Page 156 of Never After Us

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I’m still searching for the courage to tell you the whole truth.

I’m afraid of the hurt it might cause.

I’m afraid you’ll think everything between us was a lie.

But the lie wasn’t you.It was my fear.

You were the brightest part of my life.

Love,

Lina

ChapterSixty-Six

My beautiful girl,

This will bemy last letter.My hands tremble too often now, and the doctors speak in gentle voices they think I don’t recognize.

I wish I could see you one more time.

I wish I could hold Mila.

I wish I could undo all the years I spent believing you didn’t need me.

But here is the truth you must carry forward:

You were wanted.

You were cherished.

You were never abandoned out of lack of love.

Only fear.Only limitations.Only fate’s cruel timing.

You have liveda life filled with strength I never possessed.

You have become a woman I would have been honored to know—even if you were not mine.

But you were, you always were.

I am grateful for every breath you took in this world because you existed.

If you ever doubt who you are, open these letters again and remind yourself:

You were lovedbefore you were born.

You were loved in every silence.

You were loved from every distance.

You are loved in my final moment.

Take your time grieving me.Take your time forgiving me.

Don’t forget to live bravely.

Love deeply.

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