The End of a Marriage (Colette and Matheo) novel Chapter 180

Chapter 180

Nico had always been a mama’s boy, always wanting to be close to

her, to hold her hand, to climb onto her lap when he needed comfort.

But now, Amber could feel the distance between them growing, even

though he never said a word about it. She could see the way he would

sometimes watch her, his small brow furrowing in concern when she

looked too pale or too tired, his little hands reaching out hesitantly,

unsure if it was okay to be close. It broke Amber’s heart to see that.

She had always been the one to pick him up when he fell, to comfort

him when he was sad, and now, she felt like she was the one who

needed comforting. She wanted to hold him close, to assure him that

everything would be okay, but she couldn’t shake the feeling that she

was letting him down.

And then, there was Luca. He had been her partner, her equal, her

support through every twist and turn of their life together. But even

he was showing signs of wear. His easy smile had become more

elusive, his usually confident gait had faltered, and the weight of

their situation was becoming more evident in the quiet moments

when he thought she wasn’t paying attention. Amber could see the

way his hands would tremble when he handed her a glass of water or

the way his shoulders would tense when he sat beside her during chemotherapy, the nervous energy that always seemed to pulse between them. He was doing everything he could to stay strong, to be the rock she needed, but Amber could feel the cracks forming, the

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Chapter 180

quiet resignation that seemed to creep into his every gesture. He was

scared, and she knew it.

Yet, despite all of this, despite the sickness, the fatigue, and the

uncertainty, there were moments of clarity, moments where Amber

could see the love that surrounded her. It was in Luca’s quiet words of

reassurance, in the way he would gently rub her back after a chemo

session, in the small things he did to make her life easier. It was in

Nico’s small gestures of love, in the way he would sit beside her,

pressing his small hand against her arm as if offering comfort in the

only way he knew how. And even in her weakest moments, when she

felt like giving up, she could still feel the strength of their love, a

steady force that kept her going.

But it wasn’t easy. It was never going to be easy. Amber would be

lying if she said she wasn’t scared–scared of the treatment, scared of

the unknown, scared of what this disease might take from her. There

were days when the fear felt suffocating, when the nausea and the

weakness were too much to bear, and all she wanted was for it to end.

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