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Liam's gaze lifted, meeting hers. Theireyes locked, and in that prolonged moment, Charlotte saw a depth of sadnessmingled with an inexplicable longing for something just out of reach. The windcaressed his hair, tousling it gently, as if trying to soothe the pain etchedacross his young face.
"My mom," he began, his voicetentative, breaking the solid wall of silence that had stood between them."She's gone." The words tumbled out, heavy and laden with unshedtears. "That's why Henry... my dad got custody." His confessionhovered in the air, raw and vulnerable. “I mean, I know he told you she died.But maybe he didn’t explain that what Roxie said was right—he only came to getme when she died. I’ve only been with him two weeks, maybe three now.”
The revelation drew a silent gasp fromCharlotte. Her eyes softened, the corners crinkling with empathy as she satbeside him on the cold rock, the sea spray misting their faces. She resistedthe urge to wrap an arm around him, understanding that some moments requiredspace to breathe, to exist without immediate consolation.
"Tell me about her,"Charlotte encouraged, her tone inviting yet respectful of his grief.
Liam's lips parted as if to speak, butinstead, he let out a shaky breath, gathering the fragments of his story.Charlotte waited, patient and present. Charlotte listened to Liam's haltingwords, each syllable laden with the weight of his young world. The tide pulledat the shore, a relentless reminder that life, much like the ocean, carries onregardless of the heartaches borne by those who walk its edge.
"Mom always said the sea hadhealing powers," Liam murmured, his gaze locked on the horizon where thesky kissed the water. "She loved it on the beach."
Charlotte drew her knees closer to herchest, the sand clinging to her jeans, an anchor in the softening light. Shewatched Liam, his profile etched against the dwindling day—so young and yet soachingly familiar in his sorrow.
"It's a beautiful thought,"she replied, her voice barely more than a whisper, harmonizing with the gentlerush of the waves. Memories, unbidden, swirled within her—a tempest of grieffrom her own past.
She took a deep breath, tasting thesalt on her lips, feeling the shared thread of loss that wove through thefabric of their lives. "I lost my mother when I was about your age,"she confided, the words slipping out like pebbles into the vastness of the seabefore them.
Liam turned to her then, his eyessearching her face, seeking the truth of her heartache in the fading glow."You did?"
Charlotte nodded, allowing thevulnerability to surface, the same vulnerability that had once torn her worldapart but now promised a bridge between their isolated islands of pain."Yes, I remember feeling so lost, like I had been left behind in a placewhere everyone else seemed to know the way forward."
"Did it ever get better?" Hisquestion was simple, yet it carried the depth of their shared longing—thelonging for understanding, for healing, for a safe harbor in the storm.
"In time," she admitted, hervoice a soft caress against the harsh reality of their conversation. "Iwas older, but still, it never goes away completely, the missing piece. But youlearn to build around it, create new memories, find joy in the love thatremains."
Liam's shoulders relaxed slightly, asif her words offered a small measure of comfort, a lifeline thrown across thechasm of his grief. Charlotte reached out, her hand hovering just above his,close enough to offer support without intrusion.
"Your mother's love for you—it'spart of who you are," she said, her own heart echoing the sentiment."And I believe she's right. There is healing here—among the tides and inthe hearts that care for you."
She paused, letting her gaze drift outto where the sea kissed the horizon, a line that seemed to hold all thepossibilities and new beginnings they were both longing for. "I knowsomething else about being left behind, you know. After my husband decided wewere better off apart, Amelia—my daughter—and I felt so lost... like a piece ofour world was suddenly missing."
Liam's eyes widened slightly, andCharlotte knew she'd touched a chord within him. They were reflections of eachother, their experiences with loss and abandonment creating an invisible threadthat connected them.
"Being here in Chesham Cove,"she said, gesturing to the quaint village behind them, "it's given mehope. And I want you to feel that too. To find a place where you belong, wherepeople care about you."
She reached out tentatively, placingher hand over his smaller, cold one. His fingers twitched but didn't pull away.In that simple touch, a silent understanding passed between them, as though thevery essence of Chesham Cove—the resilience of its cliffs, the persistence ofits tides—imbued them with a shared strength.
"You're not alone, Liam. Notanymore," Charlotte promised, her voice soft yet firm with conviction."We'll figure this out together, okay?"
For the first time since she'd foundhim, Liam nodded a small gesture. His gaze remained locked on the waves, but heleaned ever so slightly into Charlotte's presence, like a wary animal findingcomfort in the warmth of another. Seagulls called to each other, their criesechoing the wild rhythm of the sea.
"Did you paint today?" Liam'svoice was small, almost lost in the soundscape of the beach.
Charlotte smiled, grateful for hisattempt at conversation. "Not today," she replied. "Some days,it's enough just to watch the colors change with the sunset."
"Like that one you did of thepier," Liam said, a flicker of enthusiasm breaking through his somberdemeanor. “It’s hanging in the parlor.”
"That's right." Her heartswelled with hope. "You have a good eye, Liam. Maybe tomorrow, you couldhelp me choose the right shades for the sky? Something new?"
"Really?" His face lit up fora moment before uncertainty creased his brow. "But what if Dad—"
"Hey," she interruptedgently, "no 'what ifs' right now. Let's just take it one day at a time.Deal?"
"Deal," he echoed, atentative smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.
They sat in silence for a few minutes,watching as the sun dipped lower, the ocean swallowing its fiery orb. The tideebbed and flowed, each wave a soft murmur promising that no matter how far itretreated, it would always return.
"Charlotte?" Liam's voice wasbarely above a whisper.
