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Semua Bab He Stands at the End of Memory: Bab 1 - Bab 8

8 Bab

Chapter 1

On the day of my father's funeral, my husband, Sebastian, never came after all.Night fell, and Sebastian came home.He saw how pale and worn my face was and reached out to comfort me. I turned my head away."This is my fault, baby. Something came up in Paris and I had to deal with it. Whatever you want, I'll make it up to you, okay?"After a long silence, I lifted my hand and slid two neatly folded documents across to him. "Sign them."Sebastian looked relieved. Without so much as glancing at what they were, he picked up a pen and signed his name.As far as he was concerned, anything I wanted, whatever it was, he'd agree to without hesitation."Anything you and the baby need, I'll give you, sweetheart."I'd just opened my mouth to say something when his phone cut sharply through the quiet.The name flashing on the screen was the one he kept pinned at the top and never let me see. Serena.Serena, my cousin.He ended the call and gave an awkward little laugh, then pressed a light kiss t

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Chapter 2

When Sebastian came home, I was sorting through all my clothes and jewelry.He probably assumed I was just in a bad mood and wanted new things to lift my spirits. He wrapped his arms around me from behind, his palms warm, his voice soft with indulgence. "There's an auction in a few days. I'll take you to pick out new pieces, and I'll stay close and make it up to you."I said nothing, letting him hold me, too tired even to offer a polite smile.His gaze drifted to my waist and stopped.He seemed to notice that the slight swell of my belly from the week before was flat again.He was about to ask when his phone rang.It was my uncle.The gentle voice on the other end asked if I wanted to come by for a gathering. Serena was back from abroad.Serena, my cousin.Before I could react, Sebastian had already accepted for us.He had completely forgotten that my father had been buried only days ago, that I was still sunk in the grief of losing him. He spared me not an ounce of thought, not a shre

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Chapter 3

The next day at noon, a friend I had not seen in a while asked me to lunch. We sat across from each other, talking softly, and I tried to ease the gloom that had built up inside me.But fate insisted on grinding away the last scrap of my dignity.When I looked up, I suddenly saw two familiar figures.Sebastian walked in front, tall and refined, his suit immaculate. Beside him, shoulder to shoulder, was Serena.The instant our eyes met, Sebastian stopped short, surprise and a flicker of panic churning in his gaze.Almost at once he came toward me, his words rushed, deliberately covering and explaining. "Vivienne, listen to me. I was at the office all morning. I just ran into Serena over lunch, that's all. We only happened to eat together."Every line was forced, every word guilty.Before I could speak, Serena gave a gentle little smile. "Vivienne, what a coincidence. If you don't mind, why don't you and your friend join us? It's livelier with more people."With the moment at an impasse

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Chapter 4

Sebastian pulled every connection and every ounce of power he had, searching the whole city like a man possessed. After a full day and night, he finally got Serena back."Sebastian, this had nothing to do with Vivienne. She didn't do it. You've got her wrong."That one short sentence shattered all of Sebastian's suspicion and certainty in an instant.He went rigid, the menace draining from his eyes, replaced by heavy shock and a belated trace of guilt.A moment later he walked into my room."Vivienne, I'm sorry. I was rash. I blamed you wrongly."So no matter how I explained myself, it counted for nothing next to one light sentence from Serena.After I was discharged, I went back alone to the house full of false tenderness.One by one I gathered up the expensive, exquisite gifts and tossed them into a discard box.There was no reluctance and no regret, only a complete sense of release. I did not want a shred of the affection built on lies.Once Sebastian had settled things with Serena,

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Chapter 5

When the anesthetic finally wore off, Sebastian forced his eyes open, his body utterly drained.But he paid no mind to his own condition, his thoughts on Serena.He summoned his second-in-command at once and learned that Serena's surgery had gone smoothly and that the marrow had taken well. The tension he had carried for days finally eased.He could never let Serena know it was his marrow that had saved her.He ordered her moved that very night to the most private clinic available, every surgical record sealed, no one permitted to breathe a word.In the days that followed he poured all his patience and tenderness into Serena, sinking into the comfort of having the woman he loved back, and put Vivienne entirely out of his mind.As far as Sebastian was concerned, Vivienne had been gentle for three years, loving him with a stubborn, humble devotion. However much she sulked or fumed, in the end she would wait obediently at the house for him to come back and smooth things over.She would ne

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Chapter 6

The wind in this foreign country was gentle and easy, and it blew away all the gloom I had carried for three years.I had been in this small seaside town for several days now. The temperature stayed mild year-round and the sea breeze drifted slow and easy, with no endless intrigues, no ambiguous affection I couldn’t distinguish as real or fake, and none of the man who had taken all my heart and left me covered in wounds.I rented an apartment with floor-to-ceiling windows and a view of the sea. Each morning I opened them to blue water, and at dusk the last of the light spread across the whole balcony, quiet and healing. I set down the chains of the past for good and slowly returned to a life that was my own.I signed up for the flower-arranging and oil-painting classes I had always liked, and my days were plain and full. I slowly came out of my shell and met a group of warm, uncomplicated new friends. They were pure and kind, untangled by love or hatred, content to chat about trivial j

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Chapter 7

Life in this distant country was gentle and unhurried, and it smoothed away every wound and hardship of the past three years.I settled in a small coastal town, the climate mild, every season bright.I rented a sea-view apartment with a wonderful outlook, spending my days at the studio working on oil painting and my free hours at a nearby workshop learning to arrange flowers. My life was simple, clean, and full.And it was in this clean, gentle town that I met Julian Hayes.Julian was a locally well-known architect, refined in manner, clear and decent in character. We first met at a charity art show by the sea. I was standing quietly before a painting, taking in the light and color of the water, when the crowd passing behind jostled me half a step off balance.It was Julian who reached out in time to steady me.At that first meeting he was measured and courteous, with no brash advances, merely asking softly if I was all right.He remembered that I loved the evening sea breeze, and he o

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Chapter 8

Serena's urging finally moved Sebastian to take that step.He set aside all his pride, left everything back home, and came alone to a foreign country, hoping to win me back.He must have stayed certain that three years of deep love had rooted itself in me, that if he only bowed his head, I would surely come back.But he did not know that my heart had long since died amid countless disappointments.I was settled now in this small seaside town, my days gentle and clean, with no more suffocation, no more deception, and no more endless self-torment.Julian was at my side, keeping me safe, giving me a love that was equal and pure, something I had never felt before.The day Sebastian found me, I was walking by the sea with Julian.Seeing him again after months, he still had that proud, aloof look, only now there was a haste and a raggedness in his eyes.He came toward me quickly, his tone yielding and tentative, trying to explain the past and offer a late apology.But Julian steadily drew me

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