Chapter 3

Charlotte Head POV:

The velvet darkness of the Parisian night was a soft blanket. The city lights twinkled like scattered diamonds, beautiful and indifferent. We arrived at the hotel, a grand old building near the Seine, well past midnight. I was bone-tired from the flight, the forced small talk, and the constant awareness of Damion's desperate attempts to rekindle something that had long since turned to ash.

As the bellhop unloaded our bags, Damion's phone vibrated, a harsh, unwelcome buzz in the quiet lobby. He glanced at the screen, and his face instantly tightened. A familiar name flashed across the display. Eve.

He answered, his voice low and strained. "Eve? What's wrong? Are you alright?"

His concern was immediate, visceral. It was the kind of genuine worry I used to crave, the kind he only ever seemed to reserve for her. My heart didn't even flutter. It was just another predictable beat in the monotonous rhythm of our dying relationship.

His words became clipped, urgent. "What? Lost? How could you... No, no, don't cry. I'm on my way. Stay put. I'll be there as soon as I can."

He hung up, his eyes wide with a frantic energy I hadn't seen directed at me in years. He mumbled something to the bellhop, practically snatching the car keys from his hand.

"What is it, Damion?" I asked, my voice flat. I already knew, of course.

He turned to me, his face a mask of panicked concern. "It's Eve. She's here. She apparently took a last-minute flight because she's always wanted to see Paris, and her passport is missing. She's completely distraught. I need to go."

Lost passport. The oldest trick in her playbook. Or was it "fear of the dark"? "Lost dog"? "A flat tire in the middle of nowhere"? Eve's emergencies were always perfectly timed, always perfectly inconvenient, always pulled Damion away from me. This time, it was Paris.

"She's here," I repeated, numbly. "In Paris. What a coincidence."

He didn't catch the sarcasm. Or if he did, he ignored it. "I know, right? She's just so helpless sometimes. I have to go, Char. She's really scared. I just can't leave her alone." He reached for my hand, his grip fleeting. "You go up to the room. Rest. I'll be back as soon as I sort this out. Promise."

And with that, he was gone. A blur of movement, the screech of tires on cobblestones, and the echo of his hasty promise. Abandoned. Again. In a foreign country. My luggage, containing my passport and wallet, was likely still in his car, or with his assistant, or... somewhere. The details didn't matter. What mattered was the familiar sting of neglect, which, surprisingly, wasn't a sting at all anymore. Just a dull, hollow ache.

I realized I didn't even have my room key. Or my passport. Or any local currency. Or a working phone since I' d activated a new local SIM card later. The bellhop looked at me, a polite, questioning look on his face. I tried to explain, stumbling over my limited French, then resorting to frantic gestures and a translation app.

The hotel receptionist, a stern-faced woman, looked at me with a mix of pity and suspicion. "Madame, without identification, I cannot check you in. Your name is on the reservation, yes, but I must see your passport."

My shoulders slumped. Damion had my passport. Of course he did. He always handled the "logistics," which often meant keeping all important documents. I was marooned. Alone. Exhausted.

I sank onto a plush velvet couch in the opulent lobby, the grandeur of my surroundings mocking my current predicament. The clock above the reception desk ticked slowly, each minute a leaden weight. One hour passed. Then two. Damion didn't return. The initial wave of frustration gave way to a familiar apathy. I wasn't angry. I was just... tired. Tired of his priorities, tired of Eve's manufactured crises, tired of being an afterthought.

My eyes drooped. The fatigue from the long flight, the emotional exhaustion of the past three years, finally caught up. I leaned my head against the cool velvet, drifting in and out of a restless sleep. The lobby, once bustling, was now quiet, save for the soft murmur of the night staff.

"Charlotte? Is that really you?" A low, familiar voice cut through the haze of my sleep.

I jolted awake, my eyes blinking open. A tall figure stood over me, silhouetted against the soft lobby lights. He had a camera bag slung over his shoulder, and a faint, amused smile on his face.

"Connor?" I breathed, my voice thick with sleep and disbelief. Connor Carey. My old college lab partner. The easygoing, endlessly patient guy who always made me laugh, even when our experiments exploded.

He grinned. "The one and only. What are you doing sleeping in a fancy Parisian hotel lobby, Head? Did your travel plans go sideways?"

A genuine, unforced smile spread across my face. In the vast, lonely expanse of a foreign city, finding a familiar face felt like a miraculous anchor. "Connor! Oh my god, it's really you." I scrambled up, feeling a blush creep up my cheeks. "Yeah, you could say that. Long story."

"I've got time," he said, his gaze sweeping around the empty lobby, then back to my disheveled state. "Are you with... Damion?"

I shrugged, a bitter taste in my mouth. "He was here. He got a call. An 'emergency.' Had to go." I didn't bother to elaborate. Connor, ever observant, already seemed to piece it together.

"Let me guess," he said, a knowing look in his eyes. "His 'helpless' friend needed rescuing?"

I simply nodded, a mirthless chuckle escaping my lips.

"Figures." He shook his head. "So, where are you staying? And why are you stuck down here?"

"I don't have my passport," I explained. "Damion has it. So the hotel won't check me in."

Connor's expression hardened slightly. "He left you without your passport? In a foreign country?" His voice held a note of genuine anger. It was a stark contrast to Damion's convenient abandonment.

"It's... fine," I said, though it wasn't. But I didn't want to dwell on it. "Listen, Connor, could you do me a huge favor? Is there any way you could help me get a room for the night? I can pay you back, of course. Just... anywhere. I'm so tired."

He didn't hesitate. "Of course. My room is just down the hall. They're usually pretty good about giving me a spare if I need it for equipment. Let me just check with the night manager."

He strode towards the reception desk, speaking fluent French to the bewildered night manager. A few minutes later, he returned, a room key card in his hand.

"Alright, all set," he said, handing me the card. "Room 407. It's just a standard, nothing fancy, but it's empty, and it has a bed. You can crash there for the night. I'll be in 409. If you need anything at all, seriously, just knock. Or call. My number's already saved in your phone from college, right?"

I laughed, a genuine, heartfelt laugh that felt foreign on my lips. "You remembered my number?"

"Of course, Head," he said, a warm smile in his eyes. "Some things you just don't forget." He paused, a thoughtful look on his face. "Get some sleep, Charlotte. We can figure out the Damion debacle in the morning. And don't worry about the room. Consider it a favor from your old lab partner."

"Thank you, Connor," I said, the words feeling inadequate. "Really. Thank you."

"Anytime," he replied, his hand briefly touching my shoulder, a gesture of purely platonic, comforting support. "Sweet dreams."

I nodded, feeling a strange mix of relief and... something else. Hope? I walked towards the elevators, the key card a small, warm weight in my hand. For the first time in a long time, I felt a flicker of something other than indifference. And it wasn't for Damion.