I Love You So -- The Walters
                  (Arcane, Can't Catch Me)

╰┈➤ content: 700+ words, light angst, implied mention of sexual intercourse, love making up for the fact this book was rushed and she has many scenes she forgot to include

𝐌𝐎𝐎𝐍 sat cross-legged on the bed, the small box balanced in her hands. It felt heavy—heavier than the delicate piece inside, heavier than the memories it brought with it. The weight wasn't just physical; it pressed against her chest, suffocating her, as if the ring itself was trying to anchor her to a version of Ekko she'd never truly known.

She opened the box slowly, the cool light from the window catching the gold of the ring. Her eyes followed the intricate ouroboros, the serpentine loop that intertwined in eternal, silent motion. The crescent moon of obsidian caught the light just so, its polished surface reflecting the dim room back at her. Tiny etched stars swirled around the band, almost too perfect to be real, and for a moment, she almost let herself imagine the Ekko who had given it to her—the version of him from another universe, a fleeting echo of someone she'd never had a chance to love.

But that was the truth, wasn't it? She had never known him, not in any meaningful way. This ring was a gift from a stranger—a parallel version of Ekko who had been kind enough to leave something behind.

A small, bitter laugh bubbled up in her throat, the hollow sound startling her. She had never asked for this, and yet here she was, holding it as though it meant anything to her. A token of a life that wasn't hers, a moment that had never happened.

Moon let the ring rest in her palm, its weight a reminder of a connection she'd never had. Her fingers traced the smooth surface of the ouroboros, the cyclical symbol of life and time—one that had no place in her life now. It was a reminder of someone who wasn't her Ekko. She didn't love him. She never would.

She regretted kissing him, letting his lips touch hers, and she regretted what followed. The intimacy they shared that night—it hadn't been him, and she hadn't known that at the time. She wouldn't carry the guilt too heavily, though. It wasn't something she could entirely blame herself for, not when everything had been twisted and uncertain in that moment.

But when she had kissed him for the last time, it was a gift born not of love, but of necessity. A small offering of tenderness, something she could give when words and actions failed to bridge the distance between them. She knew it mattered more to him than it ever could to her, and that truth hung heavy, like an unspoken promise. It wasn't love, not the kind he longed for, but it was the closest she could offer—a fleeting connection, a fragile moment of solace for a heart that wanted more. And though it didn't mean the same to her, she had given it freely, a final act of understanding.

She had no use for this piece of him. Not when she had the man she loved—the one she had known for so long, the one who had shared her world, who had always been beside her when she needed him. The Ekko who was here, in her universe, in her life.

Her hands rubbed over it slightly. She'd give him his flowers, it was a beautiful ring. But she had no use for it. She had to let go of this. It didn't belong to her. It belonged to a girl she wasn't. A girl he wanted so desperately but she would never be for him. And frankly, she didn't want to. With a heavy heart, she stood up, crossing the room. She placed the box into the back of the closet, underneath piles of clothes she hadn't touched in years. She didn't look at it again. There was nothing to see.

The closet door clicked shut, the space behind it dark and silent. For a long moment, Moon stood there, breathing in the stillness of the room. The air felt lighter now—less cluttered, less heavy with things she didn't need. Her fingers brushed her necklace, the only thing that had ever truly mattered.

She hoped he found peace—not with the idea of her, but with letting go of the girl he had lost. The Moon who was never her. Deep down, she hoped he wasn't still pretending she was that Moon, holding onto memories that didn't belong to them.

She had Ekko. Not this one. Not the version who had left her a symbol of something they could never be.

And frankly, she was at peace with that.

"Moon! Let's go we're gonna be late!" Powder's voice called from the hall. With a smile she bounded after them, leaving Ekko behind once again.