Chapter 185 The Last Goodbye

Chapter 185 The Last Goodbye
Ivy POV

I stayed in Caden's arms, letting the silence settle around us. Neither of us rushed to speak. We didn't need to. The bond flowed between us, quiet and steady, carrying everything words never could.

I felt the relief he had buried for months, the fear he had hidden behind calm smiles, and the love that had never faded, even when the bond was gone.

I wrapped my arms around him again and closed my eyes."I'm here."

His breath caught."I know."

Those two words carried more weight than any speech ever could. When we finally pulled apart, he rested his forehead against mine. His eyes searched my face as if he needed to make sure I was truly there.

"I thought I'd have to keep waiting."

"I promised I'd come back."

A smile tugged at his lips."You have a habit of keeping impossible promises."

I laughed softly."I learned from you."

His hand brushed my cheek, gentle enough to make my heart ache."No," he whispered. "You always had that in you."

The bond warmed between us, carrying every feeling without effort. For the first time since we had lost it, there was no silence separating us. No empty space. Only us.

Morning light spilled through the apartment windows, painting the floor in soft gold. Outside, New York had already begun another ordinary day.

Cars rolled through the streets below. Someone walked a dog along the sidewalk. A delivery truck stopped outside the corner café.

The city had no idea history had just ended. And that was exactly how it should be. I walked to the window, resting my hand against the cool glass.

"So... this is it."

Caden joined me.

"This is it."

"No more prophecies."

"No."

"No more Keepers."

He smiled."No more Alpha Kings." He looked at me."Just us."

I slipped my fingers through his."Just us."

My phone buzzed on the coffee table before either of us could say another word.
Lucas.The moment I answered, his voice filled the apartment.

"You felt it too."

I smiled.

"It came back."

He laughed, and I realized it was the first truly carefree laugh I'd ever heard from him.

"I knew something had changed. The whole compound stopped. Nobody knew why, but everyone felt it."

Another call came through before we finished talking. Maya. Lucas laughed. "I'll let her steal you."

"You'll survive."

"Barely."

I answered Maya's call. "Ivy!"

"I'm okay."

"You don't sound okay."

I laughed. "I'm better than okay."

She was quiet for a second before her voice softened."It came back, didn't it?"

I looked at Caden."Yes."

"I knew it." She laughed through tears. "I don't know how I knew, but I did."

Lucas shouted something in the background, and Maya told him to stop interrupting before turning back to me.
"So... what happens now?"

I looked around the apartment. The bookshelf. The couch. The stack of psychology books waiting for me. The life that had been waiting while I finished another one.

"I think," I said slowly, "we finally get to live."

After we ended the call, messages continued arriving. Sera sent a single sentence.

About time.

Alpha Chen wished us peace. Alpha Sofia reminded me that I still owed her coffee.
Even Alpha Rafael somehow found a way to joke that history had terrible timing because it interrupted breakfast.

Each message made me smile. None of them mentioned titles. None of them mentioned destiny. They simply spoke to Ivy. Not the Keeper. Just Ivy.

I looked at Caden.

"I like this."

"So do I."

He walked into the kitchen."I'm making breakfast."

I blinked."Should I be worried?"

"You have no faith in me."

"I remember the last breakfast."

"That was one mistake."

"You nearly burned down the apartment."

"I was experimenting."

I folded my arms."The smoke alarm disagreed."

He laughed."I've improved."

"We'll see."

Ten minutes later I was standing beside him, laughing so hard I had to lean against the counter."You burned the toast again."

"I didn't burn it."

I pointed at the black slice sitting on the plate."It's charcoal."

He stared at it."I prefer 'well done.'"

"You should never open a restaurant."

"I wasn't planning to."

Despite ourselves, we both laughed. The sound filled the apartment, light and easy.
No fear. No urgency. No countdown to another battle. Just laughter.

The bond pulsed between us, warm and content, as if it had missed moments like this as much as we had. After breakfast, we carried our mugs into the living room and sat together on the couch.

Neither of us reached for the television.
Neither of us picked up our phones. We simply watched the city wake up.

"I've been thinking," Caden said.

"That usually worries me."

He smiled."You wanted to finish your psychology degree."

"I still do."

"Then you should."

"And you?"

He leaned back."I want that little house I told you about."

"The one outside the city?"

He nodded."Somewhere quiet."

"A dog?"

"If you want one."

"A garden?"

"I'll probably kill every plant."

I laughed.

"So I'll handle the garden."

"You'll handle the plants."

"And you'll handle breakfast?"

He looked offended."I've made incredible progress."

"You've made edible eggs."

"That's still progress."

I rested my head against his shoulder."It is."

The apartment fell quiet again. Not the lonely silence I had grown used to after losing the bond. This silence felt full.
Comfortable. Safe.

I closed my eyes and let myself breathe.
For the first time since all of this had begun, I wasn't wondering what came next. There wasn't another prophecy waiting.

There wasn't another ancient secret hiding in the shadows. There wasn't another burden someone expected me to carry.
The world would keep turning without me saving it.

And I was finally ready to let it. Caden kissed the top of my head."What are you thinking about?"

I smiled without opening my eyes. "Tomorrow."

His fingers intertwined with mine."What about it?"

"I don't know what it'll bring."

He squeezed my hand."Neither do I."

"Does that scare you?"

He thought about it before answering."No."

I looked up at him."Why?"

"Because whatever tomorrow looks like..."
His smile was calm, certain, and wonderfully ordinary. "...we finally get to meet it together.”