Fleeting Antonyms

Living with my aunt and her family was meant to be a temporary, quiet arrangement just helping out and keeping to myself. On the first day of the new year, while everyone else was out celebrating, I stayed home, enjoying the rare silence and catching up on sleep. But when we ran out of water, I reluctantly stepped outside to fetch some, and that’s when I saw him. He stood by the gate of the house next door, effortlessly commanding attention with just a glance. A smirk played on his lips, and a flicker of amusement danced in his eyes behind his blue-ray glasses. At that moment, he was impossible to ignore. Meanwhile, I felt disheveled and barely awake, my hair was a mess and still shaking off sleep. But he didn’t seem to mind. There was something about him an air of mystery that made me wonder who he was and why he was there. Before I could look away, he spoke, “Hi.” Caught off guard, I managed a quick, “Hi,” while trying to pull myself together. “Can I know your name?” he asked. I hesitated but replied, “I’m Clara,” and kept walking. “Can I have your number?” he called after me. “Just as friends.” I almost refused but reluctantly agreed, entering my number into his phone. “There,” I said, handing it back. “I’ll call you,” he promised with a smile, as I turned to leave. What began as a chance encounter soon became an inexplicable connection. He had secrets, but there was something about him that saw through me, understanding things no one else did. The man I met next door wasn’t just a fleeting stranger,he became the reason I started questioning everything I thought I wanted.

"Ava, now!" Virin's voice sliced through the suffocating darkness, sharp and urgent. My body moved before my mind could catch up, legs burning as I sprinted toward the van where Kyra and Priti waited, their faces pale with terror. "Run! Faster, Ava!" Priti's frantic scream tore through the night, her fists slamming the steering wheel as if sheer willpower could propel me forward. My lungs screamed for air, my legs trembled with exhaustion, but I couldn't stop-not when freedom was just ten steps away. Ten. Nine. Eight- "Ava!" His voice cut through the chaos, low and venomous, freezing me mid-stride. It wasn't a command. It was a threat-a promise of destruction. "If you don't stop right now, I'll kill everyone who dares to stand between us!" The weight of his words coiled around me like chains, choking the air from my lungs. I knew he didn't bluff. I knew what he was capable of. "Not now, Ava! Run!" Virin's desperate voice shattered my paralysis as his grip yanked me forward, dragging me the final agonizing steps to the van. We tumbled inside, slamming the doors shut. For a fleeting moment, I dared to look back. There he stood, his figure looming in the distance, chest heaving with fury. His dark eyes burned with a rage that made my stomach twist. Slowly, he raised a finger, pointing at me. "You are mine," he growled, stabbing the same finger into his chest. Over my dead body. ***** Ava's life once seemed perfect-best friends, a family she adored, and a love that felt like destiny. But perfection shatters. Caught between two men-one who sparks a fire she can't extinguish, and another who offers solace laced with shadows- Ava is thrust into a web of secrets, lies, and dangerous temptations.