you won. i stopped hoping. i stopped begging. i stopped trying. that silence you wanted is yours. i no longer wait for your messages or look for reasons to stay. i got tired of chasing someone who kept choosing distance. little by little, i accepted what i didn't want to believe. some people leave long before they actually go. it hurt more than i can explain, but i learned to let go. so yes, you won the battle of pushing me away. but in walking away from what kept hurting me, i finally found peace, and that's something you can never take from me.