1 PROLOGUE

All of us have experienced it one time, I suppose. To the point, we met someone who totally provided us with every affection we were eager to feel. Yet, we have to accept that whatever we do, that person is not destined for us. Especially when we never really dared to tell that person how we feel.

Alone on this silent beach, staring far, admiring the moon. Her footsteps... I heard it. Can you believe it? Even though years passed by, I could still remember her from something so simple. I looked back, and there I saw her, slowly walking towards me.

"I heard from Claire, so why did you call me out here all of a sudden?"

Nothing really changed, she is still the most beautiful woman I have ever known. Although both of us grew mature. Her beauty doesn't seem to fade as both of us grew older.

"Remember that time when we first met?"

"What the hell is wrong with you all of a sudden? We didn't even meet each other or had any contact for all these years, how do you expect me to remember something like that?"

"It was the 16th of July in the year 2019. That was the first time I laid eyes on you. You were wearing a peach-colored shirt paired with jeans and white rubber shoes... Your hair was only above the shoulder length,"

"How do you even recall those memories? I mean, it's been more than a decade! How can you still remember everything as if it was yesterday? Never mind that, did you only call me here to talk about this?"

"A lot has happened during those years, plenty of things changed, yet one thing remained the same..."

Her beauty.

Gazing upon the waves of the sea, along with it is the sound of my heartbeat slowly increasing as I laid eyes on her after years of waiting.

"Yet, every time I try to forget, it just keeps on coming back. Just as you said, memoirs of the past,"

"Leo, be honest. Why did you want to meet me here?"

"For fifteen years, that something still remained the same, and I'll tell you the truth right now..."

"What do you want to tell me?"

"Even after a decade and a half, the feeling of regret still lurks in this heart of mine. However, the feelings I've had were kept on the same page."

"Hades Leon, the night is still young for me to hear your poetry. I've always been a fan, but please tell me what you want already. I want to enjoy the night with the others since this is our precious reunion."

"What I have for you is a gift... I hope you'll accept it," I reached out to my pocket and took out a box that she instantly recognized.

"Leo… don't tell me-"

Left dumbfounded after seeing the box that I brought out of my pocket. She had immediately recognized what it was.

"Under the moonlight and the night sky filled with stars. I present a necklace that I've always kept in me from the past until now. Although it wasn't the exact necklace that I gave you when we were at the museum... It's the identical copy of what I gave you as a present during that time."

Speechless, finally, after fifteen years of waiting and meeting people. Right this moment, under the moonlight, near the sea, feeling the night breeze, I confessed the long-kept feelings that were locked. And unable to break free from the deepest depths of my heart.

"Serene, let me be selfish for once and allow me to tell you the truth about me... For years, I've fallen deeply in love with you. And although I've met people. You were the only one who made me feel that something I've failed to find from others..."

"For the last time, my purpose of seeing you right now is to tell you how I feel. I don't need you to answer, I just wanted to tell you my feelings that I've kept hidden... It is up to you whether you accept my gift, but all I want is to tell you the truth."

"Let me apologize for how immature I've become in the past, and hopefully, I was able to grow not only as a man but as a person... Throughout the decade and a half, I've already become successful in my career. And was able to establish a law firm of my own, even having branches built in other countries. A resort, a restaurant, and many more.

"However, with all those successes. I've been stuck in the past where these feelings I first had for you still remained untouched... So here I am in front of you, as the man who has loved you unconditionally, revealing my feelings."

I handed her the box, which contained the necklace that was the exact replica of what I gave her back in 2019.

"I'll be leaving the country to head back... This is the only purpose I invited and asked Nolan to plan this reunion. Thank you for giving me the time to meet with you face to face..."

So who was at fault for the outcome? Is it you? Or was it her?

Honestly, it was no one. Probably, you were too scared to confess because of your fear of rejection. Probably, you didn't have enough confidence because of your view of yourself. She never knew about your feelings. Maybe, she did know but was waiting for you to ask.

So no one should take the blame.

Yet, never revealing the truth. You'll always be haunted by the thought of regret that you didn't dare to tell. You suffer alone while that person lives their life the way they wanted to. While you get stuck in the memoirs of the past, reliving each day that the both of you shared.

Don't lock yourself up. Don't fear what the result may be. Rather, grasp the outcome and consider it as room to improve. Maybe the thought of rejection that has been clouding your mind is just your own thoughts. You'll never know the truth behind the feelings of someone if you never confront them and ask about it yourself.

Know that it is better to know the ugly truth than cover yourself with pretty lies.

And who knows, maybe the response you were frightened to hear might just be the answer you really expected it to be. So why don't you try and let the flow of the world and your destiny collide?