Chapter 22 Departure

• I sat at the long, oak dining table, surrounded by people who felt like pieces of me. Levi was to my left, his gaze bouncing between my face and the plate in front of him. Bea sat across, and the twins, Grey and Blue, flanked either side of her, each of them carrying the silent intensity that was almost a second language to them. There was a quiet reverence to the meal, as though each of us recognized the weight of this moment. For the first time in my life, I was leaving with no certainty of when—or if—I’d return.
• Levi broke the silence first, nudging my arm with a warm, gentle smile. “It feels like I just got you back, and now you’re running off with these two?” He raised an eyebrow at the twins, his playful tone tinged with genuine sadness.
• “Trust me, I didn’t exactly plan any of this,” I replied with a soft laugh, trying to shake off the pang of melancholy his words had stirred. “But we all know this is something I have to do.”