Her tears smudged the ink as she wrote, This isn't possible. You're not real. You're just… words on paper.
A pause. Then came the reply:
I'm as real as you. Why do you say I'm not?
Her breath shuddered. She wanted to scream, throw the book out the window, set it on fire—but she couldn't. She needed to see what came next.
Because the Ethan I knew… the man you become… he destroyed me.
The page remained still for a heartbeat. Then, slowly, letters bled across the paper:
Destroyed you? How? I would never hurt you. I love you, Emma. I always will.
Her hands shook violently. The words carved open wounds she thought had scarred over long ago. She remembered the day Ethan had said almost the exact same thing, his young face earnest, hands clutching hers as if they were lifelines. She remembered believing him.
Now she remembered the betrayal too—the woman, the child that wasn't hers, the home that collapsed in silence.
She clenched her jaw and scribbled with bitter fury:
If you love me, then stay away from me. Don't come near me. Don't fall in love with me. If you do, you'll ruin me.
She slammed the book shut, breath ragged, tears burning her eyes.
Even as she tried to block it out, Emma's mind kept returning to the words on the page. Something—or someone—was demanding her attention, and the more she resisted, the stronger the pull became.