Chapter 174: Let Me Work for Your Joy
Aurora’s POV
The hall by Annie’s room was quiet. Not the bad kind of quiet, but the kind that lets you take a deep breath.
Alessandro was next to me, quiet at first. It wasn’t strange or unsure, just making space for me. That quiet was the nicest thing I had felt all day.
We came to a small garden behind the hospital, flowers out even in the cold. He stopped and faced me.
“I wanted to talk alone,” he said, his voice soft, as if he didn’t want to break the calm.
I gave a nod. “Okay.”
He paused, picking his words with care. That’s how Alessandro was; he didn’t just talk to fill silence. He meant every word.
“I know today was rough.”
He looked me in the eye.
“Leonardo… What he said hurt. I saw it when you came in today.”
I had to swallow, trying hard not to pull back.
“Yes, it did. It still does.”
He nodded, like he got it without me having to say more.
“I can’t act like I can fix it all or make what you felt go away. But you need to know this…”
He took a deep breath, eyes steady on mine.
“I’m not him, Aurora. I won’t lie to you. I won’t leave and come back when it’s easy.
I choose you, your scars, your fears, all of it. And I’m staying, no matter how long it takes for you to trust that.”
I looked down.
“It’s not that I don’t trust you. I do. I’m just scared that if I get happy, I’ll lose it again.”
His voice was quiet but strong.
“Let me work for your joy.”
That made me look at him.
He finally reached for my hand, slowly, giving me time if I wanted to pull away. But I didn’t.
I let him hold it.
His hand was warm and strong, holding me in a way that kept me firm and safe, as if I could not break even when I felt torn inside.
“Yes,” he said in a soft way, his thumb moving over my hand.
“Leonardo was mean. He hurt you. And now, even after moving on, hearing that news still hit you deep.”
I moved my head slowly up and down, the pain in my heart getting tighter.
“Yeah… it did.”
I looked at our hands together, my voice just a breath.
“Every time he said he loved me and said he’d fight for us, I believed him.
I gave him chances, again and again… and every time, he failed me.” My throat tightened.
“When I needed him most, he chose lies. He chose betrayal.
And love?
Real love doesn’t do that.
It doesn’t leave invisible bruises.
It doesn’t make you feel small.”
I looked up at Alessandro, my voice low.
“Love shouldn’t hurt like that.”
Alessandro stayed silent. He did not rush or try to make it all okay. He just stood there, holding my hand, letting the quiet hold my hurt while I let it all out.
“I mean… he got Lena pregnant, Alessandro.” My voice cracked, and the bitterness behind the words scraped against my throat.
“Lena. The same woman who tried to kill me, not once. And now she’s carrying his child.”
I took a shaky breath, my chest tightening.
“And he did it while we were still together… That hurts. It hurts more than I know how to say.”
I shook my head, fighting back the wave that threatened to drown me again.
“And now, just because I’ve moved on, just because I’m no longer screaming or crying in front of him, he thinks I should forgive him. Like, it’s easy. Like it’s nothing.”
My eyes met Alessandro’s then, raw and vulnerable.
“I may have moved on… But what did he do?
That betrayal?
It’s proof that he never really loved me. Not the way I deserved.
Not the way love is supposed to feel.”
Alessandro didn't talk at first. His thumb ran softly over my hand, holding me there.
Then, he took a deep breath out, eyes on mine with a calm look… and a kind of softness I hadn't felt in a long time, a softness that asked for nothing in return.
“You know what I think?” he said finally, his voice just above a whisper.
I blinked at him, still fragile. “What?”
“I think,” he said, giving a small smile, “you need a reset.”
Not to forget what happened but to remember what it feels like to be alive… without pain stealing every breath.”
I stared at him, not sure where he was going.
His smile widened, just a little.
“So, I have an idea. A selfish one, maybe.”
He reached into his coat pocket and pulled out… a folded piece of paper?
“What’s that?” I asked, my voice still raspy.
“A challenge,” he said with a playful glint in his eyes.
“Tonight. Just you and me.
No talking about the past.
No, Leonardo. No, Lena. No pain.
Just something fun.
Something light.
I promise I’ll return you by midnight and with zero emotional bruises.”
That earned him a tiny smile from me. “What kind of challenge?”
He opened the paper big. It was a list.
At the top it read, 'The Impossible 'Date'—Aurora Edition.
I lifted an eyebrow.
“Item one,” he read, pretending to clear his throat.
“Get the best hot chocolate in the pack territory; bonus points if there’s whipped cream.”
I bit my lip, half amused.
“Item two,” he continued,
“Make Aurora laugh.
Genuinely.
Not a fake ‘I’m fine’ laugh. Like, the real one.
The kind that makes you forget the air was ever heavy.”
I felt my chest warm, the tightness loosening just a bit.
“Three,” he said, folding the list back into his coat, “slow dance under terrible fairy lights.
Even if there’s no music. Especially if there’s no music.”
I laughed softly. “You’re ridiculous.”
“I know,” he grinned.
“But I’d rather be ridiculous with you than pretend I don’t see your heart breaking and just stand there doing nothing.”
I shook my head, still smiling, still fragile, but something in me lifted.
“You really want to do all that?”
“Only if you want to,” he said.
“If you say no, I’ll walk you back in silence, hold your hand, and just stay by your side.
But if you say yes… then I’m kidnapping you for a date that’s going to be so good, even your sadness will get jealous.”
I stared at him for a long beat. Then slowly… I nodded.
“Okay,” I said quietly. “Take me on your impossible date.”
His smile broke wide and full of joy.
“Deal,” he said.
“But fair warning… I take my impossible dates very seriously.”
He offered me his arm like some gentleman from a cheesy old romance movie.
But just as we left the garden, someone stepped into our path.
I froze.
Under the harsh light stood Lena, arms folded, smirk in place, eyes locked on me.
“Well, well,” she said smoothly.
“If it isn’t the girl who jumps from one brother to the next.”
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