Poppy was petite and Caius could practically envelop her with just one arm. I used to love that feeling—when Caius would hold me like that. He always said that holding me this way made him feel like he could protect me, that he could keep me by his side forever. I never imagined that one day, his embrace would belong to someone else.
“I got you your favorite—pineapple juice.”
Poppy’s smile froze. She hesitated, then awkwardly said, “Ace, I’m allergic to pineapple…”
Caius frowned. “That’s impossible. You love pineapple juice. I couldn’t have gotten that wrong.”
He spoke with such certainty that my eyes immediately filled with tears.
It was me who loved pineapple juice.
That’s why, no matter where we were, he always managed to find fresh pineapple juice for me.
“Because you love it. As long as you love it, I’ll always find a way to get it for you,” he had once said, smiling sweetly, his eyes full of me.
Poppy took the cup of pineapple juice and casually tossed it into the trash. Caius’s fingers twitched slightly, but he didn’t stop her. He just watched her, his expression uncharacteristically downcast. “Sorry, I’ve been mixing up your preferences a lot lately.”