"I'm not interested in her. I want to see you."

Ariana's eyes blurred as she fought back tears. A storm of pain and yearning raged inside her. She wanted to run to him, to pour out all her anguish into his embrace.

Yet, the thought of Sadie created an immense gap between her and Holden, a gap she felt was impossible to cross. Given how emotionally vulnerable she was now, crossing that gap might lead her to act without thinking. She didn't trust herself to make a decision in such a state.

With a heavy heart, she responded, "You need to leave. I don't want to see you now."

The moment she sent the message, a tear dropped onto her phone's screen.

Trying to hold back a flood of emotions, Ariana watched as Holden looked up at the house one last time before he walked away, his figure marked by defeat.

It was only when he disappeared from view that Ariana allowed herself to truly break down, sobbing against the window frame.

Holden was the man she had longed for for five years, the man she refused to believe was gone. But now, they were reduced to watching each other from afar.

When she heard a noise at the door, Ariana quickly turned, drying her eyes.

Melon was there, his face etched with worry. Without a word, he crawled into Ariana's embrace, wiping her tears away with his Little hands.

“Mommy, why are you crying?" he inquired. “Did someone hurt you?"

Ariana took a deep breath and managed a shaky smile. "It's okay, baby. I'm not really crying. My eyes are just a bit sore."

"Here, let me blow them for you." Melon narrowed his mouth, blowing gently on Ariana's eyes.

Ariana cradled little Melon in her arms, slowly calming her tears as Melon's simple act of kindness eased her sadness.

Holden returned to his house, feeling downcast. He let out a deep breath, loosened his tie, and threw it without care onto the couch close by.

Noticing his sad state, Devin quietly approached with a bowl of hot soup. Just when he was about to walk away, Holden broke the silence.

“Let's have a chat."

Devin felt a sigh bubble up inside him, knowing all too well the topic Holden was about to bring up.

Five years had trickled by, and the day they had all anticipated had finally arrived.

Devin walked back to Holden's side, facing Holden. "What do you want to talk about?" he said.