A month had gone by since Althea returned to heaven to where she truly belonged. But her heart was still on earth where her rejected mate still lived. She longed for him just as much as he did her.

Time passed slower in heaven than the land of living, making the pain in her heart still raw and fresh as if it all happened yesterday.

But a year had passed on the earth. So much had changed yet everything was still the same. Aries tried to live the life Althea had laid out for him by returning his brother. He was thankful to her. But he lived in regret for rejecting her.

He knew that he could never love another like he loved her. Even though Althea had blessed him with love again, his heart desired no one but her. So, he hid his pain behind those smiles and lived his life for Noah. For his pack. For the peaceful world that Althea had left behind.

The goddess silently watched them both as they hid their feelings, their want for one another. They had forgotten she was a goddess, and nothing could be hidden from her. She could see through everything. Even those fake smiles meant nothing to her, for she understood their soul.

As usual, Althea sat by the pond in the green field, lightly decorated with tall grass, and beautiful tulips stretched beyond. She was once again watching him through the mirage that she had created, a sad smile plastered on her face as tears continuously fell down her face.

The goddess couldn’t see her daughter’s pain any longer, so she decided to come out of her hiding by the huge willow tree that sat behind her daughter. She came beside Althea and sat down next to her. She, too, looked at the mirage while Althea sat there still unaware of her mother’s presence for she was deeply enchanted by Aries’ smiling face as she watched him chase after Noah. How she wished to be with them. How much she longed to be with him.

The goddess let out a deep breath, making Althea break free of his enchantment. She quickly wiped her tears as she smiled at her mother. Once again, she tried to hide. The goddess slowly turned to look at her daughter with a sad smile on her face as she reached out a hand to cup her face.

“My sweet daughter, I know that you are hurting inside.” The goddess watched her daughter as she tried to act clueless. “I don’t know what you are talking about, Mother.” She slowly took her mother’s hand off her face as she tried to laugh it off but stopped herself as she looks at her mother’s now stern face.

Althea looked back down at the pond as yet another tear flowed down her cheek. “I miss him so much, Mother.” Then she looked back at her mother. “Why do I miss him so much? I accepted his rejection. He rejected me. I shouldn’t be feeling this way. So tell me, Mother. Despite all that, why does my heart still want him? Why does my heart still long for his?”

Althea started to sob quietly in front of her mother, unable to bear her pain now. The goddess had a knowing look on her face as she took Althea’s hands in between hers and gently patted them.

“Because you love him.”

She looked at her mother with confusion laced on her face as she tilted her head sideways. “Although you have broken your bond with him and freed him to love another, you still love him. The bond is just a string to connect the two bodies together, but the heart is what counts. If it desires someone, it will want it, regardless of the bond, my dear daughter.”

This made Althea’s heart break even more. “What do I do now, Mother?” Her sobs echoed the field as the wind blew gently. “It’s too late. I let him go. I freed his heart of me. He doesn’t want me anymore.”

“Oh, my naïve daughter, love has made you so blind that you cannot even tell his heart apart. Look at him.” The goddess turned her head back to the pond. Aries now sat on his dark office as he looked at a piece of paper. Unable to understand, Althea turned to face her mother once again. “Look closer, my dear.”

When Althea looked again, she saw it too. It wasn’t just any piece of paper that he was holding, it was a photograph.

Of her.

More tears left her eyes as she bought her hand to cover her face. “What have I done, Mother?” Her hands muffled her voice, but it was clear as a day to her mother’s ears.

With another sigh, the goddess gently forced Althea’s hands off her face and made her look into her eyes. “Althea, would you ever be able to truly let him go?”

Now the only sound that surrounded the field was the air blowing swiftly as it swayed the tall grass and the long silver hair of Althea. She was taken aback by her mother’s forwardness, but now she too questioned herself. Would she ever be able to let him go? Even though she blessed him to find a new love, would she ever bear to watch him love another and just wonder what it would have been if only it was her?

Her thoughts haunted her as she took her bottom lip in between her teeth and bit it hard to stop her lips from trembling. It broke her to think of another woman in his life. With him.

Then she finally got her answers as she looked deep into her mother’s eyes. She knew then that her mother knew her answer too. But she said it out loud regardless.

“No.”

The wind carried her response across the field for heaven to listen. Aries was Althea’s and no one shall have him but her.