Seraphine's throat tightened, and she turned away, holding her chest. "No. This isn't real. It can't be. I- I'm just a normal girl. I run a flower shop. I have a best friend. I go to work, I drink tea, I... "
She paused. Her voice faltered.
Because suddenly, all of that felt distant. Faint. Like her entire life had been built on a dream and she'd just woken up.
Tears welled in her eyes.
"Why does it feel like my heart is breaking for someone I've never met? "
He stepped forward just once. His presence magnetic, he didn't touch her.
Because he didn't need to.
Everything inside her was already unraveling.
"I don't remember you, " She whispered.
"But I remember every piece of you, "he replied, his voice raw.
The moonlight caught the shimmer of his tears again.
And though every cell in her screamed to run, to lock the door, to hide from this madness - her heart wouldn't move.
Because something in her was still reaching out for him.
Still yearning.
Still aching.
Her breath trembled as Valen took another step forward - then another.
And though her heart pounded, she didn't flinch.
Because deep down, some part of her knew this man. Trusted him. Needed him.
When he finally stood before her , the air shifted - thicker, heavier, wrapped in something far older than this life. He reached out, slowly, like she were something holy he'd spent centuries searching for.
"Serenyth, "he murmered again - so softly, so broken. "You're really here. "
And when his fingers finally touched her cheek, something snapped inside her.
A flicker of memories - not whole, but flashes.
Screams in firelight. The glint of armor. A voice begging her to stay.
Her knees buckled, but Valen caught her.
Cradled her against his chest like she was a relic he could finally protect again.
"I don't understand, " She whispered, tears blurring her vision. "What's happening to me? "
He leaned closer, his lips brushing the shell of her ear , his voice full of mourning.
"You were mine, " he said. "You are mine. I lost you once - I won't lose you again. "
She should've pushed him away. Should've screamed. But her body betrayed her.
Instead, she clung to him.
A sharp, sudden heat flared beneath her collarbone.
She gasped, clutching at the spot instinctively. Her fingers met skin - but beneath them, something pulsed.
Valen froze.
His eyes widened, not with danger, but with awe. Hope.
"It's still there, " he whispered.
Seraphine staggered back a step, yanking down the collar of her shirt - and there it was.
A mark.
Not a tattoo, not a wound. A sigil, curved and elegant, glowing faintly with a light that wasn't of this realm. Like it had waited, buried in her flesh, for him.
Her voice cracked, "What is this? "
Valen's throat tightened as he swallowed a emotion that threatened to break him.
"The bond, " he rasped. "From before. When you chose me. When you said you'd return to me, no matter what time Or realm. "
The mark pulsed brighter at his words.
Seraphine stared at it, at him, and for a split second - she saw it.
A flash.
The mark, etched into her skin as his lips brushed it, promising eternity.
"I don't remember, " She choked.
"But your soul does, " Valen murmured, stepping close again, gently cupping her jaw. "It always did. "
And the mark....glowed.
Seraphine stood frozen - his touch still lingering, the mark glowing faintly beneath her skin. Nothing made sense. And yet... everything inside her told her she belonged with him.
"I know it's too much, " he said, " I know your heart doesn't remember what your soul does. But I can help you..... Serenyth. "
She flinched.
That name again.
Foreign on her tongue, but sacred in his.
He held out his hand. "Come with me. To my palace. To the place where it all began... and ended. "
Her breath caught.
"I - Why would I? "
"I can help you remember. " His voice cracked like silk over broken glass, " But only if you want to. I won't force you. Just say the word... and I'll disappear into the night. "
Tears stung her eyes.
She didn't know him. And yet - she knew him. Like a forgotten lullaby, like a half-remembered dream.
Slowly.... she placed her hand in his.
Their fingers intertwined.
His hand was cold, yet she felt fire bloom beneath her skin - a comforting warmth, like the echo of thousand lifetimes.
"I waited centuries for this breath, " he murmured, his voice hoarse. "To feel your soul again. Even if you don't remember.... I do. Every moment. Every heartbeat. Every tear. "
And when he scooped her into his arms , lifting her like she weighed nothing but dreams , she didn't protest.
Instead, she clung to him, wrapping her arms around his neck.
The curtains swayed behind them as if the night itself bowed. And with a whisper of shadow, he vanished - her head tucked against his chest, her tears dampening the fabric over his heart.
For the first time in years, the ache inside him erased.
And for her - for Seraphine - something finally clicked.
And in the hush of that midnight hour... they vanished into the night.