I had forgotten how much I missed a Celentra sunset, the way it painted the sky in streaks of magenta and light green. I had spent so much time watching sunsets elsewhere that I had almost forgotten my home.
The realization struck me with a weight I wasn’t sure how to address. Those days were over. I had given them up for Carlosa.
“Giovanna?” she asked, the bond twinging with her hesitation. I didn’t look at her, but I didn’t need to in order to know her face was pinched with worry.
“Yes?” I asked, unsure why she would be concerned. I was fine.
“How long did you spend on the ocean before finding me?” Her voice shook slightly, and through the bond I could tell she was terrified to hear the answer.
I kept my gaze fixed on the waves lapping against the shoreline, whispering secrets Carlosa wasn’t ready to hear. “That's the thing about time,” I finally responded. “It doesn’t work the way it’s supposed to.”
“What do you mean?” Confusion flooded the bond as she tried to understand.
I hesitated, wishing time would freeze for just a moment so I could choose the right words. What could I tell her? How could I explain? In the end, I focused on the truth. She needed to know.
“Celentra was stuck, and the ocean was stuck with it. But the ocean holds secrets.” I paused, weighing my next words. How much could I say? “It holds portals.”
Carlosa let out a low whistle. “Did you go through them?”
I nodded, smiling faintly as a surge of pride bloomed in my chest. I knew I shouldn’t feel it, but I had truly enjoyed my time in those other worlds. “Every single one I could find.”
“What did you find?” Shock electrified the bond.
“I found other worlds, places where time moved, where I aged normally, where I learned to survive. I have traveled far beyond Celentra’s realm,” I said plainly, though the words had been heavy on my chest for days. “I have fought in battles under skies that weren’t mine.”
“Why didn’t you stay there? You could have lived a normal life,” she said, but through the bond I felt her anxiety about what my answer might be.
I shook my head. “My life was never meant to be normal. Neither was yours, my moon.” I turned to meet her amethyst eyes, reaching up to rest my hand against her cheek.
“We are far past having a normal life,” I murmured, stroking my thumb just beneath her eye.
She leaned into my palm and sighed. “With you, life is anything but normal.”