From Best Friend To Fiancé (Savannah and Roman) novel Chapter 170

**TITLE: Dreams Folding Into Broken Time**

Tears blurred my vision, cascading down my cheeks in a sudden rush that caught me off guard. They fell with an intensity that was almost scalding, splattering onto the soft fur of my stuffed animals, those silent witnesses to my turmoil. My shoulders trembled, quaking under the weight of my sobs that erupted from deep within, raw and unfiltered. I clutched the plush toys tighter, curling around them as if they were my only lifeline, the only thing anchoring me to this chaotic world.

“Sav?” Roman’s voice sliced through the haze of my despair, sharp and tinged with alarm. The mattress shifted as he sprang from the bed, crouching beside me with an urgency that made my heart race. “Jesus Christ, what’s happening? Did I—did I do this?”

With trembling hands, I pushed him away, retreating on my knees, feeling the coldness of the floor beneath me. “Leave me alone! This is all your fault!” My voice splintered into jagged fragments, each word punctuated by the force of my sobs.

His mouth opened and closed, a silent struggle playing across his features. He glanced at the stuffed animals in my arms, then back to me, confusion morphing into dawning horror. “I’m sorry, Sav.” He reached toward me, but hesitated when I flinched away. “I didn’t know—I didn’t think—”

“Don’t come near me, Roman.” My voice cracked like fragile glass.

“I didn’t realize they meant this much to you,” he said, desperation lacing his tone. His hands hovered in the air, trembling, as if they were powerless to bridge the chasm between us. “We used to joke about it. I thought—I thought you didn’t care.”

“They matter,” I insisted fiercely, wiping my tears with the back of my sleeve, my heart pounding with the weight of my emotions. “They matter because they’re mine. This is my space, my bed, my home. You don’t get to treat my belongings like they’re trash. I don’t toss your things around when I’m at your place, do I?”

In that moment, I saw something fracture within him. It was evident in the way his chest heaved with a sharp intake of breath, the guilt draining the color from his face. “Fuck.” He raked a hand through his hair, cursing softly under his breath. “Sav… I’m so sorry. I swear I’m sorry.”

But this time, he didn’t just utter empty words. He acted. Roman bent down, picking up the stuffed animals that had tumbled to the floor. One by one, with a tenderness I had never witnessed from him towards anything other than me, he brushed off imaginary dust and carefully placed them back on the bed. He smoothed the covers, arranging them neatly against the pillows as if each toy deserved a moment of reverence. He worked in silence, his jaw clenched, shoulders tense, like a man pleading for forgiveness through actions rather than words.

Watching him, my throat tightened. My tears fell harder, yet somehow softer, a mix of gratitude and embarrassment washing over me. He seemed so out of place, handling something so delicate, yet he did it with an earnestness that made my heart ache. And suddenly, I felt a wave of shame for having cried like a child over a broken toy.

When he finally turned back to face me, his voice was raw, almost a whisper. “Are they… Emily’s?” He asked tentatively, as if navigating a field of broken glass.

I shook my head, my voice trembling as I spoke. “No. They’re my child’s. One for every year since I lost him or her. That’s why there are eight of them.”

A heavy silence enveloped us, suffocating in its weight. Roman’s face drained of color, his mouth opening but no words escaping. Then, with a harsh exhale, he muttered, “Fuck. Sav… I had no idea.”

I remained silent, my heart pounding in my chest, unable to articulate the storm of emotions swirling inside me.

He scrubbed his hands over his face, letting them fall to his sides in defeat. “I’m an asshole. A fucking asshole. I should have known. I should have asked.” His voice cracked, revealing the vulnerability beneath the steel exterior I was accustomed to. “Will you forgive me?”

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