There are some things you don't tell someone you love.
Not because you're lying.
Because sometimes the truth would hurt them more than the lie.
Athena was asleep.
Finally.
After everything, she had somehow managed to fall asleep on the couch with her head against my shoulder.
I didn't move.
I barely breathed.
I just watched her.
She looked peaceful.
For once.
I hated knowing that peace might not last.
My mother's words kept repeating in my head.
The Hollow doesn't need your blood.
It needs what connects you.
I looked down at Athena.
Our connection had always been the thing the Hollow wanted.
It had used my memories.
My fear.
My love for her.
Everything I had tried to hide.
And now I finally understood why.
The Hollow wasn't simply feeding on attachment.
It was using attachment as an anchor.
A doorway.
As long as I remembered Athena, it could find her.
As long as Athena remembered me, it could find me.
As long as we remained connected...
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It had a way back.
There was only one solution.
Break the connection completely.
Not temporarily.
Not enough to escape.
Forever.
I swallowed.
If Athena forgot me, the Hollow would lose its path.
If I forgot her...
It would lose mine.
The thought nearly broke me.
But it was better than watching the Hollow take her piece by piece.
I carefully stood.
Athena stirred.
I froze.
She opened one eye.
“Where are you going?”
“Nowhere.”
“You're terrible at lying.”
“I know.”
She closed her eye again.
“Sit.”
I stared at her.
“Seriously?”
“Sit.”
I sat.
She immediately rested her head against my shoulder again.
“You're acting weird,” she mumbled.
“I always act weird.”
“Not like this.”
I smiled sadly.
“Go back to sleep.”
She was quiet for a moment.
Then she whispered,
“Don't leave.”
My chest hurt.
“I won't.”
It was the easiest promise I'd ever made.
And the hardest one I'd ever intended to break.
Hours later, I left.
I went to the woods alone.
The Hollow was waiting.
Of course it was.
The trees were silent.
No wind.
No birds.
Nothing.
Then Athena's voice came from behind me.
“You promised.”
I closed my eyes.
“Not you.”
“You promised you wouldn't leave.”
I turned.
Nothing.
Just trees.
The voice came again.
“You're going to forget her.”
I said nothing.
“You'll forget the sound of her laugh.”
I clenched my fists.
“You'll forget the first time she smiled at you.”
“Shut up.”
“You'll forget why you loved her.”
I looked into the darkness.
“That's the point.”
Silence.
Then something laughed.
Not Athena.
Not Axel.
Something older.
Something empty.
“You would sacrifice yourself.”
“No.”
I took a breath.
“I'd sacrifice the part of me you can use.”
The Hollow appeared between the trees.
It had no face.
No body.
Just darkness shaped vaguely like a person.
“You believe love makes you strong.”
“No.”
I stared at it.
“I believe choice does.”
The Hollow moved closer.
“If you break the bond, she will forget you.”
My throat tightened.
“I know.”
“She will wake tomorrow and you will be a stranger.”
“I know.”
“She will not remember your voice.”
“I know.”
“She will not remember loving you.”
I looked away.
That one hurt.
More than I expected.
But I forced myself to look back.
“Then I'll live with it.”
The Hollow tilted its head.
“You would rather be forgotten than let her die.”
“Yes.”
A voice behind me said,
“No.”
I froze.
Athena.
I turned.
She stood between the trees.
Barefoot.
Breathing hard.
Furious.
“How did you—”
“You're an idiot.”
I stared at her.
She walked toward me.
“You left without saying anything.”
“Athena—”
“You promised.”
“I was trying to protect you.”
“I don't need you to decide what I'm willing to lose.”
The Hollow shifted.
Athena didn't even look at it.
She looked only at me.
“You don't get to sacrifice yourself for me.”
“I wasn't—”
“You were.”
She stepped closer.
“And you're not doing it.”
I shook my head.
“You don't understand.”
“I understand perfectly.”
She grabbed my hand.
“If the Hollow wants our connection, then breaking it isn't the answer.”
“What is?”
Athena squeezed my fingers.
“We choose what it can't take.”
I stared at her.
“What?”
She smiled.
“Each other.”
The Hollow screamed.
The entire forest shook.
And for the first time...
I smiled too.