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A Different Kind of Silence

Author: Jovik
last update Last Updated: 2025-06-30 17:48:23

Ariana’s POV

The morning after the talk, I woke up with the strangest stillness in my body. It wasn’t peace. It was… a pause.

A moment suspended between endings and something I couldn’t quite name. Luca was still asleep beside me, sheets tangled at his waist, one hand reaching toward where I used to be. I watched the way his fingers curled slightly, even in sleep, like his body didn’t trust that I was real. I slipped out of bed quietly and padded into the bathroom. My stomach flipped. Not from nerves and definitely not from emotion, but something… deeper. Physical and my instincts was very much alive.

I sat on the edge of the tub and tried to shake it off. Probably it was exhaustion. I hadn’t eaten properly in days. Or maybe the stress was finally sinking into my bones.

But something about the nausea, soft and subtle—felt familiar. Too familiar. A slow chill moved up my spine. No. I told myself I was imagining it.

I always had a wild imagination, didn’t I?

Still, I counted the days i
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  • Surrendered Desires   The Sound of Permission Being Stolen

    Ariana’s POVThe USB drive felt heavier than it should have. As if it carried not just files… but pieces of the woman I used to be. I sat in the corner of the living room, headphones on, Luca beside me in silence. Then I pressed play. And the truth spoke for itself.// [AUDIO FILE — TRANSCRIPT EXCERPT]Daniel:She’s spiraling. I can see it in her eyes. The miscarriage was… unfortunate, but it might give us time to reset her public image.Jordan Reece:We’ll frame it as personal leave. Soft language. Nothing too emotional. If she wants to speak, we pivot toward gratitude and resilience. Those are palatable.Daniel:Exactly. She’s too unpredictable when she starts writing those journals. You’ve seen what she fantasizes about. That’s not the image we need right now.Jordan:Understood. I’ll pull quotes that sound dignified. Maybe something about strength. Quiet pain. Makes her look elegant.Daniel: Just keep her busy. Keep her tired. She functions better when she thinks she’s being helpf

  • Surrendered Desires   The Apology That Isn’t One

    Ariana’s POVThe second episode of Still Her went live at 9:14 a.m. I didn’t promote it. I didn’t post anything. I just… released it. Let it exist in the world like smoke leaving a fire that had been burning for years. And within hours, the comment section began flooding.“Thank you for saying what I couldn’t.”“I didn’t know how to name it until now.”“You just described my old job, my old relationship, my whole fucking life.”I watched it rise, not like a trending moment — but like a movement quietly stretching its arms. Luca read some of the messages beside me. When I looked at him, he just said, “You made them feel seen.”I nodded. But deep down, I knew what came next. When women speak, the world listens. But when women name names? The world starts to squirm.********At 2:21 p.m., I got a message I didn’t expect.Not from Daniel. Not from Nathan. But from Vanessa Hale.> Ariana. I heard your episode. I think we should talk. Please — no drama. Just one hour. Neutral ground. She ad

  • Surrendered Desires   The Names in the Room

    Ariana’s POVThe second file came at 6:04 a.m. no greeting. No context, just a subject line:“I told you there were others.”I sat up in bed and opened it before I could talk myself out of it. Luca was still asleep beside me, one arm curled loosely around my waist, the room was dim. Still, but what I read… set everything on fire.*******FILE: Complicity Report — Unofficial// Name: Jordan ReeceRole: Luxe Group PR DirectorStatus: Active2018 — Met with Daniel and board members to privately manage Ariana’s miscarriage coverage. Suggested it be handled “quietly, respectfully, and without Ariana’s emotional involvement.” Internal quote: “We’ll frame this as a medical loss and pivot into her return to work. No public mention of pregnancy unless she brings it up — which she won’t.”“She responds well to being useful. Keep her busy.”// Name: Dr. Miranda KlineRole: Ob/Gyn (Private)Status: RetiredCoordinated Ariana’s D&C procedure. Records show that Daniel signed the consent form before

  • Surrendered Desires   The Friend Who Watched

    Ariana’s POVThe file wasn’t long, two pages. Titled plainly: “Observation Notes — A.C.” I stared at the screen, heartbeat like static in my ears. These weren’t medical records, not legal documents. Just… notes. Written by someone who knew too much, someone who had been watching.// June 6th — 3:12 a.m.She cries in the dark now. Thinks no one can hear her. Her journal’s full again. She’s cracking, and no one sees it but me.// July 2nd — 8:35 p.m.Daniel praises her publicly, but punishes her in private. Not with violence. With silence. With absence. With precision.// August 11th — unknown timeShe keeps lighting candles she doesn’t remember buying. I think that’s her way of pretending romance still lives here.// October 23rdI tried to tell him. He called it a phase. Said she’s just emotional. Said I should “redirect her.”// December 5thLuca returned. She didn’t say it. But her skin changed. She started touching her own neck again.// January 17thI think I love her. Not in the

  • Surrendered Desires   Press Record

    Ariana’s POVThe microphone sat on the desk like a mirror, sleek. Quiet. Watching, the red light blinked softly — waiting, and me? I sat there with my heart in my throat.Not because I didn’t have the words, but because I knew what they could cost.******Luca stood in the hallway, half-shadowed. He didn’t say anything. Just leaned against the doorframe with a mug of tea in hand and a calm I both envied and needed.“I’m here if you want me in the room,” he said.I looked at him. Then at the mic.“Not this time.”He nodded once and walked away. The silence that followed was loud, but I welcomed it. I opened my notebook and read the first few lines again.// “This isn’t a confession, this isn’t revenge, this is reclamation.”I closed my eyes, pressed record and began.Still Her — Episode 1“My name is Ariana. You know parts of me. The ones in magazine interviews. The ones in press releases. The ones in scandal headlines, but you don’t know the girl who used to sit on her bathroom floor

  • Surrendered Desires   Their Version of Me

    Ariana’s POV It started with a headline, not explosive, not tabloid. Just measured. Calculated.// “Inside the Mind of Ariana Cole: When Passion Becomes Obsession.”I stared at it for a long time, long enough that the words blurred, long enough that the heat crawling up my spine reached the base of my neck and sat there like a hand. The byline was clean. Anonymous sources. Clinical language.Professional quotes from "mental health advisors."They referred to me as "a woman under emotional duress," "a case study in erotic projection," and — my personal favorite — “a brand that confused desire with identity.”They didn’t call me unstable. They didn’t need to, they let the tone do it for them. And Daniel? He didn’t appear once, not by name, not by quote. Just a well-placed phrase in the final paragraph:// “Mr. Cole declined to comment, but sources close to him say he wishes her nothing but healing.”As if healing were a gift he had the power to give me. As if he hadn’t stolen it in the

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