\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 168\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 168\u00a0<\/p>\n
Violet\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u8b58\u00a0<\/p>\n
I smiled and tilted my head at him. \u201cAm I? Alright then, go on. Tell them how annoying I am. Don\u2019t just stand there like a tree. Mom might get annoyed if she saw that.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sebastian looked at me for a moment, as if weighing my words, before finally nodding. He moved forward on his crutches. stopping in front of the graves. His shoulders stiffened at first, then slowly relaxed as he took a breath.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cMom, Dad, Skylar,\u201d he began, his voice quiet but steady. \u201cHow have you guys been? Do you know how much I miss you?\u201d His throat bobbed as he swallowed. \u201cI dream about you almost every day, you know. Sometimes I still think you were really mean for leaving me this early.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He let out a shaky breath, then added. \u201cBut I don\u2019t hate you for it. I really don\u2019t. In fact, the next time we meet, I\u2019ll make sure you don\u2019t leave again. You guys are terrible with time, honestly.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I smiled softly as I watched him, but my chest tightened when I saw tears gathering in his eyes. He blinked rapidly, yet his voice didn\u2019t stop.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cEven though I don\u2019t hate you, I think you weren\u2019t fair to Violet.\u201d His voice cracked, and the first tear slipped down his cheek. \u201cYou didn\u2019t just leave her with the pain of watching you go, you left her with a brat like me.\u201d He gave a weak, humorless laugh, but more tears followed, trailing down his face.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou see,\u201d Sebastian went on, his words spilling out now, \u201cever since you left us. Violet never lived for herself. She put herself in this bubble. And even when she had chances to leave it, she couldn\u2019t because of me. She had to grow up so fast, take care of me, and make her whole life revolve around me. His hands tightened around his crutches. \u201cI never understood why. Why she would go through all that trouble just so I wouldn\u2019t suffer the way she did.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He sniffed, his voice trembling. \u201cMaybe it\u2019s just an older sibling thing. I still don\u2019t fully get it. But now I do know one thing. I\u2019ll take care of her from now on. So don\u2019t worry. I won\u2019t stand still anymore and watch my sister get bullied. I\u2019ll protect Violet, so you can rest in peace.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I stared at my brother, my vision blurring. I quickly wiped the tear that escaped the corner of my eye, I had promised myself I wouldn\u2019t cry today. Stepping closer, I reached out and ruffled his hair again. This time, Sebastian didn\u2019t complain or swat my hand away. He just stood there, letting me do it.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I let out a small laugh and shook my head. \u201cSee you, talking like a man already,\u201d I said. \u201cYou\u2019re still young, Sebastian. Try having a girlfriend before you start talking about protecting me like this.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He frowned at me immediately. \u201cHey. It\u2019s not because I can\u2019t have a girlfriend,\u201d he argued. \u201cIt\u2019s because I don\u2019t want one. You know how busy I am with school.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I nodded, my smile softening. \u201cI know. And that\u2019s exactly why I\u2019m telling you this now, stop living like a grown-up, and live like a teenager for once. Your sister will be the grown-up.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He scoffed, rolling his eyes, and I smiled wider. Teasing him like this felt comforting, like we were back to being just siblings instead of survivors holding each other together.\u00a0<\/p>\n
When I turned around, I saw Hades standing a few steps behind us, his hands tucked into his pockets as he quietly watched the two of us. For a moment, I just looked at him, then turned back to the graves and spoke.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cDad, do you remember when I cried and you told me I was too ugly and that no man would ever marry an ugly girl?\u201d I said. \u201cWell, you were wrong. A man did marry your ugly little girl.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I walked over to Hades without hesitation, took his hand, and gently dragged him forward. He looked down at me. surprised, but didn\u2019t resist. I stopped in front of the graves and said, \u201cHades, let me introduce you to my family. This is my father, my mother, and my older brother.\u201d I squeezed his hand. \u201cAnd guys, this is Hades. My husband. Your son-in-law, and\u00a0<\/p>\n
21:15 Tue, Jan 13\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 168\u00a0<\/p>\n
brother-in-law.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
1,465 tounrand\u00a0<\/p>\n
My lips curved into a proud smile. \u201cI\u2019ve always wanted to brag about this one day. I really wanted to prove you wrong.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I turned to Hades. \u201cMy family can be annoying, but I hope you don\u2019t mind them. They\u2019re your family now, too.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He froze at that, like the word family had hit somewhere deep. I didn\u2019t let go of his hand. I wanted him to feel to know that even if his own family didn\u2019t see him as one of theirs, mine did. He looked at me for a long mornent before a small smile finally appeared on his face.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI see,\u201d he said quietly.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He faced the graves, nodded once in greeting. \u201cHello. I\u2019m Hades. Violet\u2019s husband. I\u2019ll be responsible for her from now on.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
My heart skipped a beat.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I glanced at Sebastian and noticed how tired he looked. Standing for this long always drained him. \u201cAlright,\u201d I said, stepping closer. \u201cLet\u2019s go. I\u2019ll help you down.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sebastian looked at me, then at Hades, hesitating before clearing his throat. \u201cUm\u2026 Hades,\u201d he said awkwardly. \u201cCan you help me down?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Hades blinked, clearly surprised, then nodded. \u201cOkay.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He stepped forward and helped Sebastian carefully. I watched the two of them with a smile, warmth spreading through my chest. Sebastian was trying. That alone meant everything to me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Before leaving, I looked back at the graves one last time.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m sorry for not growing up the way you wanted, Mom and Dad, but I promise you this, I\u2019ll make them pay for everything they did to Sebastian. And I\u2019ll take back everything that was taken from us.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
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21:15 Tue, Jan 13\u00a0<\/p>\n
Nights Burn With Regret \u2014 by Nathan Perez 168 \u00a0 Chapter 168\u00a0 Chapter 168\u00a0 Violet\u00a0 \u8b58\u00a0 I smiled and tilted […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[83],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-28084","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-craving-the-guardian-novel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28084","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=28084"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28084\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=28084"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=28084"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=28084"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}