“Absolutely!” Eric nodded with enthusiasm. “Even if all you gave me was a piece of string, I’d still treat it like a treasure.”

“You’re not far off.” Hadley let out a quiet laugh, a knowing smile playing at her lips. “It really is something small.”

With care, she reached into the handbag, pulled out a velvet box, and offered it to him. “Go ahead. Take a look.”

“Okay.” Eric’s breath caught a little. He accepted the box with both hands, hesitated for a second, and then slowly opened it.

The moment his eyes landed on the item inside, a flicker of recognition crossed his face. “Wait… isn’t this—?”

It was the very same peach pit whistle Hadley had once given him—the one he believed had vanished forever in the chaos of the Tidebourne earthquake.

In an instant, Eric’s head shot up, his eyes searching Hadley’s. “Is this really the same one?”

“It is.” Hadley confirmed his suspicion with a gentle nod. “I found it in my pocket after I woke up in the hospital that day.”

The discovery had left her stunned back then.

A long breath escaped Eric, as if a burden had finally been lifted from his chest. “I was sure it was lost forever—buried somewhere I’d never reach again.”

After the disaster, Phillips had even called in a rescue team to help search for it, but nothing ever turned up. Considering the wreckage they had been dealing with, it wasn’t surprising. Finding something that small among the ruins was nearly impossible.

Despite how much he had clung to the memory, Eric had eventually been forced to accept its loss. And yet, here it was again—restored to him like a piece of the past that refused to disappear.

Tears stung his eyes, not from pain, but from the sheer joy of holding something he thought he had lost forever.

Across from him, Hadley saw it all. She bit back a smile and teased, “Why are you so quiet? Don’t like it? Maybe I should just take it back then…” She leaned forward, her hand reaching for the whistle with playful intent.

F0r full ch@pters, g0 to glnovels.

“Wait, wait!” Eric grabbed her hand quickly, a hint of panic in his voice. “How could you say that? When did I ever say I didn’t like it? I love it—more than anything!”

“Fine, fine…” Hadley chuckled softly, giving him a look. “Why do you always get so worked up over things like this?”

“Because it matters!” Eric’s expression was serious. “We’re not even official yet, and I don’t want you thinking the wrong thing. When it comes to how I feel, I want to be completely honest.”

The sincerity in his voice caught her off guard. Hadley blinked, then gave a small nod, her amusement giving way to warmth. “Alright. I hear you.”

Carefully, she picked up the whistle again and said gently, “The original cord was soaked in mud and blood. I cleaned it as best as I could, but it was too damaged to save.”

She had replaced it with another red cord, this one a bit longer than before—just enough to suit him better.

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