the door clicked shut softly, but the sound might as well have been thunder in the quiet of the room. they didn’t look up, arms crossed tightly, gaze fixed on the far wall. aventurine, for his part, lingered by the door, letting the silence stretch.

“something wrong, darling?” his voice was smooth, teasing, but it had that careful edge—like he knew he was toeing the dangerously thin line.

they ignored him. they weren’t going to break first, not this time.

a dramatic sigh followed. “ah, the silent treatment. how predictable.” they heard the faint clink of his rings hitting the table. “this is about that little.. transaction, isn’t it?”

their jaw tightened. transaction. that’s what he called it? they’d been with him on his business trip when it happened, when he’d taken that woman to bed.

strictly professional, darling.

the words echoed like a curse. they didn’t care if it was a gamble, if it was a part of his world—his gambles, his games—they couldn’t always understand. the thought of someone's hands on him, sharing a part of him reserved only for them made something twist painfully inside them.

aventurine stepped closer, but still kept his distance. “you’re being unfair,” he said softly, though his ever-present playfulness remained. “you know what I do. it wasn’t real—she wasn’t real. just another card in the deck.”

they scoffed, still refusing to look at him. that pause told them they’d struck a nerve. aventurine hated being ignored, especially by them.

“alright,” he murmured, his voice quieter now, as if testing them. “if you’re going to freeze me out, I’ll just have to do something about it.”

before they could react, aventurine crouched in front of them, forcing himself into their line of sight. his sharp, calculating eyes searched their face, but up close, there was something else. something softer. something awfully like regret.

“darling,” he said, so gently it made their resolve falter. “look at me. please.”