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190 Kapitel

When The Darkness Calls

The first thing Lydia noticed was the heaviness in her eyelids. The second was the distant rumble of thunder, steady and insistent.“Mhm… I must’ve dozed off,” she murmured, voice groggy and thick with sleep.Half-awake, she stretched her hand toward the nightstand, fingers brushing the cool surface before landing on her phone. She dragged it into her palm and tapped the screen.6:19 PM.Her brows knitted as she glanced around. The room was too dark for early evening. Shadows swallowed everything—walls, corners, even the outline of the wardrobe. A frown creased her forehead.The safe house lights were always on, even during storms. Backup power kicked in automatically. But now…“What the hell…?” she whispered. “Why is the light out?”Her phone battery blinked red. 5%.“Oh, great,” she muttered under her breath, exhaling sharply. “I didn’t even charge it.”Rain hammered the windows with a sudden roar, fo

Good Morning, Daddy!

The house was calmer that morning—as though the walls themselves were trying to recover from the emotional storm the three of them had crawled through the day before.Adrian adjusted the cuffs of his shirt, tugged at the strap of his wristwatch, then paused in front of the mirror. He wasn’t looking at his reflection. Not really. He was staring at the faint puffiness beneath his eyes. The kind that came from lying awake for hours, staring at the ceiling, replaying one moment over and over.Aria… I’m your dad.He had said it. The truth he’d carried had finally left his chest.And now?Now he had absolutely no idea what to do with himself.Was she confused?Was she scared?Was she angry?Was she even processing anything he had said?Every possible worry hunted his mind through the night, rounding his thoughts like wolves circling prey. And even now, as he slipped on his jacket and stepped out of his room, none of the

Sentence Passed

“Clara, can you hand me the sales projection file?” Adrian asked without looking up, fingers still dancing across his keyboard.“Already sent to your email, sir,” Clara called from across the room.“Good,” he murmured, shifting a second document closer. Numbers, graphs, projections—his familiar morning rhythm. The only sound in the office was the soft clicking of keys, the distant hum of the building, and the muted TV quietly rolling through the day’s news in the background.Nothing unusual.Except his mind wasn’t fully here.It kept drifting back to a small girl at a coffee table this morning, feet dangling, crayons scattered everywhere, head tilted with quiet concentration as she drew something she wouldn’t let him see yet. And then—when she finally looked up at him—Good morning, Daddy.Not hesitant.Not testing the waters.Not whispered in fear of offending someone.Real.Warm.Certain.

Early Return

Adrian had barely pushed the door open when a small voice shot across the living room.“Daddy! You’re home early!”Aria’s head popped up from behind the coffee table where she’d been drawing, her crayon dropping instantly as she scrambled to her feet. Before he could even respond, she was already racing toward him, curls bouncing, eyes bright and happy.Adrian exhaled a soft laugh and scooped her up just as she jumped into his arms. He spun her once—just enough to make her giggle—then pressed a kiss to her forehead.“Daddy missed you too, sweetheart,” he murmured.Aria’s gaze immediately slid to the small bag in his hand. Her eyes widened, curiosity glowing.“Is that… is that for me?”Adrian raised a brow playfully and hid the bag slightly behind him.“Maybe.”Her grin stretched impossibly wide.He lowered her gently to the floor, letting her bounce on her feet with excitement. But as soon as she wa

The Weight Of His Care

“Mommy! Hurry! The water is so blue today!”Aria’s voice rang through the salty breeze before Elena could even lift her gaze from the shoreline. The little girl was already several steps ahead, her small sandals leaving messy prints across the pale sand as she waved both arms wildly for her mother to catch up.Elena felt her lips curve softly.“We’re coming, sweetheart,” she called back.Beside her, Adrian walked with an easy, unhurried stride—casual in rolled-up sleeves and soft beach light brushing along the sharp lines of his profile. He glanced at her, his expression gentling the moment their eyes met.“You okay walking this fast?” he asked, tone low and warm.It hit deeper than she had expected— steadying yet unbalancing at the same time.“I’m fine,” she said, gathering a little chunk of hair behind her ear as the sea breeze nudged it forward again. “It’s just been a while since we did something like this.”

We Haven't Talked About Us

The moment they stepped back into the house, the warmth of the beach still clung to them—sun on their clothes, sand on their feet, and a strange lingering softness none of them spoke about.“Mommy! Look!” Aria squealed, lifting her sandy hands as if she had discovered gold. “The water was so blue today!”Elena laughed, brushing stray grains from her daughter’s cheek. “I know. You practically ran into it.”“I didn’t run! Daddy said to be careful,” she corrected proudly, turning to Adrian as though expecting him to confirm it.Adrian’s lips pulled into that quiet, reserved smile of his. He carried the folded beach blanket under one arm, watching the two of them with an unreadable calm that somehow still felt warm. It was strange—Elena avoided his eyes, yet she could feel him watching her anyway. Every time her gaze even drifted near him, something fluttered low in her stomach, leaving her unsettled in ways she wasn’t prepared to say out loud.

The Line We Pretended Existed

Elena woke up feeling warm.Too warm.Her eyes blinked open slowly, adjusting to the morning light leaking through the curtains. For a moment she didn’t know why her chest felt tight or why her breath caught halfway out. Then it hit her—last night.The hallway.Adrian’s hand around her wrist—warm, firm, protective.The way he pulled her slightly behind him as though shielding her from something that wasn’t even a threat.And then… the look in his eyes.Elena exhaled shakily and sat up.“It meant nothing,” she whispered to herself.But her own voice didn’t sound convinced.She pushed off the blanket and stepped out of the room, her heart beating an annoying, traitorous rhythm against her ribs.The faint sound of pans clinking came from the kitchen.She stopped when she saw him.Adrian stood at the stove, one hand flipping scrambled eggs, the other steadying the pan like he’d done this a t

When Running Stops

Elena didn’t know when she stopped breathing.The kitchen felt too small, too quiet, too charged — like the air itself had pulled tight around them. Adrian stood only a few steps away, that warm, knowing look on his face, and she felt the weight of it all the way down to her fingertips.Something had changed.And now… it wasn’t changing back.Adrian moved first.Not fast.Not forceful.Just a slow, deliberate step — then another — like he was giving her time to step away if she wanted.She didn’t.Her back brushed the cold counter behind her.The contrast made her inhale sharply.Adrian’s eyes flickered at the sound.Not with triumph — but with something like restraint fighting to hold itself steady.He lifted one hand slowly, and for a moment Elena thought he would touch her. Instead, his palm landed softly on the counter beside her waist, fingers curling over the edge. Close enough tha

One Thin Door

“Do you think white curtains make a room look too… judgmental?”Lydia asked the question while leaning her shoulder against the doorframe, pretending she wasn’t on her fourth trip into Ethan’s workspace that day. She tried to look casual — one hand in her hoodie pocket, the other twirling a loose thread — but her voice betrayed the tiniest waver.Ethan didn’t look up immediately. He sat at the desk in the safe house living room, typing steadily, jaw relaxed, shoulders broad and annoyingly calm.“Judgmental?” he echoed, still typing. “They’re curtains, Lydia. They don’t judge.”She blinked.“Okay, then… maybe cream curtains? Or off-white? You know, a color that says ‘welcome’ and not ‘I’m silently evaluating your life choices.’”He finally stopped typing — just for a second — and gave a quiet exhale that wasn’t quite a sigh.“What exactly are you redecorating?”“Nothing,” she said too quickly. “Just asking.”Ethan

If Leaving Hurts, Stay

Lydia woke with a tightness in her chest she couldn’t ignore.The room was dim, soft morning light slipping through the curtains, but the first thing that greeted her wasn’t the sunlight — it was the memory. The exact moment her voice betrayed her last night, blurting a question she had no business asking.“Do you… have a girlfriend?”Lydia groaned and shoved her face back into the pillow.Why did she say that?Why did she ask him that?Who even sent her?She rolled onto her back and pressed her palms over her eyes.He must think I’m so immature. Asking nonsense. Distracting him while he was working…Mortification ate her alive. Her cheeks heated, her stomach knotted. She stayed in bed longer than she needed to, hoping the awkwardness would magically evaporate.It didn’t.Eventually, she slipped out of her room and walked down the hallway, forcing her expression into something calm — or at least

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