We don’t have just one kind of love. We can love different people in different ways — and those loves don’t replace each other or cancel each other out. They simply settle in different corners of our hearts. Justin had a love, something familiar, maybe safe, maybe unfinished. Then he found a second love that was intense and passionate, but also toxic. It was the kind of love that felt consuming, the kind that leaves marks even after it ends. And when that relationship ended, the connection didn’t fully disappear. Some feelings stayed. Some “what ifs” stayed. Two years later, he went back to his first love. And maybe he truly does love them. But love can exist alongside lingering emotions. A part of him might still be holding onto the one who walked away not because he wants to, but because some loves don’t leave quietly. It’s not about choosing who he loves more. It’s about the reality that healing isn’t always clean. Sometimes we return to what feels safe while still carrying pieces of what once felt intense. And that doesn’t make him heartless, it just makes him human.

Love can live in different corners of your heart at the same time.
Some feelings don’t disappear just because you’ve chosen someone else.
And going back to what’s familiar doesn’t always mean you’ve stopped feeling what you once felt, it just means you’re trying to find peace in the way you know how.

Carlo deserves a love that is fully present, not half-shared with the past. Even if Justin genuinely loves him, a part of his heart still belongs to Reese, and that can quietly create distance. Carlo deserves someone who chooses him completely, who shows up without lingering “what ifs.” Loving him while still holding onto another doesn’t make Justin a villain, it makes the situation complicated but Carlo’s heart deserves clarity, honesty, and a love that can meet him where he is.
As for Justin, the unfairness comes from the situation, not from a CONSCIOUS desire to hurt. Justin is caught between love, loyalty to his feelings, and the pull of the past messy, painful, and very human in the way we all are.

Finally got some time to read again after being busy, and as I went through the updates, I couldn’t help but remember a character from a book I read years ago back when the author hadn’t become problematic. I’m not sure if it’s right to mention her name, but the character reminded me so much of this story.

Thank you po for the updates. :))