t come back yet.”
Alessia didn’t reply.
He placed his phone facedown on the table. When he looked up, he saw someone walking past the window.
It was me.
He shot to his feet.
His chair clattered to the floor, the sound echoing through the quiet cafe.
Every head turned in his direction.
He didn’t care. He bolted out the door.
“Esme!”
I stopped and turned to look at him.
The setting sun cast a golden light across my face.
I had gained a little weight since leaving New York, and my complexion was healthy and warm.
The emptiness in my eyes was gone.
I was wearing the blue dress from the photo, holding a cup of coffee, and I looked completely at peace.
When I saw him, I didn’t even seem surprised.
“How did you find me?” I asked, my tone mild, as if I were speaking to an old acquaintance.
Tomas just stood there, speechless.
On the plane, he had rehearsed a thousand things to say.
*I’m sorry. I was wrong. Come back with me.*
But now, seeing me, he couldn’t get a single word out.
Because I looked… happy.
So happy that his presence felt like a violation.
“I… I was just passing through,” he stammered.
I smiled, a small, knowing smile.
“Tomas, New Zealand is over six thousand miles from New York. How, exactly, were you ‘passing through’?”
The lie hung in the air between us, pathetic and transparent.
His eyes started to redden.
“I wanted to see you,” he said, his voice cracking. “I just… I had to see you.”
I didn’t answer. I just watched him quietly.
