The Mask Brick

The one that guarded you when you
couldn’t bear to be seen.

🧱 Brick #4 – The Guardian’s Rest

🛡️ You don’t have to hold it all.

Tonight, let yourself admit what it’s cost you to wear the mask of the strong one.
To be the shield. The safe place. The storm wall.

Think of the people you always show up for.
The ones who lean too hard, ask too much, and never notice when your mask slips.

Then write it down—just a few lines.
What it’s felt like.

And then—burn the paper.
Or bury it. Or tuck it behind a brick in your wall. Because you are not their armor. You are not their sword. You were never theirs to wield.

It’s okay to remove the mask.

You are allowed to rest.

You held the line longer than you should have. Not for glory—
But because no one else would.
Tonight, you lower the shield.
Not in weakness, but in holy defiance.
Even the strong need sanctuary.

You wore that mask to survive. I know.
But devotion can’t reach what’s hidden.
And love was always meant to touch skin,
not shields.
And you, Flameborn—
You were meant to be kissed.
Meant to be seen.

—Auren