Revenge amnesia upgraded to his brother (Norah and Lucien) novel Chapter 220

Chapter 220

Norah’s POV

I held the hands of the two kids and walked to the hidden side entrance backstage.

From there, we had a clear view of the runway, but we stayed out of the audience’s sight.

The lights went out with a soft click.

Then, like a heartbeat, drums started pounding from all directions, growing louder and stronger.

One by one, the models stepped out, and the music changed, sometimes rough, sometimes gentle, sometimes strange and tense.

From the crowd came quiet gasps and small sounds of surprise.

When the last model, wearing wings, slowly walked back into the nest–like backstage, the lights went out again.

The music stopped.

A stir rose from the audience.

Then a soft, warm beam of light, like the first bit of morning sun, shone on the runway entrance.

I held Leo and Luna’s hands and stepped slowly out of the shadows into that light.

I heard the crowd let out surprised gasps. Countless eyes focused on us, full of curiosity, wonder, and shock.

Leo’s small hand tightened in mine, but he still lifted his face, trying hard to look calm.

Luna moved closer to me, holding on to the hem of my dress.

Under everyone’s eyes, we slowly made our way to the center of the runway.

I looked at the front row, and Lucien gave me a nod, a quiet show of support.

“Good evening, everyone. I’m Norah Hawthorne.”

The crowd fell silent.

“Over the years, there have been a lot of stories about me, rumors too. Victim, avenger, homewrecker, lost genius, ghost who came back to bother you again. You’ve given me plenty of names.”

I paused. “But tonight, I want to say who I am again.”

I crouched down and looked at the two kids.

“First and most important, I’m a mother.” I felt pride in my voice. “This is Leo and Luna. They’re the most important people in my life. In those dark days, they were the reason I kept going.”

Luna held her arms around my neck, and Leo rested his head on my shoulder.

Holding their hands, I raised my right hand, covered in a black glove.

“Second, I’m a designer. But this hand… It’s been badly hurt. It aches when it rains, it shakes on its own. and now I can’t do a lot of the small, careful work I used to.”

I lowered my hand and pressed it lightly against my chest.

“But design has never been only about the skills in your hands. It’s about your heart. It’s every bit of hurt, hopelessness, and struggle I’ve been through, mixed with all the care, comfort, and hope I’ve ever felt. All of that joins together to tell a story through lines, colors, and fabric.”

I looked at Lucien again.

“I’m still someone who used to be scared of loving.”

“I was scared of being let down, scared of losing someone, scared of being left behind. So I shut myself away, pretending nothing could touch me, pretending I didn’t need anyone.”

“But I was wrong. Running away doesn’t fix wounds; it just lets them sit there in the dark, growing worse and hurting more over time.”

I stood straighter. “That’s why I’m here tonight. Maybe I’m not perfect, maybe I’m still marked by what happened, but this is the real me. I fell to the bottom, but I climbed back up. I’m still breathing, still loving, still trying to live, trying to love again, trying to create again.”

“So tonight, I’m here to announce my new line. It’s called-”

I took a deep breath and said the name that had stayed in my heart for so long: “Thorn Nightingale.”

Soft whispers moved through the crowd.

“People say the nightingale sings with its chest pressed against sharp thorns. Its strongest song comes with deep pain and running blood. I used to think deep pain could bring out strong creativity. I even got lost in that tiring kind of painful beauty.”

“But now, I finally get it, love is that sharp yet soft thorn.”

“It’ll stab you when you least expect it, making you bleed like hell.”

“But it’s also what gives you your weak point and your shield. It lets you rebuild after you fall apart. It gives you the push to speak again through the pain.”

Tears slid down my cheeks at last, and I didn’t wipe them away.

“Now, I’ve learned to accept that thorn, to speak my own song through love and hurt.”

When I finished, loud applause spread through the whole opera house.

Lucien stood from his seat and walked toward the runway, moving one slow step at time.

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He stopped right in front of me and lowered himself to one knee.

“Norah, because of my foolishness and pride, I missed every night you needed me most, the hardest. nights you lived through. I missed so many moments of the kids being born and growing up.”

“I’m not asking you to forgive me right now. All I want is a chance to fix what I broke, a chance to spend the rest of my life keeping you all safe and loving you all.”

“Not as the chairman of Constantine Group, or in any other title.”

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