Chapter: The Letters That Never Arrived

The notebook had a worn cover, as if it had been opened and closed a thousand times. Olivia held it in her hands for a long time, not yet daring to open it. Elías had told her that Tom used to write in it during the early hours of the morning, when he couldn't sleep. That he kept it like someone guards a secret too big to say out loud.

That night, in the solitude of her room, Olivia lit a candle and opened it.

The first page had a date: February 15. The handwriting was unmistakable. It was Tom's.

"I don't know if you'll ever read this, but I needed to write it. Today I saw you laugh with that freedom only you have. I thought about how unfair it would be not to be by your side all my life. Sometimes it scares me how much I love you, Olivia."

She turned the page. Another date, another letter.

"Sometimes I wonder what you'll do if one day I'm no longer here. The idea of becoming just a memory terrifies me, but it comforts me to know that at least some part of me will stay with you. I hope you find these letters. I hope love doesn't get lost when the body goes away."

Olivia felt the weight of each word. It wasn't just nostalgia. It was pure love, unfiltered. Tom had spoken to her from across time, as if he knew that someday she'd be there, listening to him with a trembling heart.

There were letters for their anniversaries, for her bad days, even one for when she was ready to love again.

"Don't feel guilty if one day you smile without thinking of me. I promised to love you, not to tie you down. Live, Olivia. Live for both of us, if you must."

Olivia clutched the notebook to her chest. Her tears weren't sad. They were soft, freeing. At last, she had another piece of him. Words that hadn't died with him. Promises that still burned.

That night, she wrote him a letter. A response. Because even though he was no longer there, now she could speak to him again.

Letter No. 17 — "If One Day You Fall in Love Again"

Oli:

If you're reading this, it's because your heart opened again. Because someone, with gentle hands and patient steps, managed to come in without making a sound. And I want you to know I'm not angry. I'm not sad. I'm proud of you.

I always knew you'd love again. Do you know why? Because you have the biggest soul I've ever known. Because love doesn't run out in you, it only transforms. Because you deserve to be happy, even if I'm no longer here.

Don't feel guilty. Don't compare. Don't be afraid. I was a part of your story, but I don't have to be the end. Loving you was the most beautiful thing I ever lived. And that's why I want you to live more love. To fill yourself with those little everyday miracles: a laugh, a hand held, a new favorite song. Don't shy away from love out of loyalty to my absence.

If that person makes you feel safe, if they see you the way I saw you — like the light that turns winter into home — then please... let yourself be loved. I'll be smiling, wherever I am. And every time you look at the sky and feel the wind brush your skin, think of it as my way of telling you everything is okay.

Thank you for loving me the way you did. For being my home. Now go, and build a new one.

Always yours,
— Tom