Chapter 204 Author's note

Chapter 204 Author's note
When I first started writing this story, I knew how it was going to end. That part never really changed.
What did change was me.
Somewhere along the way, these characters stopped feeling like characters. They became people I looked forward to spending time with every day. And judging by your comments, they became that for many of you too. As I got closer to the final chapters, I found myself hesitating. I questioned whether I should change the ending. I almost did. In fact, I couldn't stop asking myself if I was making the right choice.
But every time I returned to the story, it led me back here.
So I chose to stay true to it.
I know this isn't the ending many of you were hoping for, and I'm truly grateful that you cared enough to hope for something different. But this was the ending that felt honest to me. It was the one my heart kept returning to.
If there's one thing I hope this story leaves with you, it's this: Don't wait for the “right time” to tell someone you love them, to take the trip, to make the call, to sit a little longer with the people who make life feel lighter. So much of life is ordinary while we're living it, and only later do we realize it was extraordinary all along.
Take care of yourselves. Be kind to the people you love. And, whenever you can, choose to live while you still have today.
Thank you for walking this journey with Michael and Ryan...and with me.
Memento mori.
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