Chapter 1

I spent three years chasing my childhood sweetheart, Carson Sanchez. He remained distant the entire time.

On his birthday, I gave him a sachet I had embroidered by hand over three months. Not long after, I saw it hanging from his desk mate's backpack.

The moon stitched into the fabric swayed gently, then slipped, by accident, into a muddy puddle.

Lauren Gallagher looked at Carson with feigned distress and bent down to pick it up. "I'm sorry," she said softly. "I got your thing dirty. I'll get it back."

Carson caught her wrist and said, "Forget it. It's not important. Go finish your homework. Your overall score dropped three points recently."

I stared at the needle marks covering my palms, and for the first time, I thought, 'Forget it.'

I returned to being just his neighbor, going to and from school as usual. After SATs exams, I went abroad.

Five years later, I came back to register my marriage. Carson was the one who came to pick me up.

He handed me that sachet, looking at me gently. "Do you remember? You gave this to me."

"All these years," he said, "I've been waiting for you to come back."

*****

Just as Carson handed me the pouch, my phone started ringing.

It was my fiancé, whining and acting all clingy, saying he couldn't stand being apart from me for a whole month.

With Carson right beside me, I suddenly felt a little self-conscious about acting overly affectionate. I kept it brief, murmuring a few soothing words before ending the call.

When I lowered my phone, I realized Carson was still looking at me.

I laughed lightly, a bit embarrassed. "It's old and faded anyway. Pretty useless now. You can just throw it away if you want."

Carson studied me for a moment before replying in a low voice, "I can't. You were the one who gave it to me."

For as long as I could remember, this was the first time he had ever spoken to me so gently. It threw me off completely.

I busied myself with the seatbelt, pretending not to notice. "Let's go. I'm starving."

After being away for so many years, I was craving the food from home more than I cared to admit.

The car cruised along smoothly, a love song playing in the background. For some reason, it sounded really familiar.

Without taking his eyes off the road, Carson reached over, picked up a bag of wheat crackers, and placed it in my hand.

"You used to like this song," he said quietly. "So I put it on. And these are your favorite crackers. Eat something so you don't get hungry."

If I hadn't known him for more than ten years, I would've sworn this was some kind of impostor.

I shot him a sideways glance. "Carson, what happened to you? Did you get electrocuted or something? You're acting completely different."

Back then, he'd been the untouchable heir, aloof, distant, never sparing anyone a second glance.

Well... that wasn't entirely true.

Too bad that someone wasn't me.

He only showed his patience and kindness to Lauren, the girl from a struggling family.

Back in school, everyone shipped them relentlessly.

I smiled faintly to myself. Time really did change things. Somewhere along the way, I'd let go of almost everything.

Carson tightened his grip on the steering wheel, his knuckles whitening as he glanced at me, looking oddly tense.

"Jessica," he said softly, "I didn't suddenly change. I just... I missed you."

If he'd said that five years ago, I probably would've panicked, maybe even thrown myself into his arms without thinking.

But now, it barely stirred anything in me.

I chuckled lightly, more to ease his discomfort than anything else. "Mr. Sanchez, there's no need to be so courteous. It's been years."

It was just a standard, half-hearted response, but Carson totally took it the wrong way.

He didn't say another word. A faint smile tugged at his lips as he looked at me, completely unguarded.

I didn't bother correcting him. Once he heard me talk about my wedding plans later, he'd understand soon enough.

About forty minutes later, we pulled up in front of the Marsh residence.

The Sanchez and Marsh families had been neighbors for years. With Conner and Alyvia away on a business trip, the moment my mom spotted Carson, she insisted he stay for dinner.

Since I planned to be back for a while, I'd brought three oversized suitcases with me.

Carson grabbed the luggage cart with one hand and instinctively reached for my bag with the other.

I gave him a puzzled look.

He grinned. "Didn't you always complain that I never carried your bag?"

That was so long ago.

Back in freshman year, on my birthday, I was down with a nasty cold, but I still dragged myself to class just to be with Carson.

When I stepped out of the car, my vision blurred, stars dancing before my eyes. Carson was already walking ahead, hands in his pockets, not once turning back.

His expression had been cold, distant, just like always.

"Hurry up," he'd said flatly. "We're going to be late."

I'd been so naïve back then. I actually thought he was worried about me missing class.

I could barely stay upright, but I still forced myself to chase after him.

By the time I caught up, I was drenched in sweat, lips pale.

"Carson," I'd murmured weakly, "my bag's really heavy..."

I just wanted him to carry it for me.

He stopped, lifted his eyes, and looked at me, detached, indifferent. My heart sank instantly. I regretted speaking the moment the words left my mouth.

By the time I looked again, he was already walking away.

Because I'd been a little too clingy, he ignored me for half a month.

Only after I chased him down, apologized over and over, practically begged, did he finally start walking me to and from school again.