"What are you apologizing for?"
As Julian heard that, the strength holding him together seemed to dissolve in an instant, those few gentle words from his mother stripping away whatever tenuous resolve he had left.
Julian trembled.
The emotions he had desperately tried to suppress only swelled painfully inside his chest.
However, before his tears could trail any further down his face, he felt a gentle pull drawing him closer until he was completely enveloped in his mother's embrace.
Marielle said nothing for a moment, simply allowing him to remain there, her hand slowly caressing his small back.
"I've told you before, haven't I? If ever there is something weighing upon your heart, you need not carry it all by yourself. You may always share it with me, Julian."
The warmth of her body and the softness of her voice… felt like a sanctuary from everything Julian had been trying so desperately to endure.
