LOGINDonald's POVI woke up with a headache that felt like someone was drilling straight through my skull.My mouth was dry. My head was spinning. And for a second, I couldn’t even remember where I was.Then it all came back.Xenia.The fight.The alcohol.The confession.I groaned and rolled onto my side on the couch. Big mistake. The room tilted and I had to shut my eyes again.“Great,” I muttered. “Just great.”I heard movement in the kitchen. The sound of a cup being set down. Calm footsteps. Not rushed.That meant only one thing.Xenia was awake.I pushed myself up slowly and sat there, elbows on my knees, rubbing my face. I could still smell alcohol on my clothes and I hated that. Hated how weak it made me feel.“Get up,” Xenia said from the kitchen. Her voice was cool. Controlled.I flinched.“I’m up,” I said, louder than I meant to.She stepped into the living room, holding a mug. She looked perfect. Hair neat. Clothes clean. Like she’d slept just fine while I was drowning.She loo
LilithI didn’t mean to listen.That’s what I told myself while I stood halfway down the hallway, my hand resting against the wall like I needed it to stay upright. The lights in the living room were on, casting long shadows across the floor. I could hear voices clearly.Xenia’s voice was calm. Controlled.Donald’s was not.“I messed up,” he said.My stomach dropped.I pressed my lips together and stayed where I was. I should’ve gone back to my room. I knew that. But my feet wouldn’t move. Something in his tone made my chest feel tight.Xenia didn’t answer him right away.That scared him. I could immediately tell. I could hear it in the way he swallowed. In the shuffle of his feet.“I swear it didn’t mean anything,” Donald said quickly.Xenia laughed. Not loud. Not soft either. Just sharp enough to cut.“You stopped it?” she asked.“Yes,” he said, too fast. “I didn’t go all the way.”I closed my eyes.God, he was an idiot.“Don’t touch me,” Xenia said.I peeked around the corner then
Xenia’s POVDonald came back drunk.I smelled it before I heard him.Alcohol always gives him away. The smell hits first and it's fucking sharp and sour. Then the sound. Heavy footsteps, uneven. Like he’s walking on water instead of solid ground. Then that pause outside the door, when he’s trying to remember if this is the right place.How disgusting. I was sitting on the couch with my legs tucked under me, phone in my hand. I wasn’t really scrolling. Just pretending. Waiting.The door creaked open.“Xenia?” he called.His voice was thick. Slow. Guilty.I didn’t answer right away.I let the silence stretch.Let him feel it. Since the bastard could drink himself to a stupor, he could sure as hell feel guilty. “Xenia?” he said again, softer this time.I sighed like I was annoyed and put my phone down on the table. “You’re late.”He stepped fully inside and shut the door, leaning against it like he needed it to stay upright. His tie was loose. Shirt wrinkled. Hair a mess. He looked lik
Lena’s POVI didn’t sleep much.Not because I wasn’t tired. I was exhausted. The kind of tiredness that made me not even want to move a fucking muscle. But every time I closed my eyes, my head just kept going. My thoughts were all over the place and feelings were stacking on top of each other.Griffin was still there when I opened my eyes again. Sitting on the chair by the bed like he’d been there all night. Arms crossed. Head tilted back against the wall. Eyes closed, but not really asleep.“You’re staring,” I said, voice rough.One eye opened. Then the other.“You’re awake,” he said, like it was something important.“I’ve been awake,” I said. “You were snoring.”“I do not snore.”“You breathe aggressively.”He scoffed and leaned forward. “How do you feel?”I shifted, sitting up slowly. My body felt heavy. Not painful. Just… used. Like I’d run too far and forgot to stop.“Tired,” I said. “But okay. I think.”He stood up right away. Too fast. Like he’d been waiting for permission.“Yo
Griffin’s POV Ryker slipped out without another word, the door closing behind him with a soft click. The room settled into silence, the kind that presses against your ears until you’re forced to listen to your own thoughts.I didn’t move right away.Lena sat on the edge of the bed, her shoulders relaxed but her hands busy. She traced the fading mark on her palm with her thumb, slow and absentminded, like she was grounding herself. Whatever magic had passed through had left that behind, a reminder of something neither of us had fully unpacked yet. Her expression wasn’t troubled. If anything, she looked calm, at peace.That was what finally broke me.I couldn’t keep lying, not with that look on her face, not after everything she'd been through. I’d spent months convincing myself that silence was safer, that leaving things unsaid was better than risking the fallout but standing there, watching her, I knew I was just protecting myself.“Lena,” I said quietly.She looked up at me right aw
Lena’s povI wake up slowly.Not the normal kind of waking up.The kind where your body feels heavy, like someone tied weights to your arms and legs. My head hurts. My chest feels tight. For a second, I forget where I am.Then I smell Griffin.Clean. Familiar. Warm.My eyes open.The ceiling is not my dorm room ceiling. It’s bigger. Higher. Stone and wood. Old but clean. I blink a few times and try to sit up.Bad idea.My head spins and I let out a small sound, not even a scream, just—“Hey,” someone says quickly. “Easy.”Griffin.He’s right there. Sitting by the bed. His eyes are red like he hasn’t slept. His hair is a mess. He looks scared.“Don’t move too fast,” he says. “You scared the hell out of me.”I swallow. My throat is dry.“Where… am I?” I ask.“You’re at my place,” he says softly. “The fortress.”I frown. “Your… fortress?”He gives a small smile. “Yeah. That.”I try again to sit up, slower this time. Griffin helps me with a pillow behind my back. His hand brushes mine and







