44: Care

Jace Henshaw

Jace’s eyes searched the crowd of those gathered for the last meeting before the one-week march would commence, looking for Elle, but she wasn’t a part of them. She had been present in the last two meetings because of her role at the university, and she had to meet him. He had listened to her words to keep his distance, but finding her face in the crowd at the previous meeting was a sort of compensation. It made him know she was okay.

He knew she didn’t forgive him; she didn’t forget what he had done, and he didn’t expect her to. He had yet to forgive himself. He was a coward and an asshole for taking for granted someone who loved him genuinely. If it was black and white, the decision would have been so much easier, but it was black, white, and grey. What she wanted was what he couldn’t give and couldn’t afford to give, yet he took what she offered without hesitation. If he could go back, he would have done some things differently. He would have been a better man for her.