Chapter 230

Lucien stared at Calliope's back. She looked so slender, yet stood straight as a pole-like a poplar tree that refused to bend. Somehow, all the mess in his head quieted down just then. No one knew better than him how much Calliope had sacrificed for Aether. He still remembered when he passed his driving test and got his very first car-Calliope had hugged her laptop, eyes sparkling, saying she had a surprise for him. He remembered the sound of her typing for days without rest, and how that poor laptop finally gave out right during her exam week-plus it had to rain that day. She'd broken down crying, full-on sobbing. He picked up the broken laptop and ran through the rain, hitting up repair shop after repair shop. But by the time it was fixed, everything on it was gone. He spent forever comforting her before she finally looked up with red, puffy eyes and said, "It's okay. I've got a new idea." That idea? Aether. Three whole years. Aether had been through hell and back, and he was always