"Let's break up..."
Milenka murmured as she didn't even look at him and Cathain's heart skipped a beat, feeling like he had lost his soul once again.
~I... Eleanora Cathain Valentino, The empress of the Valentino Empire and the Daughter of Alexander De Xavier Dalton; accepts your divorce petition~
~I hereby give you back the name you granted me, step down from my position as the empress of our great Valentino Empire from this onwards~
The words she had spoken after accepting his divorce in their previous life echoed in his mind, and upon seeing the expression on her face, Milenka was certain he was once again lost in thought.
"No one knows who she is... There is no trace of her in your life..."
"But It's evident how deeply you love her, even without my having seen or known her... You are unable to forget her"
Milenka continued to murmur, striving to appear strong.
She can't break down before him...
She must not let him know how much she craves for him...
Because she is not the one in his eyes...
"I am not generous, and I desire to be the sole focus of your thoughts, the only one who can touch you."
"Let's cease this torment; I am not her and can never be her, Cathain..."
Milenka's voice took on a grave tone as she grasped the reason he had never breached their divide.
"NO! That's not it!"
Cathain's protest came despite the truth in her words.
Yet, he is gripped by fear…
He fears that the happiness he currently enjoys will vanish, and she will be reminded of the past.
Look at him with horror in her eyes like some monster.
He can't get over his traumas or forget them.
He can't help but look for his empress in her.
He knows it's wrong… but he can't control it.
Milenka doesn't deserve this; she has forgotten their past and now lives in peace.
But how can he find peace when every single sin he committed haunts him?
Cathain gripped her shoulders with both hands as he tried to deceive himself, and she grasped his hands to shake them off.
"That's true, Cain… ask your heart, you don't love me at all…"
Tears streamed down Milenka's cheeks, her ocean blue eyes reflecting profound pain.
She cherished him deeply, yet she could not embrace someone whose heart harbored another.
Refusing to be a mere replacement for the woman he held dear, she stood firm.
"I..."
Cathain began, but his words were cut short as the plane jolted violently, prompting him to wrap his arms protectively around Milenka.
Panic ensued among the passengers as the turbulence persisted, and even the flight attendants were visibly shaken.
'What's happening?'
Fear gripped his heart, missing a beat as Milenka clung to him, her eyes tightly shut.
Cathain peered out the window to see they were above the sea, knowing a plane crash here meant certain death.
Their bodies would never be found if it came to that.
"What's happening, Cain? Why is the plane shaking so violently?"
Milenka's voice trembled as she spoke, eyes shut tight, while Cathain stroked her back, trying to soothe her fears.
"It's nothing... just some technical issues..."
Cathain's voice faltered in the lie.
Death loomed over them, and Milenka sensed it as well.
"I don't want to die, Cain..."
"I'm scared..."
"I don't want to die..."
Tears began to fall as Milenka whispered, and Cathain drew her in closer.
He didn't want to die either.
He just found her; he couldn't even confess his sins or love.
The entire plane was filled with prayers as passengers pleaded for their lives, tears streaming down faces as the reality of mortality hit everyone.
The fear was palpable, shaking every soul on board.
Cathain's life flashed before his eyes – his birth, his family, friends, and every soul he'd ever met.
And then there was Milenka... the past two years had been beyond anything he could have ever dreamed.
Yet, he regretted missing the chance to be with her once more.
"Shush, don't cry... we'll be okay..."
He whispered to Milenka, his voice a soothing balm to her panic.
"When we get back, I'll take you to that restaurant you mentioned last time, alright?"
Milenka nodded, gripping his shirt, the earlier quarrel forgotten in the face of their current peril.
"What would you like to eat there?"
"Fried chicken... Tomato stew... Beef steak... Red wine..."
She stammered, hope flickering in her tearful eyes and Cathain smiled bitterly as he continued to speak with his trembling lips.
"After that, we can go to the pastry shop too, I will let you eat three cakes that day."
"Promise?"
As Milenka wept, his gentle voice failed to quell the agonized screams of the people behind them.
Escape was impossible.
Some attempted to flee using parachutes, but it was a futile gesture. Over the boundless sea, there was nowhere to land, and they would only meet death in a different form.
Various sections of the plane began to disintegrate, and an electrical short-circuit sparked a fire.
"Yes, promise..."
Cathain's breath halted as he observed the encroaching inferno and clutched Milenka closer in his embrace.
Aware that there was no escape, he chose to spend his final moments holding her close.
The bright orange flames devoured everything in their path.
Milenka felt a choking sensation as the sulfur mingled with smoke and other chemicals, producing a pungent, acrid odor.
Her breathing became labored, her body feeling as if it were aflame as the fire drew nearer.
Blinded by the smoke, she still felt safeguarded in his embrace while she cried out in agony.
A warm droplet landed on her cheek, and she thought it was his tear as she sensed him murmuring words she couldn't quite catch.
"I am sorry… I failed to save you again…"
.
.
"…My empress."