A Curse (The Love Story) GL

CHAPTER XLVI

"The Bride of Shadows and Stars"

Celeste's POV

Ivory and Olivia dressed me with such care, it felt less like preparation and more like a ceremony written in the stars.

Their hands moved with grace — combing through my hair, weaving threads of silver and soft moonlight, lacing my gown with crystals that shimmered like the edge of twilight. Every fold of fabric whispered magic. Every ornament seemed to hold the memory of love long waited for.

They didn't speak much… but their smiles said everything.

> As if they weren't just dressing Caelum's bride —

They were preparing a soul for its destined moment.

When I finally stood before the mirror, I could barely recognize myself.

The reflection that stared back wasn't just a girl who had walked through heartache, fire, and confusion.

> She was something more.

A woman reborn. A queen unspoken. A bride wrapped in light… walking into shadow with love in her hands.

My breath caught in my throat. I touched the delicate veil resting on my shoulder, the jeweled crown woven with fallen starlight — and a single thought slipped into my heart like a prayer:

> "When Caelum sees me… what will she feel?"

Would she smile?

Would her eyes soften?

Would she finally let down the armor she wears around her heart?

Or would she turn away again — distant, unreachable — like always?

> My hands trembled, just a little.

Not from fear… but from hope.

Because no matter what had happened between us — the lies, the confusion, the war in our souls — this moment was real.

And I wanted her to see me.

Not just as her bride.

But as hers.

When I was ready, Olivia reached for my hand, her fingers warm and steady.

> "You're perfect," she said softly. "Even the stars would envy you."

Ivory looped her arm through mine and added, "And now, it's time. Let's go to her."

And just like that — with my heart thudding like the first beat of a love song — I walked with them.

> Every step toward Caelum felt like stepping across the edge of a dream.

The hallway ahead glowed with enchanted lights — vines curling along the walls, blooming with soft white petals that opened as we passed. The ruined palace now shimmered like a temple of forgotten magic, reborn just for us.

And with each step, I felt it.

> A quiet voice in my chest whispering: "This is it. This is the beginning of your forever."

The anticipation curled around my ribs like fire and wind. What would she say when she saw me? What would her eyes reveal when they met mine?

> Would she see a stranger…

Or the one she had been running from all along?

I didn't know.

But I was ready now — for all of it.

For her gaze.

For her silence.

For her heart.

> Because I had already given her mine.

And I was about to find out… if she would finally accept it.

"The Promise of a Heart That Won't Let Go"

Celeste's POV

The moment I stepped into the room where Cael stood, my heart nearly forgot how to beat.

She was waiting for me — tall, regal, impossibly still, cloaked in midnight black. But as soon as her eyes landed on me, something shifted.

A smile, small and fleeting, tugged at her lips.

> And then I saw it.

A light in her eyes I had never seen before.

It wasn't just admiration. It wasn't desire.

> It was something raw.

Unfiltered.

Undeniably real.

As if for just a breath in time… the walls around her heart had finally cracked, and the woman behind all that darkness — the real Caelum — had peeked through.

> She looked at me like she remembered everything we never got to have.

Like she could see the version of us that might have bloomed in another world — without curses, without lies, without fate clawing at our backs.

But then…

> Her eyes dropped.

The light vanished.

She looked away — turning her head as if she couldn't bear to let me see her like that for too long.

And when she looked back…

> Her face had changed.

Her eyes had hardened.

That familiar storm had returned.

Anger now clouded her features — sharp, distant, defensive.

> Like she was punishing herself for that moment of softness.

Like she regretted letting me see her heart.

But I didn't flinch.

I didn't step back.

Because I had made up my mind.

> I wasn't going to run anymore.

Not from her coldness.

Not from her pain.

Not from her silence.

This was my vow now — not the one sealed by magic, but the one whispered from the deepest corner of my soul:

> "I will protect you, Caelum… even when you think you don't need it."

I would stand between her and every darkness, including the one inside her.

And more than that —

> I would win her heart.

Not through force.

Not through power.

But by feeling every touch she gave me.

And making sure she felt every touch I gave in return.

Every brush of skin.

Every held gaze.

Every whisper of breath shared in silence.

> I would show her — not tell her — that she was mine.

And that I was hers.

Not because fate had written it that way…

> But because I had chosen her.

> Again.

And again.

And again.

No matter how many faces she wore.

No matter how many names she buried herself beneath.

> She was Cael.

She was mine.

And I would remind her of that with every look, every heartbeat, every quiet moment that stretched between us.

Because I could see what she tried so hard to hide.

> That she didn't want to be alone.

That maybe — just maybe — she wanted someone to stay.

> And I would stay.

Even if she turned away.

Even if she raised her voice.

Even if she cloaked herself in shadow…

> I would still be standing there.

Burning like a candle she couldn't blow out.

> "You're mine, Cael," I whispered silently as I looked at her. "And I'm going to make you feel that… Until you believe it too."

To be continue....