Episode 3

Emma stood near the edge of the garden, the air was thick with scent jasmine. The moonlight poured silver over everything and threw shadows that seemed to reverberate off the secrets of her heart. Caleb stood a few feet away; his hands are in his pockets. His jaw is tight. They hadn't spoken in weeks-not since the night that everything had fallen apart.

"Why did you come here, Caleb?" Emma finally asked her voice quivering. She didn't turn to look at him; she couldn't.

"Because I had to," Caleb replied, taking another step closer. "Because I can't stay away."

Emma closed her eyes and willed herself not to cry. "We can't keep doing this. You know that."

"And yet, here we are," he said softly, his voice carrying the weight of a thousand unspoken words.

She turned towards him then, her chest aching at the sight of him. His dark hair was tousled, his eyes filled with a mix of longing and pain. "It's not fair, Caleb. To either of us."

"I know," he admitted. "But what am I supposed to do, Emma? Pretend that I don't love you? Pretend every moment without you. Doesn't feel like a loss of a piece of me?"

She gasped for air. "You don't think I feel the same? But love isn't enough. family.my family.They'll never accept this. We'll destroy everything if we keep going."

"I don't care about them!" Caleb's voice climbed higher, raw and desperate. "I care about you. About us.".

But I do, Caleb. I care. And that's why I have to let you go.

He takes a step closer. His hands ache to reach out and pull her into his arms. "Don't do this, Emma. Don't let them win."

"It's not about them winning," she says softly. "It's about us surviving. And we won't—not like this".

The silence was oppressive, broken only by the soft creak of wind in the trees. Caleb stood staring at her as his heart crumbled, piece by cruel piece. He nodded finally, speaking hardly above a whisper. "If this is what you want. I'll go."

Emma bit down hard on her lip to keep from crying. "It's what I have to do."

He glanced back once, that final, lingering look, as if to capture every feature, every contour of the face. Then he turned and walked off into the darkness.

As the footsteps receded into the distance, Emma collapsed to her knees, wracking herself with sobs. Had she done right? Well, at least that was what she had to believe. But as the stars silently witnessed from on high, she couldn't help but wonder whether love like theirs would ever be truly left behind. Her words hung in the air with a weight. Emma understood that accepting the engagement was her last step to fullfil her commitment. She would finally have to let Caleb go, once for good. This was a life she did not want but one her family had chosen for her. She could not stand being forced into such a choice-to care about love or to care about duty.

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