Chapter 6 - The Argument We Didn't Expect

CHAPTER 6 “The Argument We Didn’t Expect”

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Adrian’s POV

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He wouldn’t look at me. And that alone made my anger rise like hot water under a locked lid. I stood in the

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center of the room, would turn around and explain why he acted like he had the right to rule my life. But Ethan

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kept his back to me, hands on his hips, breathing too evenly, too quietly, as if he expected this fight.

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“Say something,” I said. My voice was harder than I planned.

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He finally faced me, slow and deliberate, like a man planning for war. “Do you want the truth,” he asked, “or

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something polite?”

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“I want to know why you stopped those reporters. You embarrassed me.”

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His laugh was low and sharp. “Embarrassed you? Adrian, they were tearing into you. They were seconds

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away from asking about your father.”

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“Still not your business,” I snapped.

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His eyes narrowed. “Maybe you should stop freezing every time someone says your father’s name.”

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The words hit me like a slap.

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A clean, forceful hit.

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“I don’t freeze,” I said, even though we both knew it was a lie.

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“You do,” he said. “Your jaw locks. Your hands shake. Your eyes go empty. I’ve seen it every time.”

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“You’re imagining things.”

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“No,” he said firmly. “I notice things about you. You think you hide everything, but you don’t.”

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My breaths grew choppy. My chest tightened. I hated that he was right. I hated that he could read me so

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easily, like my feelings were written on my face.

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I took a step forward. “You think you’re helping me? You think taking over every situation makes you some

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hero?”

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“I think someone has to protect you when you refuse to protect yourself.”

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That stung.

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That hurt deeper than I expected.

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“You’re overstepping,” I said.

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“You’re breaking,” he answered.

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The silence that followed felt dangerous. Sharp.

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Like going barefoot on broken glass.

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He waited for me to speak, but I couldn’t. My voice wouldn’t come. My mind flashed back to the war, to the

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night the smoke was so thick I couldn’t see the ground. The air tastes like blood and burnt metal. Bodies

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everywhere. Screams that didn’t sound human. My breath caught, and I blinked fast, trying to push the

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memories away, but I wasn’t fast enough.

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Ethan noticed.

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He always noticed.

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“What was that?” he asked softly. “Just now.”

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“Nothing.”

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“Adrian.”

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I swallowed hard. “I said nothing.”

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“You’re lying.”

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I clenched my hands. “Drop it.”

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“No,” he said. “For once, talk to me.”

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My chest beat. The words were screaming inside me, begging to leave, but I spent years putting them away.

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If I opened even a crack, everything would spill out.

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But the crack still came.

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“It was a night patrol,” I said quietly. “The kind you don’t come back from.”

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I felt my own voice breaking. “We were surrounded. No sign. No light. Just heat. And screaming. And then

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it was quiet. Too quiet.”

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Ethan didn’t move. He didn’t move.

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I forced the last words out. “I was the only one who lived.”

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Then I went silent.

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Silent because the truth tasted like ash.

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Silent because I regretted saying anything.

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And Ethan’s faceGod, his face softened in a way that made everything worse. He stepped closer, slowly, like

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approaching a hurt animal.

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“Adrian…” he whispered.

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“Don't,” I said instantly. “Don’t look at me like that.”

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“How am I looking at you?”

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“Like I’m broken.”

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“You’re not broken,” he said. “You’re”

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“I told you to drop it.”

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He breathed, long and frustrated. “You always do this. You open up for one second and then slam every door

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shut.”

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“Because it’s safer.”

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“For who?” he asked. “For you? Or for the version of yourself you claim to be?”

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I turned away. His words cut too close to the truth.

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“Adrian,” he said again, voice softer. “Please look at me.”

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I didn’t. I couldn’t. If I looked at him, I might say more. I might tell him things I never told anyone. I might

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break.

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A knock suddenly broke the strain.

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My stomach twisted.

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Ethan’s eyes flicked toward the door. “Expecting someone?”

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“No.”

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The door opened before I could move, and Seraphina stepped inside.

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Her presence hit like cold water.

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She looked at me first long enough to read my face, long enough to notice the tension but then her eyes slid to

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Ethan, who didn’t bother hiding his anger.

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She smiled lightly, but the smile didn’t reach her eyes. “Well,” she said. “I didn’t realize I was interrupting

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something serious.”

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“You are,” Ethan said simply.

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My heart sank. “Ethan.”

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“What?” he asked without looking at me. “I’m not pretending everything’s fine.”

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Seraphina raised a brow. “I can see that.”

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I tried to sound calm. “Why are you here?”

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She stepped closer, her eyes sharp on me. “I was told you canceled the meeting tonight. That’s unusual.”

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I forced a smile. “I wasn’t in the mood.”

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She looked at Ethan again. “And I’m guessing he had something to do with that.”