LOGINEthan: “Damn it, Aria…” I muttered under my breath the moment her lips finally left his. For a second, just one second, our eyes met. And then she looked away. Like I wasn’t even there. Like I didn’t matter. Like I was something ugly and primal snapped inside me. I didn’t think about anything, I can't even think properly at the moment and I don’t care about consequences or who was watching or what this would turn into. All I knew was that I couldn’t stand there and watch her kiss another man like it meant nothing. Like I meant nothing. My feet were already moving before my mind could catch up. I pushed through the crowd, ignoring the bodies I shoved aside, the curses thrown at me, the music pounding violently in my ears. None of it registered. None of it mattered. I grabbed the man's collar and yanked him toward me. My fist collided with his mouth before he could even process what was happening. A sharp crack. Gasps erupted around us. “What the hell?!” “Why did he do
Devi: My breath hitched as my entire body froze in place, like I had walked into something I wasn’t meant to see. Something I couldn’t unsee. Ethan shoved her away, immediately, the movement abrupt, frantic—like he had just realized he was standing on the edge of a cliff. “Devi...” he called, sounding a little breathless. “Ethan.” I called his name, my voice came out thin, strained, like it had been dragged through glass. I stared at him, my chest rising too fast, my heart slamming violently against my ribs as if it wanted out of my body. “She kissed me,” Ethan said quickly, his voice rushing over itself, desperate, defensive. Genevieve didn’t argue with me or Ethan. She didn’t look ashamed. She didn’t even look surprised. She just smiled, and I felt like grabbing her hair and hitting her head on the wall. Then she walked past me like nothing had happened. Like she hadn’t just lit a match in a room full of gasoline. My fingers curled slowly into fists at my sides
Devi: My breath hitched as my entire body froze in place, like I had walked into something I wasn’t meant to see. Something I couldn’t unsee. Ethan shoved her away, immediately, the movement abrupt, frantic—like he had just realized he was standing on the edge of a cliff. “Devi...” he called, sounding a little breathless. “Ethan.” I called his name, my voice came out thin, strained, like it had been dragged through glass. I stared at him, my chest rising too fast, my heart slamming violently against my ribs as if it wanted out of my body. “She kissed me,” Ethan said quickly, his voice rushing over itself, desperate, defensive. Genevieve didn’t argue with me or Ethan. She didn’t look ashamed. She didn’t even look surprised. She just smiled, and I felt like grabbing her hair and hitting her head on the wall. Then she walked past me like nothing had happened. Like she hadn’t just lit a match in a room full of gasoline. My fingers curled slowly into fists at my sides. “And yo
Aria’s POV I sat on the couch in my room with my legs crossed, my fingers loosely intertwined over my knee as my thoughts spiraled in every direction at once. The silence around me felt heavier than usual, pressing against my chest like an unseen weight. I exhaled slowly, but it did nothing to ease the restlessness clawing inside me. My phone rested beside me, the screen dark. I stare at it for a long moment before finally reaching for it, my fingers hovering briefly before I dialed the number that had called earlier, right in the middle of my breakfast with Ethan. The line rang once. Twice. Then it connected. “You finally decided to call me back.” His voice. Familiar. Unmistakable. A humorless chuckle slipped past my lips, bitter and dry. Of course I knew it was him. I know he'd call after sending the flowers, the diamonds—those extravagant gestures screamed his name louder than anything else ever could. Lucien never did anything halfway. Even his regret came wrapped in luxur
(Third Person's POV) Elena had been sitting in her father’s study long before the call came through. The heavy oak desk, polished to perfection, stood between her and the door like an unspoken barrier, while the tall bookshelves lining the walls seemed to close in around her. Even the faint scent of aged paper and leather, something she once found comforting, now felt oppressive. She hadn’t come here just to sit. There had been a storm brewing inside her long before Lucien’s name lit up her phone screen. And when it finally did, her fingers had trembled as she answered, her heart already bracing itself for something she couldn’t quite name, but deeply feared. Her father had been there the entire time. He hadn’t interrupted. He hadn’t spoken to her. He had simply listened. Every word. Every silence. Every crack in her voice. And now, the aftermath hung thick in the air. Elena parted her lips, her throat dry, her chest rising and falling unevenly. She wanted to speak—to
Lucien: “Has she received the diamonds?” I asked, my tone calm but sharp, as I looked over at Timothy. He was seated casually on the edge of the playing ground, stretching his legs like he didn’t have a single concern in the world. We had come out for some exercise, but my mind wasn’t here. It’s stuck in my memories with Aria. These days I don't even feel myself anymore, it feels like I'm losing it, I feel lonely, I don’t feel like myself anymore. “Yes, she did,” he replied. Then he glanced at me sideways. “Do you have anything else in your head that you’re thinking about except Aria?” “No,” I said flatly. I don’t think about anyone except her, she's my whole world, and I lost her. Regret was a foreign thing to me once, it was something I believed belonged to weaker men, to those who failed to take what they wanted when it was within their reach. But now it sat in my chest like a slow, suffocating weight, tightening every time her name crossed my mind. Anytime I remem
The last words faded softly into the air, his voice dissolving into silence as if the night itself was holding its breath. For a moment, no one moved, no glasses clinked, no whispers followed. Even the wind seemed to pause, suspended between our heartbeats.I stood there, frozen, looking shocked an
Aria’s POV When Ethan drove me to the mansion, I didn’t wait for him to get down and open the car door the way he always did. I couldn’t wait any longer. The moment the car stopped, my chest tightened like someone had wrapped their fist around my ribs and refused to let go. My fingers trembled a
She stayed in my arms for a long moment, breathing out little by little. The tension in her shoulders softened, but I could still feel how tired she was—emotionally drained in a way sleep didn’t always fix, yet desperately she needed to sleep. I brushed my thumb gently over her arm. “You shou
Lucien’s POV The house was loud not with noise, no music, no laughter, but with my mother's yelling. She didn't even care if it was too early in the morning to start yelling. Every television screen in the living room was tuned to the same channel. My name on the bottom of the screen headlines,







