IMDD CHAPTER 283 (Patreon)

Eventually, Gage broke the stillness. He stepped forward, distancing himself slightly from Calix, hands buried in his pockets.

Turning slightly to face Calix, he expressed his gratitude, "Thank you for keeping my wife and daughter safe."

There was a short pause before Calix responded, his gaze remaining fixed on the vast expanse of the night sky. "I actually didn’t do much. Your family here has been incredibly protective of them. And Eva, she's quite cautious herself. Well… until you came back."

"I'm aware you've done more than I could have expected, Cal. And for that, I'm grateful," Gage acknowledged, the sincerity in his voice unmistakable.

"I'm still not used to you thanking me so earnestly... but you're welcome, Gage," Calix admitted, finally shifting his gaze to meet Gage's eyes.

"But what was that about, those final words you uttered in the hospital yesterday?" Gage inquired, one thick eyebrow raised.

Calix let out another one of his faint smiles. "So, you’re finally entertaining the idea that I might fall for your wife, huh?"

Gage studied him with a penetrating look before responding. "No. While my wife undoubtedly has the charm to steal hearts... even without intending to..." he paused, his gaze dropping to Calix’s chest, "there’s still no heart right in there that could fall for anyone to begin with."

A faint smirk played on Calix’s lips. "Don’t be too certain of that, Gage. There might just be something your devil eyes are overlooking."

This time, it was Gage who smirked in return. "My eyes never miss anything in the darkness, Cal. You, of all people, should know that."

Calix turned his gaze back to the dark sky, his expression reverting to its usual impassiveness as he exhaled another stream of white smoke into the cool night air.

"So why did you call me here?" Calix inquired, extinguishing his cigarette.

Gage moved to stand beside him, leaning against the same pillar. "This…" he began, letting out a heavy sigh. "I want to know everything that happened in my absence. The fact that we now have… a daughter... it's supposed to be... impossible."

"Imagine my surprise when I discovered that," Calix replied. "I was just as taken aback as you are. You never hinted at such a possibility, leaving me to wonder if Eva had an affair or was impregnated by another man. I even covertly investigated whether she was assaulted. However, none of that was the case. And when I laid eyes on Gigi for the first time, all my suspicions vanished. I've been waiting for your return, to confront you about this, but here you are... apparently as clueless as I am.”

“All I did is try to save her the way I know. I gave her up, severed my wing myself, and then left her. That’s all I did. And that supposed to have… ended our story for good.” Gage was staring in the ground now as he uttered these words. “So many things that wasn’t supposed to happen happened. And they’re all something that never, ever happened before. Eva told me that… all these are because… we’ve finally made it…”

“But you’re not convinced…” Calix said.

Gage squatted on the ground, dropped his head and rubbed the back of his neck.  “I wanted to believe her. I truly wish she is right. But… what if she’s wrong?”

“Wait. Did you already tell her everything? I mean about how all these even started?”

Gage shook his head. “It’s too risky. I could never take any risk when it comes to her, you know that. I’ve done it before, tried to tell her about how it all started for my desire for her to just cooperate with me, but that only made everything worse and made her suffer more. I will never let that happen again.”

Another long stretch of silence reigned between them before Calix spoke. “But what if she’s right? And your left wing... it's not just any ordinary thing. In my opinion, even a million souls wouldn't equal its value. You've given up something truly irreplaceable, Gage."

“Yes. But I sacrificed it for someone irreplaceable too."

Calix raised his hand, running his fingers through his hair in a gesture of thoughtfulness. He seemed on the verge of speaking, opening his mouth as if to articulate a new thought, but then he halted, reconsidering. In the end, he simply leaned back against the pillar once again, as if he’d decided to keep his thoughts to himself for the moment.

They were quiet again until Gage stood from his squatting position and faced Calix.

"I am not certain about the true cause of my return, but... I think that I was given another chance," Gage said, his voice tinged with a mix of hope and uncertainty. "If thirty days pass and nothing happens... that's when I will believe that... it’s indeed finally over."

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