Chapter 146: Healing Touch
** Harper **
After days of pondering the puzzle that was Eli, Harper thought she was finally beginning to understand the reason behind his dramatic reaction and gloomy perspective whenever it came to families and relationships.
It wasn’t just about his father’s betrayal. Of course, something as unforgivable as that was bound to leave a permanent wound on anyone involved, and it was way too harsh a marriage lesson for a child to learn. But the deepest wound left on Eli’s young heart had been far more cruel. It was so plainly obvious that he had once believed without a doubt in what his parents shared ... until all of it was shattered in the most tragic way, with a finality that could never be undone.
How could he trust loyalty and love again, if what he thought was precisely those things had led only to betrayal and the most painful loss? If he had witnessed with his own eyes how much harm could be done between those bound by marriage and vows, then what did devotion even mean to him, and what were those romantic oaths worth?
No wonder he had told her upfront that he couldn’t make any promises. It wasn’t just because he didn’t trust himself to keep his word, but because he simply didn’t trust anyone in that regard.
Harper brushed her thumb softly over his cheek. A thousand thoughts flooded her mind. She wished she could think of something wise to say, something with a profound view on love and trust to comfort him with ... but she was far from experienced in relationships herself. How could she change his perspective on a subject that she understood even less than he did?
"... Anyway, sorry for going off on an irrelevant tangent." Eli cupped her hand with his own and chuckled. As usual, he didn’t seem completely comfortable with the family conversation. "I appreciate your thought. But to your point, this was so long ago that I honestly have no idea how much of my memory is even accurate, or how much of it has been subconsciously post-processed over the years, so don’t mind the details too much."
He had said it with a playful casualness that almost sounded like he meant it ... Except they both knew that there was no way those details weren’t true. Not when every scene had been recounted with so much colorful vividness like they had only happened yesterday.
Harper closed her eyes and pressed her forehead against his.
Maybe she was indeed too inexperienced and naive, or maybe she had read too many romance novels and got helplessly misled by the grumpy vs. sunshine trope, but at that moment, she wished with all her heart that she could help him. She wished she could heal that decade-old scar for him, to prove to him how beautiful love could be, without betrayal or heartaches or anything that led to regrets.