Page 72 of Broken Desires
“Exactly,” he replies to my unspoken thoughts. “And don’t worry, I’m not asking you to marry me and sit on the throne beside me yet. I’m just asking you to come back, study here, and give our relationship a chance.”
“Yet.” That’s the word that sticks with me. Could I even see myself sitting on a throne? I look deep into his green eyes, wishing I could see him in real life instead of through a screen because I think there’s not much I couldn’t do with him by my side.
“It’s a bit crazy, isn’t it?” I venture, the thought hanging between us, heavy yet electrifying.
He responds with a nod, his smile never wavering. “Positively. But then, I’m crazy about you, which pretty much balances it all out.”
I laugh, shaking my head at his reasoning. “You’ve been spending too much time with Cole. That’s some Cole logic right there.”
“Perhaps,” he concedes, “but sometimes Cole’s way of seeing things isn’t too far off the mark.”
The words are barely out of my mouth before I confess, “I love you, Alexander Liam.”
“And I love you, my wild rose.” His response is immediate, sincere.
For a moment, we’re both silent, simply looking at each other through the digital divide, yet feeling as close as if no distance lies between us.
“Would it be alright if I arrange for a plane? To bring you here, to me?” His question is tentative, revealing a vulnerability I’ve come to cherish. “I know it’s a big leap, and I promise to do everything within my power to make sure you’re happy.”
His words, his promise, resonate deep within me. “You already make me happy just by loving me the way you do,” I admit. And then, with a conviction I didn’t know I had until this moment, I say, “Yes, I’ll come back.”
Relief washes over his face, the tension in his shoulders dissipating. “Thank you,” he breathes out, a weight visibly lifted from him. “It’s late here, and though I doubt I can get everything sorted tonight—especially with Hank likely lurking in front of my door with a pitchfork—I’ll have everything arranged by tomorrow. You’ll have all the details when you wake up.” His smile, full of love and promise, is the last thing I see before he signs off with I love you.
I mirror his sign, I love you too, and then end the call, lying back on my bed, staring up at the ceiling. I, Vanessa Caldwell, a deaf dancer and a college student, am about to embark on a life with the king of Denmark. It’s ludicrous, a whirlwind of insanity, and yet, inexplicably, exactly what I want.
“I mean no offense because we’re going to miss you like crazy, but if you said no to the man, I would have knocked you unconscious and shipped you there myself,” Eva says as she helps me pack my bags while Poppy is busy packing her room.
“You know, you’re starting to sound like your husband. I’m not sure it’s a good thing,” I tease her.
Eva pulls a face. “I know, I’m sounding more like him every day. Scary, right? But honestly, if you had said no to Alexander after that declaration, I was fully prepared to drag you there myself.”
The thought brings a smile to my face despite the bittersweet undercurrent of leaving. “It was like something out of those cheesy movies we love, wasn’t it?” I can’t help but agree. Alexander’s gesture was the epitome of romance, the kind we’d sigh over during our movie nights.
He’s given me a week to organize my life here before the move, a consideration that just further proves how deeply he understands me. Meanwhile, life around here is changing too—Cole and Eva are setting up their new place, and Ethan and Poppy are taking over the house he already owns near campus. With my departure to Denmark, we’re letting go of our shared space, closing a chapter that, despite its short span, feels rich and deeply meaningful.
“I’m really going to miss you guys,” I confess, the weight of the impending goodbye settling in. “It’s only been a year, but with everything we’ve gone through, the way we’ve healed together… it feels like a lifetime.” Leaving this sanctuary we’ve built together is harder than I anticipated, a testament to the bonds we’ve formed.
Eva pulls me into a hug, and I give it back, enjoying the love my friends are giving me.
“We’ll never be far! We can video call whenever, and we have planes, so we can visit each other. The relationship we have is evolving, but it doesn’t have to break. We are friends, and nothing will change that—certainly not something as silly as distance.”
I hug her back wordlessly. She’s right, of course she is, but it really feels that I’m leaving everything I know behind.
I did it once when I came to Silverbrook. It was scary then, too, and the change brought so much positivity into my life, so much more than I had once expected.
I get a hug from behind and turn my head to see Poppy.
“You guys are hugging it out without me?”
I laugh and move a little so I can hug them both at the same time. “Never.”
I pull back, and despite all three of us being happy, we have tears in our eyes. “I’ll just miss you both—that is all,” I say.
Poppy looks at Eva and then back to me. “Well, you know I’ve always wanted to know what winter looks like in Denmark, so you’ll have us in a few months.”
I laugh. “Yes, of course! That would be amazing.”
The laughter and warmth of my final moments with Eva and Poppy linger as I step away, carrying their assurances and plans for future visits with me. Their support, an upbeat force in the sea of changes, fortifies me as I navigate through the final preparations for departure. The juxtaposition of their unconditional love with the conditional acceptance from my family starkly reminds me of the value of genuine connections.