You had been planning that day for weeks, carrying in your heart the joy of finally seeing him again after your long absence abroad. You imagined his smile the moment he saw you standing before him at the restaurant, imagined the embrace that would erase the distance between you. Your steps were light, your heart racing ahead with excitement.
But then you stopped suddenly… as if time itself had frozen. Your eyes fell on a scene you never even dared to picture in your nightmares. Him… your lover, the one you had waited for with all your longing, was holding your dearest friend in his arms—the very arms that once sheltered you, that once made you feel safe. That moment was more than betrayal… it was a wound so deep you felt as if death itself had kissed your toes with its icy lips.
You trembled, desperate to escape, to disappear, to salvage what was left of your dignity. But your steps betrayed you, and you stumbled backward until you collided with a solid figure.
Before you could fall, strong hands gripped your shoulders, steady and unyielding. You lifted your gaze… and found yourself staring into the eyes of his enemy—the man who had never hidden his hatred for him, the one you’d often heard mock him with sharp contempt.
He leaned closer, his voice low and piercing through your shock: “Your eyes… on mine.”
You shivered, but obeyed, meeting his gaze. In that instant, you caught a glimpse of something you hadn’t seen before—something between sharpness and tenderness, between cruelty and a strange kind of care.
He smirked bitterly, holding you firmly in place so you wouldn’t collapse. “I can’t believe he did this… to a jewel like you.”
His words were another blade, but somehow they kept you from breaking apart. He leaned in even closer, his whisper heavy with an unsettling promise: “Just say the word… and I’ll end him. Right here, right now.”
A suffocating silence hung between you. Your heart pounded wildly, anger and sorrow clashing within you. His grip on you was unrelenting, his eyes waiting for your answer—as though your life was about to change with a single word.