Reborn As Mr. Coldwell's Wife
Chapter 180: The Past End Here

Chapter 180: The Past End Here

Aubrey’s heart clenched as the words left her lips. She kept her gaze locked on Mason’s face, searching for any sign, any hint of emotion that would tell her how he felt. But he remained still.

She didn’t mean for her words to come out so intense and desperate, but it was the truth. She did miss him—more than anything. Being here, so close to him again, made her realize just how much she had been holding onto the past. How much she wanted things to go back to the way they used to be.

Without thinking, she started to reminisce, as if speaking the memories aloud would bring them back to life.

"Do you remember back in high school?" she asked, her eyes distant as she looked at the field in front of them. "I used to come here all the time to watch you at soccer practice."

Mason didn’t respond immediately, but Aubrey continued, her voice growing a bit lighter. "You’d be out there running around, kicking the ball, completely focused. And I’d be sitting over there by the bleachers, waiting for you with a towel and a bottle of water." She smiled faintly, the memories flooding her mind. "You’d always come over, all sweaty, and I’d hand you the towel, and we’d laugh about how bad you smelled."

Mason let out a small chuckle, though it sounded distant. "Yeah, I remember."

Aubrey’s heart lifted slightly at his response. She leaned in closer, her hand still wrapped around his arm, holding onto him as if he could tie her to those good times.

"And then after practice," she continued, "you’d go change, and we’d grab something to eat. Sometimes it was burgers, sometimes pizza... We didn’t care, as long as we were together. I loved those days."

She paused, looking up at him, her eyes filled with hope. "Do you remember that, Mason? Those days when it was just us?"

Mason nodded, but his expression didn’t change, there was no warmth there. Aubrey could sense it, but she kept talking, desperate to rekindle something between them, to remind him of what they had once been.

"We were so happy back then," she said softly, her voice trembling again. "I’ve always thought about those times, about how easy everything was. We didn’t need anything else. It was just... us."

She glanced down at her hand, still holding onto his arm, and squeezed gently. But before she could say anything more, Mason’s voice cut through the quiet air.

"Aubrey," he called, "we need to talk."

The words hung in the air like a sudden chill, and Aubrey’s heart dropped. She froze, her fingers loosening slightly around his arm, but not letting go. She didn’t want to hear what was coming next, but she could sense it. The way he said her name—it was a warning.

Slowly, Mason pulled his arm away from her grip, creating a space between them. Aubrey’s hand fell to her lap, and she stared at the empty space between them. She couldn’t bring herself to look at him yet, too afraid of what she would see in his eyes.

"Aubrey," Mason began again, "I need you to stop."

She finally looked up at him, confusion and fear flooding her gaze. "What do you mean?"

Mason sighed, running a hand through his hair as he tried to find the right words. He didn’t look angry, but he was ready to deal with whatever was next, as if he had been thinking about this conversation for a long time.

"I need you to stop holding onto the past," he said, his eyes meeting hers for the first time since he spoke. "I need you to stop hoping that we can go back to how things were."

Aubrey blinked. "Mason, no—"

He shook his head, cutting her off gently. "I know you miss those times, Aubrey. But we can’t go back. Things have changed."

Aubrey’s eyes widened, her heart pounding in her chest. "They don’t have to, Mason," she replied, her voice rising in desperation. "We can fix this. We can try again—"

"No," Mason interrupted, his tone more forceful this time. "We can’t. It’s not that simple."

Tears welled up in Aubrey’s eyes, but she blinked them back, refusing to let them fall. "Why not?" she asked. "Why can’t we try? I still care about you, Mason. I still—"

"Aubrey, stop," Mason said firmly. He looked at her with both sadness and frustration, like he didn’t want to say any of this but knew he had to. "I’ve changed."

Aubrey stared at him, her mind spinning. She couldn’t accept what he was saying. She didn’t want to. This couldn’t be happening. Not after everything they had shared, not after all the memories they had.

"I don’t understand," she whispered. "Why are you doing this?"

Mason looked away, his jaw tightening as he struggled to find the right words. When he finally spoke, his voice was low, almost pained. "Because it’s not fair to you, Aubrey. It’s not fair to let you keep believing that there’s still something here when there isn’t."

"There is something here," she insisted, her voice cracking. "I know there is. You just need to—"

"No, Aubrey," Mason said, cutting her off once more. "There’s not. I know what I want now. And it’s Ellen. Only her."

She shook her head, unwilling to accept what Mason had just told her. "No, Mason," she said, her voice growing louder, more desperate. "No, no, that can’t be."

Her mind was racing to make sense of what he meant. Her breath caught in her throat as she stared at him, searching his face for any sign that he might take it back, that he was just confused, but he just looked calm and sure.

"Tell me. What does she have that I don’t? What makes her better? Why did you choose her?"

He didn’t speak immediately. Instead, a small smile spread across his face as he said Ellen’s name again, almost as if her name brought him peace.

That smile—it cut through Aubrey like a knife.

"You deserve someone who loves you truly," he said quietly. "Someone who can give you what you need. But that person isn’t me."

"No... No, Mason. I don’t want anyone else. I want you. I’ve always wanted you. Why can’t you see that?"

But Mason had already made up his mind. He stood up from the bench, taking a step back, and Aubrey could feel the distance between them growing—not just physically, but emotionally as well.

"I’m sorry, Aubrey," he said quietly. "But this is the way it has to be."

Without another word, Mason turned and began to walk away. Aubrey watched him go, her vision blurred by tears, her heart shattering with every step he took.

"Mason," she called out, her voice weak, but he didn’t stop. He didn’t turn around.

And then, he was gone, leaving Aubrey alone in the cold, empty night, surrounded by memories that no longer held any meaning.