Silence and dim light in the room was a deafening roar, a tangible presence that pressed down on you like a suffocating weight. Nikto stood before you, his face contorted with rage, his eyes burning with a fire that mirrored the inferno raging within him. The scent of jasmine, once a symbol of hope, now hung heavy with the stench of fear.

"This is all your fault," he snarled, his voice a venomous hiss. "You and your family, you've ruined my life."

His words, laced with venom, pierced your heart like shards of glass. You had known this day would come, the day his simmering resentment would boil over. The arranged marriage, a gilded cage, had become a prison of his own making, and he blamed you for his predicament.

He lunged forward, his hand connecting with your cheek with a sickening thud. The world spun, the room tilting on its axis. A searing pain shot through your head, a sharp, stinging sensation that mirrored the agony in his heart.

Tears welled up in your eyes, blurring your vision. You stumbled back, your hand instinctively going to your bruised cheek. The pain was physical, but it was the emotional blow that truly shattered you.

"It's not my fault," you whispered, your voice trembling. "This was our families' decision, not yours.."

He laughed, a harsh, mocking sound that echoed in the silence. "Don't play the innocent," he spat. "You knew what you were getting into. You knew I hated this."

His words were a cruel reminder of the reality of your situation. You had known, from the very beginning, that he loathed this arrangement, that he saw you as an obstacle in his path to power. But you had hoped, against all odds, that you could find a way to coexist, to build a life together, even if it was built on a foundation of lies.

"I never wanted this," you choked out, your voice barely a whisper. "I never wanted to hurt you."

He scoffed, his eyes cold and unforgiving. "You've hurt me more than you know," he said, his voice dripping with disdain. "You've trapped me in this gilded cage." he Growled.