Page 62 of Neptune

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CASSIE

Present

B y the time Luke finishes his story, my sobs have become uncontrollable.

Aiden. My baby. He was suffering so much. He knows that I'm his mother.

My heart breaks even more now that the last words I said to him keep echoing in my mind.

What was I thinking? He must have been crushed.

"I never wanted you to love me and Aiden because you were forced to," Luke says, holding me close to him as we stare into each other's eyes.

"I didn't want to pressure you. I wanted you to love us from the bottom of your heart.

I'm sorry that I lied to you. I told you that Aiden was my nephew.

I asked Langston to play along in case you asked about him.

She agreed to tell you that Aiden was born when Emily and Victor had the car crash. "

Now I know about that. Apparently, Ms. Langston didn't tell me the entire truth.

Luke tucks a strand of my hair behind my ear.

"To be honest, I didn't know if you would ever remember us, but I was hoping for it," he whispers.

"I didn't expect that I could help you regain your memory, but I always knew that Aiden might be able to do so.

There's nothing stronger than a bond between a mother and her child.

I thought that you might be able to feel it. "

"I did," I cry. "I did, Luke. I always feel a strong connection with him.

Every time I look at him, I feel like nothing else matters in this world.

I feel so grateful just watching him, like he's the source of my happiness.

At first, I wondered how I could have such a strong feeling. It was like magic."

Luke nods in understanding. "That day before the award show, when you told me that you're happy for having me and Aiden, I thought of telling you the truth once we came back from the event.

And I'd told Aiden about it. I'd told him that I was going to tell you everything about us, that you're his mother. "

My sob breaks again. That's why Aiden couldn't wait for us to come home. He couldn't wait to see my reaction once I knew everything.

"I never thought that he would be waiting for us that late at night," Luke says, his voice filled with regret. "Instead of having the three of us united again, he watched us having a huge fight."

"It was my fault," I cry, feeling my heart shatter into a million pieces. "I said things that I didn't mean. I broke his heart. What should I do, Luke?"

More tears stream down my cheeks.

"I told him that having him in my life was a mistake." I shake my head in denial.

Luke presses his lips against mine. He pulls me into a hug and caresses my hair, soothing me. "I told him that you didn't mean it."

"But—"

"Sshhh. It's okay. We'll get to him. We'll make him understand how much you love him."

I bury my face in his chest and cry, my heart screaming for Aiden.

"I'm sorry, Cassie," Luke rasps. "I'm sorry that I wasn’t there when both of you needed me the most. I'm sorry that I wasn't there during the hardest part of your life."

I pull away and stare at him, noticing so much sadness in his eyes. "It doesn't matter now."

I cup his cheeks, wishing that he knew how grateful I am that he's finally here again with me.

"You came back. You came back for me, Luke. You found our child. You found him." My voice is barely a whisper at the end of my sentence, filled with emotions that I can't control.

But then my heart burns as I think about Morgan.

"That woman separated me from my child." My jaw clenches in anger. "She ripped him away from me. She harmed him."

My body shudders as I think about how she just abandoned Aiden on the street, inside a box, on a chilly day.

How could I be so stupid? I lost so much of my memory that I couldn't remember anything about carrying my own child.

I'd noticed a scar on my stomach after the accident, but it was only a thin line, a stitch from surgery. I'd thought that the surgery was for the damage from the accident.

I'd never thought that it was from a C-section surgical procedure. I was still clueless about giving birth—I was 18, too young for that.

I feel Luke tense too after hearing me talk about Morgan.

"I wanted to put her in jail for what she'd done to you and Aiden.

But since you didn't remember anything before, and because I was afraid that the incident would blow up and expose Aiden, I didn't do it.

Now that you remember everything, I don't see why I should hold back anymore. "

"I don't see why we should hold back," I say firmly. "I want her behind bars as soon as possible."

A smile touches Luke's lips. I'm so different from the old version of myself who was reluctant to let go of Morgan.

It's over, Morgan. You just don't mess with my child.

Luke and I stare at each other with a meaningful look. We can spend the entire day in each other's embrace like this, but we don't want to do that, because both of us know where we should be now.

???

Luke takes my hand in his after we get out of the car, and we head toward Aiden's school. My heart is beating fast.

I can't wait to see him again. I feel like I want to run to him, hold him in my arms and never let him go.

"I've never gone inside this building before," Luke says, surprising me as we walk through the hallway. "No one knows that Aiden is our son, except the headmaster."

My heart sinks again. All this time, Luke has been hiding Aiden because of how famous I am as a celebrity.

He's afraid that our family secrets will be exposed to the entire world—he doesn't want to hurt Aiden and me.

But I remember everything now. There's no way that I would deny Aiden. I'll protect him no matter what.

"He's supposed to have English class right now," Luke says as we head to the second-grade classrooms.

I squeeze Luke's hand in appreciation, a small smile tugging at my lips. He's such an attentive father, and I'm grateful that he's been a great single parent while I was away.

It's not that hard to find Aiden's classroom. The English class catches our attention right away because it's filled with the most people.

I notice that they're having a speech lesson and have invited the students' parents.

I frown. "Did Aiden tell you about this?"

Luke only stares into the classroom with a blank expression, and I can see that he's feeling guilty, just as I am. He shakes his head, signaling that the answer is negative.

Without thinking further, we open the classroom door, and all eyes are on us.

People gasp, not expecting to see me and Luke here. Aiden's eyes widen when he sees us.

The teacher, who's standing near the door, approaches us. Before she can ask any questions, Luke explains.

"We're Aiden's parents," Luke says, while my gaze is still fixed on Aiden. Tears pool in my eyes as I see him sitting at his desk, staring back at me.

Gasps and murmurs fill the room. The truth that has just escaped from Luke's mouth must have shocked the people here.

But then the class goes silent again as the little girl standing in front of the class continues delivering her speech, talking about his father, who is a pilot.

It's a speech of appreciation. After she finishes it, the entire class gives her applause. She rushes to her father watching at the back.

He hugs her, and they both laugh.

My heart breaks from knowing that if Luke and I hadn't come here, Aiden would have been the only kid who didn't have his parents here.

"Now, for the next turn." The teacher smiles. "Aiden. Have you prepared your speech?"

Aiden freezes. He stares at me, but I'm too overwhelmed from seeing him again that I can only give him teary eyes.

He turns to Luke, who nods, signaling him to proceed.

Reluctantly, Aiden walks from his desk toward the front of the class. He must be confused as to why Luke suddenly decided to share the truth.

Once Aiden arrives in front of the class, he looks down. "I wrote a speech about my mom."

I don't even realize that I'm holding my breath. Aiden looks at Luke again one more time, still unsure, but Luke gives him another nod, smiling.

Aiden opens the paper in his hands and starts to speak.

"My mom is a singer," he says. "Her voice is so beautiful, and people love her very much. She has the warmest eyes and the most amazing smile."

I listen to every word, more tears filling my eyes.

"She can play the piano, and I'm so happy whenever she plays my favorite song. My mom always tries to cheer me up when I'm down. She loves to make me laugh. "

My throat hurts. Does he not remember the last words that I said to him? Has he already forgiven me?

"Every morning, she asks me what I'm going to study and gives me a kiss before I go to school. Every day, she waits for me to come home with a big smile on her face. We love to play together in the afternoon. She asks me what I'm going to draw, because I love my crayons so much."

I feel like I’m experiencing all of those memories again, warmth seeping into my heart.

"At night, she reads me my favorite stories before bed and makes me laugh. My mom is the sweetest and funniest person in the world. Before I sleep, she always gives me a good night kiss so that I won't have any nightmares."

I can't control my tears. He's treasuring each of our moments.

"I love my mom very much." Aiden's voice turns hoarse, and my heart bursts when he starts to cry and wipes his tears with his sleeve. "I wish that we could stay together forever and that she didn't have to leave me again."

I rush to him and engulf him in a hug, sobbing. Why is he thinking like that? I would never leave him. Never.

I will die if we ever part again.

"And I love you very much, Aiden," I cry. "I would never leave you. You're my everything. How could I leave you?"

We pull away, and I wipe the tears in his eyes with a smile. Aiden sniffs. I can still see the sadness and fear in his eyes.

He's indeed afraid that I will go away.

"I'm sorry for all the time we've missed," I whisper, cupping his cheek. "I'm sorry for all the years that we've spent without each other. Mommy will always be here with you, Aiden. We will always be together."

"Mom," Aiden rasps. "Do you remember me?"

"I never forgot you, Aiden," I say the truth. Even when my brain didn't remember him, my heart did. "I never stopped loving you. "

Tears pool again in his eyes, and I pull him into another tight hug. No one can separate us anymore.

Luke steps toward us. When we look up, he bends down and wraps his arms around us, engulfing us in his embrace.

I sigh in contentment. I've never felt a bliss so powerful. I feel so peaceful. So contented. So happy and relieved that the three of us are finally together.

We notice that we're definitely making a scene in front of the class. When I glance at the audience, I find that the teacher and some parents also have tears in their eyes, touched by what just happened.

I close my eyes, burying myself in Luke's arms again, together with Aiden.

"What do you want me to tell the press, Cassie?" Luke whispers. "What do you want me to tell the world?"

A soft smile touches my lips. "Everything."