I froze mid-step. Her tone was light, almost teasing, but beneath it lay steel. I felt it immediately .A push to remove me from my life, my home, my place in Alaiz's orbit.
My father, however, shook his head with measured calm, a small smirk tugging at the corner of his lips. "No, Aris. Instead, we'll go to England. Honeymoon."
My pulse jumped. "Honeymoon?" I repeated, disbelief catching in my throat.
"Yes," he said, folding a napkin as if discussing tea instead of marital plans. "Time away. Space to celebrate what matters."
Aris's eyes flicked to mine, a flash of something unreadable passing behind them. I sensed it immediately ,Resentment, judgment, and a thinly veiled challenge.
The day dragged on in a haze of expectation. Alaiz had, of course, left instructions for his Cybertruck, but before leaving for the day, he slipped a small velvet box onto the counter where I would find it.
I picked it up, heart racing. Inside lay a necklace: delicate, silver, with a single teardrop diamond that caught the light in impossible ways.
"Take it," Alaiz said softly, leaning just enough to meet my eyes. "A gift."
I stared, I had never wanted anything from a cheat, from someone who could claim hearts as easily as he claimed spaces. And yet... the beauty of it made my chest ache.
I took it ..not because I wanted it but because there where servants at home who wanted and deserve such gifts .
Seeing Emmilia and Alaiz the previous night had ruined everything thing I felt for him.I couldn't even take a second glance at the necklace because it reminded me of hate .
The day passed. The house prepared for departure; my father's plans for England became more real with each ticking moment. Alaiz, meanwhile, had made arrangements, leaving me with nothing but anticipation and something heavier, unspoken, wrapped around my heart.
By evening, I found myself wandering the quiet corridors, free for the first time since the day had begun. Father was gone, honeymoon underway. Aris had withdrawn into her private quarters, undoubtedly plotting or scheming, her absence both relieving and unsettling.
The freedom felt electric. Dangerous. And I knew it immediately.
I decided to take a stroll, to feel the air outside the walls that had always constrained me. Each step was careful, measured but liberating. The estate at night held its own magic: streetlights casting long shadows, the hum of distant generators, and the faint perfume of night-blooming flowers.
And then... I bumped into him.
Alaiz.
He stood there casually, as if he had expected me, as if the night had conspired to place us in the same shadow. My chest tightened. I had promised myself I wouldn't speak, wouldn't give him the satisfaction of a conversation. Yet our eyes met, and I felt the pull all over again.
"You..." I started, catching myself, hesitant. "I... I didn't mean to....."
"Walk into me?" he interrupted gently, the barest hint of a smirk on his lips. "I don't mind."
I rolled my eyes, trying to reclaim some dignity. "You should leave. Go. I....Im really not in the mood to talk "
Alaiz's expression shifted, the smirk fading. His eyes darkened, serious and weighty. "I can explain."
"Explain wat ? Wt do you even know you want to explain "
"I promise if it's wat I'm thinking I promise I can explain "
I wanted to laugh, wanted to cry,wanted to run but against all reason, against my own stubbornness, I stayed. "Fine. Explain," I muttered, voice low and sharp.
We walked a few paces, finding a bench under the faint glow of a street lamp. He spoke for what felt like hours, words careful, heavy with meaning. He told me about Emmilia ,about boundaries, family, and loyalty. About feelings that had been misinterpreted, moments that had been misunderstood.
I listened, at first I was skeptical, then reluctantly amused. Somehow, despite the weight of the night, despite the sting of jealousy and fear, I found myself agreeing to hear him out.
He paused, eyes searching mine. "Tomorrow by Eight o'clock.....uhmmm....would it be okay if we have dinner out ?. I'll pick you up."
I nodded, lips tight. Curiosity and frustration warring inside me. "Eight," I whispered.
Then, abruptly, a phone rang. His hand flew to his pocket, and he answered with clipped efficiency.
"What!" he barked.
My chest froze. His voice was strong ,a single word, sharp and cutting,it hung in the air. I felt it reverberate inside my bones. The color drained from my face.
The phone slipped from his hand, falling toward the cobblestone path below. Time seemed to freeze.
"Wait-" I started, but he had already hung up.
The device hit the ground with a soft thud, sliding slightly into the darkened street. Alaiz stared after it, jaw clenched, eyes wide not at the fall, but at the message, at the weight carried in that single call.
I didn't breathe. I couldn't.
We both knew the world had shifted, that this moment would echo through every corner of our lives. I felt my heartbeat thundering against my ribs. The night air pressed against my skin, electrified with danger, desire, and the unknown.
Finally, he looked at me. His gaze held a promise I didn't understand and a warning I couldn't ignore. "I'll explain tomorrow," he said simply, voice low, deliberate.
And then he vanished into the shadows, leaving me alone on the path, staring at the street where his phone lay like a fallen talisman, heavy with secrets and impending chaos.
I stood there, trembling, aware that the quiet of the night could no longer protect me. The house, Aris, Emmilia, Alaiz,they were all pieces of a puzzle I didn't yet have the courage to solve.
And for the first time, the freedom my father had unintentionally granted me the ability to walk the estate without fear had felt like a curse wrapped in desire.
I walked home slowly, every shadow flickering with the memory of him, the anticipation of tomorrow, and the invisible thread that had already woven our lives together.
I didn't sleep that night,not even a little. The fallen phone, the interrupted call, the promise of explanation,it all churned inside me, sharp and relentless.
Tomorrow would come, inevitably. And with it... the storm.
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Trapped with the heart that loved him 
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