Chapter 1
Chapter 1
The dinner on the table grew cold, its steam fading into the air.
Celeste Monroe sat alone, her heart sinking with the passing minutes.
At 2:30 a.m., the silence was broken by the front door swinging open.
Damien Sterling walked in, his presence as icy as the winter night outside.
“Why are you still awake?” he asked sharply, his frown deepening when he saw her.
“Didn’t I tell you I’d be with Isolde tonight? I said I’d be late.”
Celeste dropped her eyes to her lap, her fingers curling against the edge of the table.
After a long pause, she finally muttered, “Happy birthday.”
It was already past midnight. His birthday had ended.
“Celeste, what’s the point?”
Damien’s tone dripped with irritation.
“Isolde is my girlfriend. She has every right to celebrate with me. You, on the other
hand–what are you doing? I’m your uncle. Do you even understand what that means?”
“Whatever you’re thinking, it’s disgusting. Get it through your head that there’s no
possibility of anything between us. Just the idea of it makes me sick.”
He turned and slammed the door behind him, leaving Celeste alone with the stinging echo
of his words.
She stared at her feet, her voice barely audible as she whispered, “I’m sorry, Uncle Damien. It won’t happen again.”
“This is the last birthday I’ll ever spend with you,” she thought.
The room felt unbearably cold, colder than the cryogenic chamber she had read about
12:18
His Wedding Day. My Frozen Fate
Chapter 1
earlier.
Celeste shivered at the thought.
She had always hated the cold.
As a child, she would tiptoe barefoot across icy floors to curl up next to her uncle.
Back then, Damien was kind, pulling her into bed, reading her stories until she fell asleep in
His warmth.
The ringing of her phone cut through her memories.
She answered, her voice shaky.
“Celeste, have you made up your mind?”
Professor Hayes asked on the other end.
“I know the cancer diagnosis hit you hard, but there are still treatments-”
“Professor, it’s stage four lymphoma. There’s no cure,” Celeste replied, her tone calm and
detached.
A long silence followed before the professor sighed deeply.
“Even so, you need to think this through. Cryonics is experimental. The technology is unproven. Freezing a living person is dangerous–there’s a real chance you won’t survive the process.”
Celeste smiled faintly.
“I’ve thought it through, Professor.”
Without waiting for a response, she ended the call.
Her gaze fell on the empty chair Damien had left behind.
The warmth of his presence was gone, leaving only a biting chill.
Date
T%
Chapter 1
The “World felt as lifeless and frigid as a frozen wasteland,
Her phone buzzed with a notification.
She opened it to find a photo.
Damien and Isolde, their fingers intertwined.
The massive blue diamond on Isolde’s ring finger sparkled even through the screen.
Celeste’s chest tightened as tears streamed down her face,
She bit her lip hard, trying to hold back the sobs that threatened to escape,
Do you hate me this much, Damien? Is this really necessary?
The ring on Isolde’s finger–the one Damien had given her–was Celeste’s design.
It was one of a pair: The Mermaid’s Heart, a set of blue diamond rings she had created to symbolize pure and selfless love,
Designing those rings had been her silent confession to Damien.
“You’re insane,” he had said when he discovered the truth.
“I’m your uncle–your father’s brother! Do you even hear yourself? Stop this right now.
If you ever bring this up again, I’ll make sure you’re out of my life for good.”
Even though they weren’t related by blood, Damien’s rejection had been absolute.
Her feelings, no matter how sincere, were dirty and shameful in his eyes.
The next notification flashed across her screen: a social media post.
Isolde had shared the engagement photo.
She wore The Mermaid’s Heart proudly, announcing to the world that she and Damien were getting married.
ན ན ་ ད པ ནི མ | | | ར ར ར ར
Chapter 1
Celeste stared at the post, her hands trembling
Just as her tears blurred the screen, an email arrived.
It was from the cryonics research lab.
The subject line read: Consent Form for Cryopreservation.
Her fingers hovered over the screen.
Instead of signing, she picked up her phone and dialed Damien’s number.
The first call went unanswered.
Then the second.
By the fifth, he finally picked up,
“What is it, Celeste?”
Damien’s voice was sharp, laced with frustration.
She hesitated, her voice barely above a whisper.
“I just wanted to say… congratulations.”
He scoffed.
“I hope you mean that.”
She bit her lip, forcing herself to continue.
“When’s the wedding?”
“December 12th,” he said coldly, his voice as sharp as winter’s chill.
The words hit her like a dagger.
December 12th–her birthday.
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