Shadows Of A Forgotten Spring

Diana had been more than a soulmate; she was his twin flame, his equal in every way. Life had been unkind to her, and her health had always been fragile; in the end, she was betrayed by those closest to her-her own cousin.

Her death was still a pain he had, but then seeing Emma, who resembled Diana to an amazing extent, had seemed like light at the end of a very long tunnel. The music began to make Brandon blink back tears and he steal a glance at Emma as she swayed to its rhythm. She wasn't Diana, he knew that, but she was the one who had given him hope all over again.

As they approached the beach, Brandon felt a twinge of nervous anticipation. He had hired the whole beach for the day, so they would have the place all to themselves. He wanted this moment to be special, something that she would always remember. He opened her car door and reached out his hand too assist her out. Her fingers touched his, and in that instant, he felt a jolt of current and wondered if she could, too.

Emma changed into a bikini, her laughter ringing out into the air as she playfully teased Brandon. She wasn't much of a beachgoer, she admitted, but she'd make an exception. They ran along the shore, playing in the water and laughing like kids. For a couple of hours, Emma's cares seemed to melt away, and Brandon felt he was seeing a side of her the world rarely ever

saw.

As the sun started to set, the mood turned. They sat together on the sand. They were quiet aside for the sound of the wave.

"Diana used to love water," Brandon said suddenly, breaking the heavy silence between them.

Emma turned to him, her head jolting up in surprise at the change of his tone. "She did?" she asked softly, trying to read his mood. She let out a sigh, sensing the weight of the memory about to be shared.

Brandon nodded, a faint, bittersweet smile tugging at his lips. "Yeah. She loved it more than anything. We used to go to the beach every week, come what may. She said the sound of the waves made her feel at peace, like everything else in the world faded away, leaving only calm."

Emma's heart tugged at the tenderness in his voice. She could tell how deeply Diana had touched his life. "It must have been nice," she said softly, though sensing the pain buried beneath the words.

The smile faltered and his eyes dropped to the sand. "It was," he muttered. "Until she was diagnosed with cancer." His voice started to break, and Emma watched as the tears welled up inside his eyes before spilling over. "She tried to stay strong, you know? Even when things got hard, she'd still talk about going back to the beach one day, like it was this promise she made to

herself. But, we never got to go again."

she said, her voice barely above a

Emma's throat constricted as she watched him wipe at his tears.'m so sorry to hear that," whisper. She looked away, feeling awkward, unsure of how to comfort him in a moment so raw.

Brandon breathed shallowly, steeling himself. "The first time I met you, Emma." He stopped, his eyes fixed on the waves. "You made me feel alive again. Since Diana's death, I never thought it would be possible to feel anything, really. But then you came into my life, and you made me feel whole. It was like you were this light breaking through a storm I thought would never end."

Emma swallowed hard. "Brandon." she started, but she trailed off

He turned to her, his eyes filled with a mix of vulnerability and determination. "I couldn't explain it at first. How you me feel. It was beyond words. And the more I got to know you, the more it felt like maybe just maybe everything that happened, as cruel as it was, had led me to you."

made

Emma felt her chest tighten as the weight of his words soaked in She already knew where this was going but was at a loss on how to answer, if at all.

"But I was afraid," Brandon said, his voice trembling. "I was scared to give in to my heart, to give in to these feelings. I saw what you were going through, Emma, and the last thing I wanted was to make things harder for you or ruin what we already had. I told myself it was better this way, that it was enough just to be near you."

He stopped, his hands fisting as he struggled to catch his breath. "But it wasn't enough," he finally said. "Every moment I spend with you, I realize how much you mean to me. And now that you're with someone else. I can't keep it in anymore."

Emma's heart was pounding, and she looked down to her hands, not quite knowing where to focus her gaze. The intensity of his voice, the raw honesty, it was overwhelming.

"I love you, Emma," Brandon said, his voice was firm and it was filled with heartbreak.