The Miracle of You

Her answer made Michael’s heart drop to his stomach.

Yes, she did seem uncomfortable for a moment, but that could easily be explained by the fact that Camille wasn’t really an affectionate type of person. She wasn’t the kind of woman who said sweet words and liked to talk about feelings and emotions and things like that. Basically, it could be waved away as an expression of embarrassment.

So… that was it.

She loved Christian.

Was this her answer to Michael’s confession?

All this time, she was in love with another man?

A man who wasn’t him…?

“I’m sorry, Noah. I really am,” Camille said, looking a little distressed. She must have noticed the way he froze after her answer. Or maybe… she had already prepared to say these words. “I didn’t want to tell you like this. I… feel like I’ve hurt you a lot, to be honest. Ever since we met after all these years, I feel like I’ve only ever made you upset. But even so, you’re still kind to me. You still treat me well, and I… I feel so bad.”

She looked genuinely remorseful, which only increased the ache in Michael’s heart.

No. He didn’t want to see her look like that. He just wanted to see a smile on her face and hear genuine laughter from her lips.

Not like this, and especially not because of him.

“You don’t have to feel bad about it, okay?” he reassured her. “I’m fine. You don’t owe me anything. Like I said, we’re still friends.”

“But… after your confession that day…” She shook her head. “I’m sorry. I really didn’t mean to do that to you. I should have told you from the beginning.”

Michael managed a small smile. “Like I said, I’m fine. All that matters to me is that you’re happy. Are you?”

The question seemed to strike a chord somewhere inside Camille. She looked at him with wide eyes and couldn’t answer for a while.

Strangely, she seemed pensive, as if she was weighing possible answers in her head, when it should just be a simple response.

Just a simple “yes”.

But Michael didn’t want to suspect her of anything. Maybe she was just being considerate for his sake. He didn’t want her to feel that way about him.

As he told her, she didn’t owe him anything, and he meant every word.

“I came here to meet you as a friend,” he told her. “I kept the promise that I would find you wherever you were. I kept your necklace with me. I’ve been waiting for you for many years, yes, but even so, you owe me nothing. I did everything on my own. You didn’t force me to do anything. I just did what I wanted to do.”

He reached out and took her hand, squeezing it gently.

“And that’s what I want you to know,” he said softly. “And that none of this is your fault. Okay?”

These words made Camille burst into tears.

She buried her face in her hands and just started sobbing quietly to herself. Alarmed, Michael rushed over to her side and awkwardly patted her on the shoulder. After all, it would be inappropriate to hug her in a situation like this.

And especially when she was engaged to another man.

So he could only do it to this extent, and it didn’t matter.

As long as he was here for her.

“Thank you, Noah,” Camille said as she wiped her tears with a handkerchief that she carried around with her from her purse. “I really appreciate it.”

The two of them sat there in a comfortable silence, with Camille finally taking sips of her coffee and Michael stirring his iced latte.

“I know it’s tiring to make small talk, but I’m really curious,” Camille began quietly, not-so subtly changing the topic. “How have you been lately? And how’s your family?”

“I’ve been… getting by,” he replied, not saying anything about the switch of subject. “Work keeps me busy as usual. But as for my family… it’s complicated.”

Camille tilted her head slightly. “Complicated? In what way?”

He sighed. “I told you about it, didn’t I? About my situation.”

She nodded. In fact, he had told her about it in the past, when they were hanging out on the roof as usual. He had confided in her about his leg injury as a child and why it happened.

Apparently, it was to save his sister, Joanna, and Camille personally thought that it was a noble act, especially considering that he was a child when he did it. He didn’t even hesitate.

Unfortunately, it came at a cost, but Camille simply appreciated his intention for doing the action in the first place.

Although it was sad that Michael was left with an irreparable injury that would cause him discomfort in his daily life, Camille knew that he didn’t regret it one bit.

He was a good person, and it showed.NôvelD(ram)a.ôrg owns this content.

“So… it seems that your relationship with your sister hasn’t improved much over the years,” she said sympathetically.

He leaned back in his chair, shaking his head. “Yeah. It’s like there’s this wall between us that I can’t seem to break down.”

“Ah, I see. You once mentioned that you couldn’t understand her.”

“Some things never change, I guess. We had a lot of… issues growing up. With our parents, mostly.”

“I can see how that would cause a rift,” Camille said gently. “Have you… ever tried talking to her about it? Calmly?”

He nodded. “I’ve tried in the past, but it was hard. Joanna was so closed and guarded. Even before the accident, every time I tried to get close, she shut me out.”

He decided not to tell her about his and Joanna’s conversation earlier. After all, he didn’t even know where to begin or how to explain it. Plus, it would only take too long.

Maybe one day, when he was ready to deal with it, and when he could come to terms with the fact that his sister had opened up to him, he would tell her.

But for now, he still wasn’t sure if Joanna would remain civil to him from now on. After all, he had only experienced coldness from her for three decades. It was hard for him to get used to such a significant change.

“I’m sorry, Noah,” Camille said tenderly. “That must have been really hard. But if I may say this, it’s good that you tried. Sometimes it takes a while for people to open up. It’s only natural.”

“You think so?”

She nodded. “Maybe you should give it a little more time. You’re both adults now, which probably makes it even harder to let down your pride. But it’s also possible that she thinks the same way you do.”

He blinked. “The… same thing as me?”

She nodded. “Maybe she tried in the past as well, but you were the one who shut her out. And as the years have passed, it has become harder and harder to bridge the chasm between the two of you.”