My Love Until the Last Goodbye (Mary and Maximus)

"Well, Grandpa, I'm trusting you with my little girl."

"Of course! What kind of grandpa would I be if I couldn't take care of my

granddaughter? But for now, I'm handing her over to Emma—she's got the magic

touch."

"Grandpa!"

"You think I'd risk messing this up? I've got backup."

"Thanks!"

"No need to thank me, sweetheart. Now go, before I change my mind."

"I promise I'll bring Laura back at a decent hour, Mr. Magnus."

"For all I care, don't bring her back at all... For God's sake, just be normal young people!"

Adrian and Laura both blushed at Magnus's comment-how could her grandfather be practically kicking them out and suggesting they not come home that night?

"Allow me," Adrian said as he opened the car door for her.

Even though he'd lost everything once, working for the Evans family was starting to pay off. Slowly but surely, he was building a life of his own-like the car he now had. It wasn't top-of-the-line, but it got him where he needed to go, and that was what really mattered.

"Adrian... Where are we going?" Laura asked, curious.noveldrama

"Honestly?"

"Yes, tell me..."

"I have no idea. In my head, this was going to be a date for the three of us. I didn't expect such a drastic change of plans."

"Hmm... So what do we do?" Laura said, thinking through the options.

"Do you want to go out for dinner?"

"I do, but I have an idea... Do you remember that meadow we used to go to when we were in school?"

"You want to go there?"

"Yes..."

"Well, we can grab something to eat on the way, but... You look so beautiful tonight. I kind of want to take you somewhere fancier."

"It's just clothes... I want to go there. That place means something to me."

"Alright. If that's what makes you happy, then let's go."

The drive was quiet-but not awkward. It was more like they were simply enjoying being together, taking in the views around them. On the way, they stopped and bought everything they needed to make jelly and cheese sandwiches, along with a bottle of wine and some grapes.

By the time they arrived, it was almost dark. But that just made it perfect-the view of the city slowly lighting up was beautiful and peaceful. Laura found herself drifting into memories. She'd been younger then, more naive. Two years had gone by, and somehow, she still felt the same.

"Laura, why do you like this place?" Adrian asked curiously.

"I don't know, I just do. It's peaceful... and you were the one who brought me here

in the first place. Do you remember?"

"Yeah... And if I'm being honest, I remember everything we did together- everything we lived. It hurts, knowing I wasn't good enough to be there for you back then."

"We were just kids pretending to be adults, don't you think?"

"You really believe that?"

"I do. I was scared when I found out I was pregnant. I assume you were too."

"Yeah, honestly, I was terrified... I never saw it coming. The things I did never seemed to have consequences—or at least, not consequences like that, like bringing a life into the world..."

"Adrian, I read all the emails you sent me..."

"I'm sorry... When I realized I was making the biggest mistake of my life, I tried to find you. I wanted to make things right. But by then, it was too late. It was like the earth had swallowed you up. No matter how much I searched, nothing led me to you..."

"That trip was necessary. If I hadn't taken it... I don't know what would've happened to us," Laura said, remembering those days when she truly, desperately needed Adrian.

Dinner passed peacefully. They opened their hearts, shared their experiences-some painful, others not so much. Laura was once again seeing Adrian's human side, and she liked that. They laughed, teased each other, drank cheap wine they'd bought at a convenience store on the way.

To anyone else, it might've looked like a total disaster of a date-definitely not romantic. But for Laura, it was the best date she'd ever had. Even though she was in an elegant black dress, she'd already kicked off her heels and let her hair down from the fancy bun.