Trembling uncontrollably, I could no longer cling to the hallway wall and staggered backward. Somewhere deeper in the compound, a door closed. The silence that followed was the kind that fills a room after a gunshot.
Ansel quickly steadied me, only to see that my knee was swollen and bruised.
He immediately crouched down to inspect the injury.
"How did you hurt your knee so badly?"
"Forget it. If you won't apologize, I'll do it for you, but you mustn't be so disrespectful in the future."
I wrenched my hand away with all my strength, my face ashen as I pointed toward the door.
"Get out! All of you, get out!"
Ansel, recognizing my vulnerability, tried to soothe me with a comforting embrace.
But Elara, tears streaming down her face, bowed deeply.
"Serafina, I'm leaving now. Please, don't torment yourself over this."
Her head tilted slightly to the right, her expression softening into something that looked almost like compassion. Then she turned to leave, spinning too quickly, crashing into the doorframe and falling sideways.
Ansel instantly released me and rushed to catch her. They both tumbled out into the hallway together.
Despite everything, Elara's head still struck the doorframe, instantly turning red with a hint of blood seeping out.
Ansel scrambled to his feet, cradling her as he rushed towards the elevator.
"Elara, does it hurt? I'm taking you to see a doctor right now!"
The doorway finally fell silent.
My heart sank to the depths.
After ten years of knowing each other and ten years of love, a decade of blood promise, we had reached this point of estrangement. The compound settled around me, indifferent. The hallway light hummed. I stood alone in the doorway of a home built with my father's treasury, wearing the silence like a shroud.
I took out my phone and booked a flight for the day of the Blood-Bound Union.
With seven days left, it was just enough time to clear away everything from the past.
Ansel was right; one must look forward.
From now on, I would sever all ties with the joys and sorrows of the past.
My breathing slowed. It became almost imperceptible, the way it always did when the decision was final. There would be no reversing this.
I threw away all the wedding supplies I had meticulously prepared.