---
Chapter Nine: Full Circle
Time, they say, heals all wounds.
But what they don't say is that it also reveals truth.
It had been months since Nathan left for his residency abroad. The ache of his absence still lingered sometimes—on cold evenings or during quiet walks across campus—but Celine had found a rhythm. Her final year was busy and demanding, and she poured herself into it with focus and grace.
She was thriving.
Her heart didn't beat with pain anymore. It beat with purpose.
---
One sunny afternoon, she and Nathan were exchanging messages over chat. It had become a weekly ritual. Despite the distance, they stayed connected—sharing stories, jokes, and encouragement like old friends who refused to drift apart.
Nathan: "So, how did your project defense go? Did you melt your panel with your brilliance?"
Celine: laughing emoji "More like boiled them in fear and pepper soup knowledge."
Nathan: "That's my girl. Proud of you always."
Celine: "I miss your calm voice. And your quotes."
Nathan: "I'll remind you of one now: 'Some endings are really beginnings dressed in disguise.'"
Celine: "You and your riddles."
Nathan: "They'll make sense soon. I promise."
Her heart fluttered at those last words.
---
It was a Saturday afternoon when everything came full circle.
Celine had just stepped out of a boutique at the local shopping mall. Her graduation gown was hanging on her arm in a clear protective bag—she had just picked it up for her upcoming convocation. Her face glowed with pride and fulfillment.
As she walked toward the roadside to catch a cab, she heard the sound of a familiar engine—a sleek black SUV pulled up a few meters ahead. A tall woman with flowing braids stepped out from the passenger seat, laughing into her phone, carrying an expensive designer purse.
Ivy.
Celine's heart stilled.
She hadn't seen her since the messy days of heartbreak. Ivy hadn't changed—still dripping in luxury, still radiating entitlement. She was dressed like someone going to a red carpet event, not just a mall.
But it wasn't Ivy that made Celine's breath catch.
It was the driver.
She recognized the shape of his shoulders before she saw his face.
Ben.
He wore a plain white shirt, slightly faded, with dark jeans. His face looked… older. Tired. The boy who once walked with pride beside her now sat behind the wheel of Ivy's car, opening the door like a paid employee.
Their eyes met.
For a moment, neither moved.
Ben blinked as if he couldn't believe it was her. Celine stood her ground, eyes calm, posture straight, dressed in a smart blue gown with her graduation gown draped proudly over her arm.
The irony hit hard.
The girl he once called "too ordinary" now stood glowing with dignity, while he had become a driver for the same girl he left her for.
---
Ivy barely noticed. She turned to him and said, "Get my sunglasses from the car," like he was invisible.
Ben obeyed without a word.
Celine didn't stay. She gave him one long, quiet look—then turned away.
No tears.
No drama.
Just the peace of someone who had moved on.
---
That night, Nathan messaged her unexpectedly.
Nathan: "How does it feel? Being a whole graduate and all?"
Celine: "It feels... unreal. Like I've climbed a mountain. Alone."
Nathan: "You didn't climb alone. You just didn't need anyone to carry you."
Celine: "Well, I passed through fire and didn't burn."
Nathan: "You became fire."
She smiled.
Then came another message.
Nathan: "There's something I've been meaning to tell you."
Her heart skipped.
Nathan: "I applied for a transfer. After I complete my residency, I'm coming back home."
Celine: "Back to Nigeria? Why?"
There was a pause.
Nathan: "Because I realized something. No matter how far I go, my heart stayed where you are."
Nathan: "And maybe you're not ready now. Maybe you'll never be. But I'd rather be near you in friendship, than away from you wondering 'what if.'"
Celine's hands trembled slightly.
Her fingers hovered over the keyboard.
Tears welled in her eyes—not the kind that come from pain, but the kind that fall when something buried deep begins to bloom.
Celine: "You always show up when it matters. I don't know what I'm ready for… but I'm not afraid anymore."
Nathan: "That's enough for me."
---
The next morning, Celine stood in front of her mirror wearing her graduation gown. Her roommate took pictures while she twirled, laughing like a girl who had survived the storm.
And she had.
She had loved. She had lost. She had broken.
But she had also healed.
She had grown.
She had become.
---
That day, as she walked across the stage to receive her certificate, her eyes scanned the crowd and settled not on who was there—but on the empty space beside her heart that no longer ached.
She whispered under her breath, "Thank you, Ben. You were the blessing in disguise."
Because without that heartbreak, she would have never found her strength.
Without betrayal, she would've never chosen herself.
And without losing the wrong one, she would've never known the peace that came from waiting for something true.