Aurora returned home from having breakfast with her friends. She stopped dead in her tracks when she spotted an envelope tapped on her door. It was addressed to her; she recognized the handwriting; it was Wyatt's. Immediately her heart began to pound, and with shaking hands she grabbed the envelope as she moved to enter her apartment.

"Miss Rory! Welcome home!"

"Hello Linny." Aurora kicked off her shoes and rushed to the kitchen table where she sat and tore the envelope open. It was an invitation to the twins' birthday party.

Miss Aurora Pontellier you have been cordially invited to the birthday party of Master Wyatt Damocles Belby and Miss Ramona Artemis Belby…

Aurora read through the invitation taking note of the party details, she turned it over to be sure that she didn't miss anything. And there in bright red ink it read.

BITCH YOU BETTER SHOW UP WE KNOW YOU'RE BACK!

-WYATT

Aurora let out a snort of laughter. Wyatt…God, she missed him. He's demanding she make an appearance and she has no other choice but to comply. The party is this Friday, so it is only 3 days away. Aurora looked at her wristwatch, it was only 1:00PM. If she was going to go to this party, she wasn't going to let this be the first time they meet after almost a year, she turned to walk out the door.

"Linny I'm going to step out for a while."

"Certainly, miss Rory."

Her heart was pounding in her ears as she walked down the street, eyes fixated straight ahead. Today was the day. She had to do it. That invitation was a sign that time was finally and truly up; she has to face at least one of her friends and grovel for their forgiveness before reentering into their lives. Aurora turned on the sidewalk and continued to walk at a steady pace…will he be angry? Probably. Will he forgive her? Maybe. But what if he doesn't? 'Then that's the reality you have to accept' her inner voice whispered. She kept walking until she came up to a red brick building, this is it. Aurora stepped inside and took the elevator to the 3rd floor. Stepping out, she walked down the hall and came to a halt when she found door 3F.

She could practically feel her heart slamming into her ribcage as if desperate to get out, the drumming in her ears was unbearable, her stomach twisted in all sorts of knots…why does she suddenly have the urge to pee?! Damn anxiety!

"Just knock." She whispered to herself. "Just knock…he's not going to do anything just knock."

With a deep breath she lifted a shaky hand, balled it into a fist and knocked on the door. Aurora stood frozen as if every single cell in her body came to a halt keeping her in place, there was no noise coming from inside, maybe he's not home?

Her eyes widened when she heard footsteps, she let out a breath of air that she didn't realize she was holding and her body was set into motion again, her heart began to race even faster than before, it hurt, her stomach convulsed. The footsteps came closer and closer, maybe she should run now before he opens the door…

NO! No more running!

The door opened. A pair of brown eyes met a pair of green ones.

"He-"Aurora cleared her throat, it was so dry. "Hello Wyatt."

Wyatt didn't say anything, he just stood there staring at her as if not sure if she was real or not.

"…I got your invitation…"

Silence.

"…Um…thank you for inviting me. I will be attending…I just wanted to RSVP in person…"

Still nothing.

"…Just wanted to let you know that I will be attending…" She let out a nervous laugh, "I guess I'll be going now. You seem busy. Sorry to disturb you." Aurora turned to walk away. What the hell was she thinking showing up unannounced.

"7 months!" She stopped dead in her tracks when she heard him call out. "7 months you've been gone!" She turned to face him; the hurt was evident on his face. "You could have at least left a note! We thought something had happened to you!"

"I'm sorry."

"Sorry my arse! Aurora, a simple apology is not going to cut it. You hurt a lot of people with your idiotic decision."

When Wyatt heard a knock on his door, he wasn't expecting his unexpected visitor to be Aurora. She had come to RSVP to his birthday party no less. He left that invitation on her door in hopes that maybe she would come but he didn't expect her to show up here at his place so soon. He played out in his head a million times how his interaction would be with her once they finally saw each other. Wyatt swore to himself that he would be calm and kind and maybe try to understand why she did what she did, but who was he kidding? There's no way he could be calm. The "calm" conversation that he pictured always turned to him yelling at her. Seeing her here like this, RSVPing to his party just made him angry. He was angry and hurt, he had a right to be. All those years of friendship, did that mean nothing to her?

"Why didn't you at least write?!" He pressed; his voice was getting louder.

Aurora looked around awkwardly, surely the neighbors could hear them by now. "Would it be okay if I came inside? I'll answer all your questions."

Wyatt huffed and stepped aside and motioned for her to enter his apartment. Looking down at her feet Aurora rushed in. She couldn't bear to make eye contact with him. Wyatt closed the door behind them. Aurora stood two feet from the entry way still looking at her shoes not sure if she should sit on the couch or wait for him to direct her.

She heard a chair being pulled out.

"Don't be weird." Wyatt began. "Have a seat."

Aurora looked up. His apartment was different than she remembered. It looks like he had done some redecorating. The place was well lit and spacious. She moved to the dining area where Wyatt was standing with a chair drawn. He motioned for her to sit. Once in place he moved behind her to his kitchen he grabbed a bottle of wine, two glasses. A pack of cigarettes and a crystal ash tray. This was going to be a long talk.

Wyatt took a seat across from her and lit a cigarette.

"Explain yourself." He locked eyes with her.

"I-"Aurora's breath caught in her throat. What the hell was wrong with her?! It's just Wyatt why is she so afraid of him?!

'Because you know out of all of them, he would be the one who would easily forgive you, and if he doesn't forgive you the other two never will. Wyatt is your key back into their lives.'

Wyatt could feel the anxiety radiating off her, the girl was white as a sheet. He never seen her look so terrified. If it wasn't for the fact that he was so angry with her he would feel bad. Letting out a frustrated sigh he uncorked the bottle and poured the wine into the glasses. Wyatt handed her the second glass. No point in terrorizing her even further, approach her gently.

"Look I am very angry with you for leaving the way that you did. There were many times when I imagined how this conversation would go and in almost all of them, I'm just yelling at you. I don't want to yell. I don't want to argue. I just want to know why. What happened to make you leave like that?"

Aurora took two big gulps of wine and took one of Wyatt's cigarettes. "Well…" She pressed it between her lips and lit it, the anxiety was slowly ebbing away. "To make a long and painful story short. I felt like I was losing control over my life."

"That's not a good enough answer."

She inhaled and blew out a stream of smoke, another gulp of wine and she was feeling more confident. "Wyatt, be honest. Nothing I say is going to be good enough for you. I hurt all of you and I understand that. I take full responsibility for my shitty actions, I'm sorry I hurt you. I'm sorry I hurt Ramona and Draco. I really am. Throughout my travels you three never left my mind. I carry a lot of guilt for what I did to all of you, but I do not regret leaving. It was something I had to do for me."

Wyatt sat silently waiting for her to continue.

"I can't say I necessarily had a bad childhood; I was clothed in the finest fabrics money could buy, fed the most marvelous foods imaginable and received the best education in the world. Poor me, right? What could have possibly been so horrible about my upbringing when there are so many out there who would kill to have the life I've lived." Aurora took another drag from the cigarette and looked up at the ceiling as the smoke seeped out of her mouth. "I never once felt like I was a real person. I was just an object a doll brought up in high society, constantly having others dictate my life. All my life I followed the rules, afraid to rock the boat for fear of being shunned." She looked back at him waiting for him to speak. When he said nothing, she continued. "Which is quite funny really because I was already shunned. My parents didn't want me-"

"I'm sure that's not-"

Aurora held up her hand to stop Wyatt from what he was about to say.

"Oh no darling. I have confirmation from my brother that my mother literally didn't want me. She got pregnant with me and since she couldn't scrape me out, I was born, packed away and sent out of her sight. The woman is incapable of loving anyone."

Wyatt looked at her horrified, then his horror turned to pity.

"Please don't look at me like that. I don't' want your pity."

"What do you want then?"

"I want you to understand."

"Go on."

"When I was a child, I wondered why my parents didn't want me. And even when I lived so far away from them, they had this iron grasp on me. Can you imagine how much of a mind fuck that was? Being afraid of people you know are your parents but also at the same time you hardly know them, and they dictate your life? Looking back now, that fear came from that desperate desire to be loved. I thought if I could just do what they wanted, make them proud, be what they wanted then they would love me. And if I had their love, I wouldn't feel so sad and empty inside anymore."

Another gulp of wine, she finished the glass and Wyatt poured her another. If she needs to drink to get through this conversation, he will oblige her. She can drink straight out of the damn bottle for all he cared.

"Well!" Her voice hitched up in mock enthusiasm. "I did exactly what they wanted. I talked, walked, dressed the way a proper lady should. Went to the schools of my father's choosing, got a degree that my father wanted me to get, I did it all! But they weren't impressed. I'm sure you remember they couldn't be bothered to show up to my own graduation."

"Yes, I remember. You looked so…. devastated."

"It was then when I realized that they didn't care and nothing I did mattered."

"Is that why you left."

They sat silent for a moment the only noise that could be heard in the room was the sound of the clock that was on the wall. 1:30pm. She had time, today she had all the time in the world. She wasn't going to leave until the truth came out. This conversation was proving to be painful and exhausting. Finally saying everything out loud was so hard. She didn't want to get emotional, Aurora hated crying in front of others. She didn't like being so vulnerable and afterwords she always feel deep embarrassment for allowing her walls to breakdown. But this was Wyatt, he was like one of her brothers. She trusted him more than her brothers, he was safe. If there was anyone, she could cry in front of it was him.

Aurora picked up the glass of wine. Another large gulp. Now she was beginning to feel a little light headded and airy. This is the only way she's going to be able to make it through this conversation.

"No."

"Then what happened. What made you leave?"

"Draco-"The moment she said his name her voice cracked and her throat tightened as if signaling for her to say no more. She should just swallow her feelings, swallow all the words she had left unsaid, all of those silent conversations she internalized. Everything she felt and had wanted to say, she wanted to put it back in a box and bury it deep inside her soul. No one needs to know; they don't need to know. She doesn't need to speak further; she doesn't need to speak her true feelings…if she does it could be used against her…NO! She screamed internally. You are not going to heal if you don't say it, let it out just this once.

"Draco-" Again her throat swelled now tears threatened to form behind her eyes she blinked them back furiously.

"Yes." Wyatt leaned forward silently encouraging to continue. The confidence she had previously was now gone. She was scared, it was apparent that she wanted to tell him something, but she couldn't bring herself to say the words. "It's okay." Wyatt soothed. "You can talk to me."

Aurora looked down at her hands. It's okay, it's okay, Wyatt is safe. You can trust him. She looked back up at him.

"Draco proposed to me. He went to my parents and asked for my hand, they accepted. Then he came back and asked me if I would marry him."

Wyatt nodded slowly, of course the first time he heard this news was when she had initially left, but he'll just keep that to himself. She's clearly having a difficult time.

"Is that why you left? Was it the commitment that scared you?"

She shook her head.

"Then why?"

He knew why, Nathanial told him everything.

"Because those people took away my choice to even say yes. They gave me an ultimatum. Marry this man or we will cut you out. No more school, no more money…" She stamped out the cigarette. "It drove me crazy. Who the hell are they to make threats like that?! Cut me out my ass! It's not like I was even in to begin with!"

Tears now began streaming down her face, she didn't want to fight her feelings anymore. Just let it out, you'll feel better afterwords.

Wyatt handed her some tissues.

"I loved him…I still do. And they took something that could have been beautiful and ruined it. I couldn't marry him under duress! I wanted time to think! I'm only 21 for Christ's sake!"

"Would you have said yes to him."

"Yes, a thousand times over yes. But only if it was a long engagement. I didn't want to get married right away. We were still so young and there is still so much for us to learn about each other."

"And your parents wanted you guys to get married right away didn't they."

Aurora nodded drying her tears but to no avail. Every time she dried her eyes a fresh set of tears would rolldown. "I just couldn't take it anymore. He was the one person that truly saw me and understood me. He was so patient, and kind and I felt so at peace and safe with him. I don't think I would have still felt the same if I had accepted a forced engagement. So, something in my brain just snapped. They took something that was precious and safe and tainted it. I left, I left because I needed to get away from this toxic environment and just be my own person. I wanted to discover who I really am."

"Did you find out?"

"You damn right I did!" She let out a small chuckle the was mixed in with a sob. "I found out that I am one hell of a dancer. I am the farthest thing from perfect and I am kind and true. I make mistakes like everyone else but when I fuck up, I own it."

"How does that make you feel?"

"I feel good. Even though I have my insecurities, I feel more self-assured and confident. I'm sure down the road I'll discover more about myself but as of right now I am very happy with where I am."

Wyatt got up from his seat, walked around the table over to Aurora. He scooped her up in a big hug lifting her off the ground.

"I'm sorry you were suffering this whole time. But I'm happy you found yourself and it seems like you're on the path to healing."

"I'm sorry I left the way that I did, and I didn't keep in contact."

"I accept your apology." He put her down and she looked up at him.

"Do you think Draco and Ramona will accept my apology."

"Ummm…."

"They hate me, don't they?" Aurora asked nervously.

"Well…"

"Shit…"

"Hate is a strong word…I think they're just hurt.

Wyatt sat in the chair next to her.

"…How has Draco been?"

"He's okay. I won't lie to you; he was devastated when you first left."

"I bet, the man professes his love for me, asks me to become his wife and I just fucked off without a word. He must feel so rejected."

"Is it true that you still love him?"

"Yes."

"If given the chance, would you be with him?"

"Of course! There's no one else like him!"

The look in her eyes broke his heart. She was in love with him, but how is he going to break it to her that Draco moved on? He should, He can't allow her to come to his party and Draco is there with his new girlfriend, not only will it crush her, but she would probably feel utterly humiliated.

"I have something to tell you." Wyatt began to fidget nervously.

"What?"

"Well, you see…Draco-he's currently seeing someone."

Her face fell.

"Oh."

"Yeah. Ramona and I don't really like her much."

"I see."

Aurora sat silently. She felt as if a bucket of ice water was thrown on her. Draco had moved on. Well, what did you expect? You leave the man high and dry with zero communication and you expect him to sit and wait for you?! Of course he moved on. They weren't even officially together when he proposed to her.

"Will he be at the party?"

"Yes."

"…Is too late for me to take back my RSVP?" She let out a nervous laugh.

"Rory please come."

"I don't think I'll feel comfortable in that situation."

"Please! For me! It's a super small gathering. Just me, Ramona, Draco, Draco's girlfriend, and Lujain!"

"You know Lujain?"

"Yes. Long story I'll fill you in later. But please! Please come! I promise I won't let anyone say anything nasty to you."

Aurora let out an uncomfortable sigh, with the new information she just received she really didn't want to go but she couldn't say no to Wyatt, and she knew that he would make good on his promise on not allowing anyone to harass her.

"Okay fine. ONLY for you!"

"YESSSSS!"

"Is there a dress code?"

"Nothing special just semi-casual attire…. but you should wear something sexy."

"Why?"

"Because Draco is going to be there, and I will not have my dear friend be outshined by that tart of his. She's begrudging beautiful but she doesn't hold a candle to you my dear."

Aurora rolled her eyes.

"What does it matter if he has eyes for someone else."

"What if he still has feelings for you?"

"He's with someone else now."

"So? That doesn't mean that he still doesn't have feelings for you. What if she's just there to pass the time."

"Wyatt, that's unkind."

"I don't care. You're the one that's supposed to be with him not her! He was in love with you first!"

"As much as I hate saying this but that doesn't mean that I have any claim over him. He is a grown man he can choose to be with whoever he wants to be with." She felt a stabbing pain in her chest as the words left her mouth. Even though what she was saying is logical deep down that's not how she felt. It's true he was in love with her first and she loved him before this new woman appeared! Even thinking it, it sounded crazy.

"Not if I can help it!"

"Wyatt please. Maybe we…we just weren't meant to be." She signed.

"How are you so calm right now? Aren't you in love with the man?!"

"More than you know. I just…I guess…I don't know, this day has been so mentally exhausting. Maybe I'll have a normal person reaction once I decompress. There's only so much I can take before my brain decides to just shut down."

XXXX

Aurora stood in front of the venue holding two boxes that were neatly wrapped, a gift for each sibling. They had rented out a restaurant for their party. It had been 3 days since she last spoke with Wyatt, and her head was still reeling. Was Draco really with someone else? A part of her really couldn't believe or accept it. This was Draco, the man who loved her! Could he really have moved on that quickly? It's been seven months. Aurora shook her head. With a deep breath she stepped into the building.

Wyatt spotted her immediately and waved. He was dressed in a button-down shirt and dress pants. He looked very clean cut, per usual.

"Oh, good you're here!" He said a little too loudly as if announcing her arrival to the party guests. He took her hand and ushered her into the party. "SURPRISE EVERYONE LOOK WHO' S HERE!"

Aurora was mortified at his display. Of course, he would put the spotlight on her and to make matters worse she was the last person to arrive. She scanned the room quickly. There were four sets of eyes staring at her. The room was still in an awkward silence.

"WHAT THE HELL?!" Ramona yelled indignantly. She stomped over to Aurora. "Where the fuck have you been?!"

"…. Um… Moscow…" Aurora answered timidly. Leave it to Ramona to come in hot wand blazing. Immediately she held up the gift-wrapped box to the woman's face "This is for you, happy birthday."

Ramona eyed the box then eyed Aurora. "Thank you…" She took the box and put it on the table with all the other gifts then she turned back to Aurora. "Nice of you to come." She took a few steps closer to Aurora and whispered in her ear. "Wyatt told me everything."

The hairs on Aurora's neck stood up. She understood her meaning. Ramona was communicating that she's not as angry anymore but that doesn't mean Aurora was off the hook; still, it was a step in the right direction.

"I hope you guys don't mind but I took the liberty of inviting Aurora to the party since she's back in town." Still holding Aurora's hand Wyatt led her into the center of the room.

Again, she scanned her eyes over the party guests. Lujain was there and she was beaming with excitement, Ramona had on her usual sneer. Then her eyes fell on Draco, he did not look pleased to see her, he looked as if had seen a ghost. Next to him was a red headed woman who looked very very excited for some reason. She was beginning to feel awkward when Wyatt, who still hadn't let go of her hand twirled her around.

"Good lord! The ballet does agree with you my dear. You fill out this dress marvelously!" Wyatt winked pleased that she took his advice.

"Yeah, what happened to the rest of it! Looks like some pieces are missing." Ramona snorted.

Aurora rolled her eyes. She knew she was trying to be funny. But her comment made her feel self-conscious. A year ago, she would never have worn a dress this revealing. For some reason Wyatt's words got into her head so she decided to listen to him for once. She wore something sexy. She was sporting a red floral spaghetti strapped summer dress with a deep neckline which showed off a generous amount of cleavage. It flared at the waist and ended at her upper thighs. As for the missing parts Ramona was referring to, it was backless with cutouts on each side of her torso showing off some more of her skin, the fabric that covered her breasts warped around the top portion of her back and was tied in a neat bow.

"Don't hate because you know your pasty ass could never pull it off." Aurora wasn't about to let Ramona believe that she was embarrassed by her statement. Confidence! What was it that the Muggles always say? 'Confidence is sexy!'

"Aurora, you look beautiful." Lujain came up to her and gave her a big hug. "It's been too long!" Aurora hugged her back.

"I know! I've missed you! I hope you've been keeping well!"

"Just was well as anyone else." Lujain let out a light chuckle.

As Aurora continued to catch up with her, she saw from the corner of her eye that the red headed woman was whispering something to Draco. She seemed to be pleading with him and would spare glances at her. Her stomach did another flip, this new woman Draco is with was beautiful. Nothing that Lujain was saying registered in her head, she pretended to listen intently, but she kept discreetly glancing at Draco and his new girlfriend.

"-so what do you think?" Lujain asked.

"Hm? I'm sorry, say again?"

"I was asking if you wanted to go wine tasting tomorrow if you don't have any plans. I know it's last minute but there are a lot of wineries in Upstate New York.

Aurora smiled, "Oh that sounds like fun. Count me in." She glanced back to where Draco was, he was no longer standing in his spot. Wait! Where did he go? Her eyes scanned the room, she froze when she heard someone clear their throat behind her. A cold sweat began to creep through her pours as she slowly turned around. She knew exactly who it was.

A pair of green eyes met with a pair of hardened steel grey ones. She shuddered inwardly, he never looked at her like that before. It was so cold and behind the coldness was a hint of disgust.

"…Draco."

"…Aurora."