The office lights buzzed faintly as evening settled over Khan Global Enterprises, casting long shadows across the silent hallways. The last of the staff had filtered out hours ago, their voices fading behind the closing elevator doors.
But two souls remained, caught in a storm they couldn't name. A storm too personal for words. Too quiet to be seen, and too loud to ignore.
Andaleeb stood i the garden near the campany, arms wrapped around herself. The night sky outside was velvet black, stars sprinkled across it like secrets. Her reflection shimmered faintly against the water , fragile and distant, like she didn't belong here.
Her heartbeat was erratic, thudding against her chest like a trapped bird. She didn't know why she couldn't walk away. Why the ache inside her refused to leave. Why everything—this place, this man, this moment—felt like the edge of something irreversible.
Then came the footsteps.
Slow. Heavy. Certain.
Zayan.
She didn't move.
Didn't turn.
Didn't breathe.
After talk
He simply came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her from behind. Tight. Desperate. Like he'd break apart if she disappeared.
She stiffened for a second, surprised.
And then—
He broke.
"Please…" His voice cracked against her neck, trembling. "Don't leave me."
She turned slowly, eyes wide.
His eyes—usually sharp and unreadable—were glistening with unshed tears.
I don,t know why my loved ones leave me even my parents?
His mask was gone.
"I love you so much, Andaleeb," he whispered, voice barely holding itself together. "I don't know how or when it started, but I can't breathe when you're not around. I can't live without you."
Her breath caught.
"I know I'm cold. Difficult. I've pushed people away my whole life. But I don't want to lose you."
His words spilled out in fragments, rough and honest. Every sentence stripped of pride.
Tears streamed freely down his cheeks now. He didn't even try to hide them.
Andaleeb was stunned.
Zayan Khan—untouchable CEO, ruthless businessman, a man who never blinked even in the face of scandal—was crying.
For her.
Her chest tightened.
Then, gently, she reached up and pulled him into a hug. He folded into her, arms tightening, forehead pressed against her shoulder as if he could melt into her and be safe for once.
"I won't leave you," she whispered into his hair. "Stop crying. I'm not going anywhere."
His arms shook.
"You're not the problem, Zayan," she continued softly. "You never were. They were just too blind to see your worth. You were always worthy. They're the unlucky ones."
He let out a strangled breath and held her tighter.
Andaleeb didn't know how long they stayed like that—two broken pieces locked together in the middle of a glass palace built on secrets and storms.
But in that moment, it was enough.
Midnight Thoughts
Later that night, Andaleeb sat by the window of her apartment, her chin resting on her knees. The city lights blinked below like scattered constellations, distant and indifferent. The wind whispered against the glass.
Inside, Eman was fast asleep in the next room, her presence calm and steady like a quiet moon.
Andaleeb's fingers trailed the glowing pendant on her chest—the one Zayan had given her. It still pulsed gently with warmth. Like it remembered the moment he confessed, even if her heart tried to forget.
His words echoed like thunder in her ears:
"I love you so much… I can't live without you."
A tear slipped down her cheek.
She had always known this would happen. That getting close meant tearing away. That love was never safe for someone like her.
But she hadn't expected it to hurt this much.
A soft chime echoed through the room.
She froze.
The mirror shimmered—and then it appeared.
The alien satellite projection blinked to life above her desk, casting a cool blue glow across her face. The familiar voice spoke—mechanical, unfeeling:
"Recall window initiated. Homeland transport arriving within 24 hours."
Two blinking options appeared beneath it:
[ Return Home ]
[ Emergency Disappearance Protocol ]
Her fingers trembled as she hovered over the display.
She could go back. She could return to safety, to certainty, to the homeland that had trained her.
Or she could disappear.
Vanishing would mean staying on Earth in hiding. Without contact. Without safety. Constantly at risk. The longer she stayed, the more she risked permanent shutdown or Zayan's memory being force-erased.
But she couldn't leave him.
Not now.
Not after the way he broke in her arms.
Her breath hitched.
"If I go home," she whispered, "they'll take me forever. I'll lose him."
Her gaze dropped to the pendant.
"If I disappear… at least I'll be with him. Even if it breaks me."
She closed her eyes.
"I will chose Zayan"
Then pressed the second option.
Emergency Disappearance Protocol: Activated. Countdown Begins.
Estimated safe period remaining: 94 Earth days.
A quiet sob escaped her lips. Not from regret—but from knowing this was the beginning of the end.
"I'll stay," she whispered. "Even if it costs me everything. I'll be his, for whatever time I have left i spend with him."
Aleena's Trap
Far across the city, Aleena Hashmi paced the marble floors of her private office, her reflection flickering in the dark window behind her.
Irritation simmered beneath her polished appearance.
Earlier that day, she had given her assistant one clear instruction.
"Start the rumor," she had whispered. "Say the intern was seen near the prototype room. Make it sound like she had access to sensitive files."
The plan had already begun to spiral through the office.
Now, she leaned against her desk, a bitter smile on her lips.
"Let Zayan protect her again. Let's see what he chooses—company or chaos."
But as she reached for her wine glass, her phone buzzed.
An anonymous message appeared:
You're not as hidden as you think. They're watching you too.
Aleena's hand stilled.
Her smile faded.
And for the first time, fear trickled into her perfectly curated world.
A Storm Brews
The next morning exploded like a fire alarm.
Emails pinged.
Phone calls flew between departments.
The prototype plans for Khan Global's biggest project—Project Helix—were missing.
By noon, every hallway was crackling with tension. Security teams scanned digital records. Tech leads ran audits. And somehow, yet again, the whispers circled back to one person.
Andaleeb Shah.
Zayan stormed into the boardroom, doors slamming open behind him. The room was filled with tension and sharp looks. Everyone turned.
"She had nothing to do with this," he said, voice like steel.
One of the older directors folded his arms. "There's footage. She was near the lab hallway last night."
"So was I," Zayan replied coldly. "Are you accusing me too?"
Silence.
Aleena leaned forward, calm and venomous. "No one's accusing you, Zayan. But if she's been granted access without clearance, it raises concerns. She's emotionally linked to you. Maybe that's clouding your judgment."
Zayan's jaw twitched.
"She's not the risk," he said, stepping closer. "You are. You've been sowing lies, manipulating people, and planting suspicions. This is personal for you."
Aleena's smile faded.
"You're letting your emotions compromise your role," she said tightly.
"I'm protecting someone loyal," Zayan replied. "And until you have proof, this meeting is over."
Then he turned and walked out.
After the Fire
He found her standing alone near the elevator lobby, eyes red but dry, arms wrapped around herself like she could keep the world out that way.
"You defended me," she said quietly, almost surprised.
"Of course I did."
She looked at him, searching his face.
"Why?"
Zayan stepped closer, stopping just inches away.
"Because I believe in you," he said softly. "Because I've never met anyone who sees me the way you do. Because I don't care if the world turns against you—I won't."
Her fingers curled around the pendant at her neck. It glowed faintly under her touch.
She didn't speak.
Didn't confess.
But her heart did.
I'm staying.
I choose you.
Even if he never knew the price she had just paid.
End of Chapter 29