"…I came to the past?"
He couldn't believe the reality.
How? He thought
"This is time where I went to train with Locki because of the upcoming threat, The Dead Titan." Ron muttered then, stood and walked out of the café.
There she was smiling faintly and talking with other women. Ron's breathing grew shallow and his heart trembled.
Ron's every instinct screamed to him to move. To run to her to pull her into his arms, to put his face on her shoulder and and finally let go of everything he had been holding inside for so long.
Ron's hand's shook
I want to hold you...
The thought made his chest ache.
And then… guilt crashed down on him.
This was the time.
The time when he had left her.
The time when she was pregnant.
Alone.
In pain.
His fists clenched.
"I left you…" he whispered. "When you needed me the most…"
Memories flooded back violently.
Dream waiting by the window.
Dream hiding her pain behind a smile.
Dream touching her stomach at night, whispering to the child she carried—their child.
And then—
Two years later.
The day he returned.
The moment he saw his daughter for the first time.
Two years old.
Big eyes.
Tiny hands reaching for him without knowing who he truly was.
And Dream…
She had smiled the same way she always did.
No anger.
No blame.
Just warmth.
Just love.
Just her.
Ron's vision blurred.
"You were always there for me…" he thought bitterly.
"…even when I wasn't."
His knees felt weak.
He wanted to run to her.
To fall apart in her arms.
To beg for forgiveness.
But he stopped himself.
Because this wasn't the right time.
Because present Ron in this time was training with Locki.
"If I go to Dream now, it might affect the future I came from." Ron said.
Ron lowered his head, tears silently falling.
"I'm sorry…" he whispered.
"I'm sorry I let you suffer alone."
His hand trembled as he clenched it over his chest.
"But this time… I won't make the same mistake."
He took a step back.
Forcing himself to turn away.
"I'll protect you properly this time," he thought.
"Even if you never know it was me."
And with one last glance at Dream—
The woman he loved.
The woman who waited.
The woman who never left him, even when he left her—
Ron disappeared into the crowd.
Dream was talking with other women when a strange sensation passed through her—warm, familiar.
She slowly turned her head.
For a moment, she thought she saw someone standing across the street.
Someone she hadn't seen in a very long time.
Her heart skipped.
Ron?
The name slipped from her lips before she could stop herself.
But the street was empty.
Only people passing by. Only noise. Only life moving forward, uncaring.
She pressed a hand to her chest.
Why did it hurt so much?
Why did it feel as if someone had just left—someone important?
Her eyes stung, watering slightly.
She shook her head and let out a soft, confused smile.
"Must be my imagination…"
Yet her heart refused to calm.
He's with Locki, she reminded herself. Training to fight the Dead Titan. There's no way he'd be here.
She forced herself to return to the conversation, but somewhere deep inside, a quiet whisper lingered—
He was here.
Ron watches her from afar. She finished her talk and walked towards their house. Ron makes sure she reaches home safely. Ron wanted to reach her, but he did his best to watch from shadow. When Dream finally entered their house. Then, Ron turns
Ron didn't stop running until he was far away.
When he finally did, his knees gave out.
He collapsed into a narrow alley, his back hitting the wall as he slid down slowly.
His breath shook.
"…I almost went to you…"
His hands trembled violently.
"I almost held you…"
The image of Dream standing there—alive, warm, unaware—burned into his mind.
He pressed his palm over his eyes.
And finally…
He broke.
Tears poured down his face as his shoulders shook.
"I'm sorry… I'm so sorry…" he whispered, his voice cracking.
"I left you alone… when you were carrying our child…"
His chest hurt like it was tearing apart.
"I should've been there… I should've protected you… I should've held your hand when you were in pain…"
His breathing became uneven.
Ron saw
Dream whispering to their unborn child, telling her stories about a father who wasn't there.
Ron clenched his teeth.
"And when I finally came back…" he whispered, voice breaking,
"…she was already two years old."
His hands curled into fists.
"I missed everything…"
A quiet sob escaped him.
"But you still smiled at me," he said bitterly.
"You still welcomed me… like I never left."
He leaned forward, resting his forehead against the wall.
"You never blamed me."
Silence swallowed him.
After a long moment, he took a shaky breath and slowly stood up.
His eyes were red.
But steady.
"This time is different," he said quietly.
"This time, I won't abandon you."
He wiped his face and looked toward the sky.
"I'll stay in the shadows if I have to… I'll suffer alone if I must…"
A faint, determined smile formed.
"But I'll protect you."
"And our daughter."
"No matter what it costs me."