“Eden…”
Celes’s voice was tinged with the bitterness of memories as she lowered her head, her fingers unconsciously twisting the edge of the blanket.
“My childhood… wasn’t good at all. My father abandoned my mother and me when I was very young. Mother was devastated and threw all her energy into work, almost… forgetting that I, her daughter, even existed.”
Her voice trembled slightly as she spoke.
“Maybe it was because I was somewhat pretty from a young age, and my magical talent was… better than most of my peers. That brought a lot of jealousy. On top of that, without a father’s backing and with a mother who didn’t care about me… I became isolated at school.”
“They never physically hit me, but… those looks, those whispers, deliberately not choosing me for their groups, writing nasty words on my desk, leaving prank notes in my locker… I experienced almost every form of bullying you can think of, except physical abuse.”
“At that time… I had no idea how to cope. I even… stupidly believed that everyone disliked me. My father leaving, my mother’s pain… it had to be my fault, that I must have done something wrong.”
Tears silently slipped down Celes’s cheeks again.
“So I didn’t dare resist, nor would I. I just shut myself away, growing more silent and more insecure… as if my appearance and talent weren’t blessings, but the cruelest curse.”
“It was at my darkest, most desperate moment… that Olivia appeared.”
“Finally pulling herself slightly out of the sadness, she began to try to make up for it… back then, I really thought… everything was getting better.”
There was a fleeting, illusory happiness shimmering in Celes’s eyes.
“We once made a promise under the starry sky… to always be together, the best of friends. I even foolishly said… no matter where Olivia went, I would go with her…”
At that moment, Celes’s voice suddenly choked up, filled with immense pain and disbelief.
“But… one day, Olivia… disappeared.”
“She only left me a letter… the Letter of Farewell. It said, ‘Celes, you’ve become strong enough. You no longer need my protection. My mission is complete… farewell.’”
Celes’s shoulders shook violently.
“At the time, I couldn’t believe it. I ran madly to her place looking for her… but the neighbors and landlord said… no one named Olivia had ever lived there… It was as if… she never existed in this world at all.”
“That’s when I finally realized… how much pressure she had borne all alone, protecting me from all that malice?”
Her voice shattered at that moment.
“I looked at that Letter of Farewell, and tears just wouldn’t stop… We had promised to be together forever, to go anywhere together… so why did she leave me behind? If she was going to leave… why didn’t she take me with her? Without her… how am I supposed to face this world alone?”
“Since then… I completely froze myself off. I became cold to everyone, no longer trusting anyone easily. Even after entering Saint Diyas Academy, I kept that ‘keep away’ attitude.”
Celes’s voice grew hollow and cold as she curled up tighter.
There was one thing she didn’t say aloud.
Since then, her dislike of men had deepened, probably because most of those who bullied her as a child were boys who wanted her but couldn’t have her.
“Olivia’s disappearance is my fault. I was the closest to her… I should have noticed… how much burden she carried protecting me…”
Her voice broke, her fingertips sinking deep into her palms.
She lifted tear-filled eyes, swirling with bottomless self-blame.
“I even… foolishly believed we had finally embraced a new life together. Watching her teach me how to fight back, seeing those who bullied us get punished, seeing my mother smile at me again… I naively thought all the darkness had passed.”
Suddenly, the girl let out a short, painful laugh.
“But in reality? The only one who started a new life was me.”
In Celes’s eyes, Olivia was like a candle that burned itself to illuminate her, but at the peak of her brilliance, she turned to ash alone…
“I enjoyed her protection, drew warmth from her… yet I never knew how much pain she carried on her shoulders…”
Celes suddenly grabbed Eden’s sleeve tightly.
She could no longer hold herself up and pressed her burning forehead against Eden’s shoulder, sobbing uncontrollably.
“I am… the most selfish person of all…”
Eden didn’t know what to say for a moment.
Any words would seem so pale and powerless in this situation.
He could only draw her closer, stroking her trembling back with his palm repeatedly, as if soothing a fledgling with broken wings.
“I… I want to just forget her like this… Anyway, someone as selfish as me… doesn’t deserve to have this memory… It would be better if…”
Celes buried her damp cheeks into Eden’s shoulder, whispering brokenly to herself.
Eden’s pupils widened, and the sight of Celes before him made his thoughts drift back to a distant time and place.
“Celes, you cannot forget. Absolutely cannot forget.”
He suddenly spoke up, gently holding the girl’s thin shoulders, creating a little distance so she could meet his eyes.
“Those who have passed away can only live on in our memories. If even those memories are erased… then they truly disappear from this world forever.”
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