~Ioana~
"Ioana."
The moment I saw him—ragged, his once neatly shaven beards now grown, fading away the immaturity on his face—his brown eyes stared at me so intensely, goosebumps sprouted all over my skin.
I should have turned back and left the moment I saw him. I knew I should have, but for some reason, my feet stayed stuck, rooted to the floor.
"Ioana," he called out again, his voice low and magnetic. It stirred up memories, flashes of the past I never wanted to remember.
How excited I was when I found out we were mates. I stayed up all night scribbling scrawls on the sand with trembling fingers. I stayed, eyes open, wide awake, tossing and turning as I waited for our next secret meeting. But all that was shattered that day.
My fingers curled into fists by my side. "Why are you he
