Two years after Alice moved in.
They weren't supposed to be out this late.
Ashen's parents thought they were studying in his room. Instead, they were lying on the grass in the park near his house, staring up at the stars.
It was one of those rare moments of complete peace with just the two of them and the quiet night.
"Do you ever think about the future?" Alice asked suddenly.
Ashen turned his head to look at her. "Sometimes. Why?"
"I was just wondering… what happens when we grow up? When things change?"
"What do you mean?"
Alice hesitated. "We'll go to different universities eventually. Get different jobs. Meet different people. What if…" She trailed off, not wanting to finish the thought.
"What if we drift apart?" Ashen finished for her.
"...Yes."
For a moment, he didn't respond. Then he sat up, his expression serious.
"That's not going to happen."
"You can't know that."
"Yes, I can." He held out his hand. "Give me your hand."
Alice sat up, confused, and placed her hand in his.
Ashen's grip was firm. "I'm going to make you a promise. And you're going to make me one back."
"What kind of promise?"
"The forever kind." His golden eyes locked onto hers. "No matter what happens—no matter where we go, what we do, who we meet—we don't abandon each other. Ever."
Alice froze for a second, "Ashen…"
"I mean it." His voice was absolute. "You're mine. I'm yours. That doesn't change. Not for distance, not for time, not for anything."
"...What if—what if one of us changes? What if one of us does something terrible?"
"Doesn't matter." Ashen's grip tightened. "Even if you become the worst person in the world, I'm not letting go. Even if I turn into someone you don't recognize, you're still mine. That's the promise."
It was insane.
Unhealthy, probably.
But Alice felt tears prick at her eyes anyway.
"Okay," she whispered. "I promise. No matter what happens, I won't abandon you."
"And I promise the same." Ashen pulled her closer, pressing his forehead against hers. "Forever, Alice. You and me."
"Forever," she echoed.
And in that moment, under the stars, they bound themselves to each other in a way that no amount of time or pain could ever truly break.
⛧⛧⛧
After they graduated high school, the promise they made that night became the foundation of everything they built together.
And build, they did.
They started small: freelance projects online, using Alice's inventions and Ashen's business instincts to make a name for themselves.
Alice was the brain. She designed the technology, wrote the code, and solved the impossible problems that their clients brought to them.
And while Ashen occasionally helped with that, he was mainly the strategist. He chose which projects to take, which clients to trust, how to price their work, and when to expand.
They worked seamlessly together, two halves of the same whole.
By the time they turned eighteen, they had enough savings and reputation to start a real company.
Alice wanted to call it something technical, something that reflected the work they did.
Ashen insisted on something simpler: "Sinclair Systems"
"Sinclair?" Alice had asked. "Why?"
"Because it's your name." Ashen smiled. "And because you're the one who's going to make this company what it is. I'm just here to point you in the right direction."
Alice had argued—said it should be both their names, that it wasn't fair to give her all the credit.
But Ashen was stubborn.
"You did all the heavy lifting, Alice. I'm just helping with reading people and making decisions. This is your thing. I'm just helping you build it."
So Sinclair Systems was born.
And over the next two years, it grew.
Alice's inventions attracted attention. compact, efficient, brilliant. They were everything that was ever needed and more. Clients came from everywhere, willing to pay premium prices for her work.
Ashen handled negotiations, contracts, and expansions. He made sure Alice was protected, that no one took advantage of her, that she could focus on what she did best.
And through it all, they remained inseparable.
Every success, they shared. Every setback, they faced together.
The codependency that had formed years ago only deepened.
Alice needed Ashen's guidance, his confidence, his unwavering belief in her.
Ashen needed Alice's admiration, her dependence, her presence as proof that he mattered.
They were no longer just Alice and Ashen.
They were a unit.
⛧⛧⛧
Age 20.
Alice sat on the couch, surrounded by the remnants of her birthday celebration.
Ashen's parents had visited earlier, bringing cake and embarrassing childhood stories. A few friends from the company had stopped by with gifts.
Now it was just the two of them.
Ashen sat beside her, holding a folder.
"One more gift," he said.
Alice raised an eyebrow. "You already got me a laptop. You didn't have to—"
"This one's different." He handed her the folder. "Open it."
Confused, Alice opened the folder and pulled out the documents inside.
Then she froze.
"Ashen… what is this?"
"Ownership transfer papers." His smirked. "Sinclair Systems is officially yours. One hundred percent. I've already signed everything. You just need to add your signature."
"What? No. No, Ashen, this is—this is ours. We built this together."
"And now it's yours." He leaned back, watching her carefully. "You don't need me to own it, Alice. You never did. I was just there to help you get started. But now, you're strong enough to stand on your own."
"I don't want to stand on my own!" Alice's voice rose, panic creeping in. "This is ours. You can't just—"
"Alice." Ashen reached out and took her hands. "Listen to me. I'm not leaving. I'm not going anywhere. I'll still work with you, still help you, still be right here beside you. But the company needs to be yours."
"Why?"
"Because you need to know that you can survive without me if you have to." His expression was gentle but firm. "Because I need to know that if something happens to me, you'll be okay. You'll have something that's yours, something that no one can take away."
Alice stared at him, tears forming. "You promised you'd never leave."
"And I won't. But life is unpredictable." Ashen squeezed her hands. "This is my way of making sure you're protected. That you have a foundation to stand on, no matter what."
"I don't want a foundation. I want you."
"You have me." He pulled her into a hug. "You'll always have me. But you need to have yourself too. And this is how I'm making sure of that."
Alice buried her face in his shoulder, crying silently.
She understood what he was doing. She understood why.
But it didn't make it hurt any less.
After a long moment, she pulled back and picked up the pen.
"If I sign this," she said quietly, "it doesn't mean I don't need you anymore. It doesn't mean we're not partners."
"I know."
"And you're not allowed to use this as an excuse to distance yourself from me."
"I won't."
"Promise?"
Ashen smiled. "I already promised, remember? Forever."
Alice took a shaky breath and signed the papers.
And even as she did, she knew that this gift… this gesture of trust and protection, only made her love him more.
And this love only deepened her dependence on him.
…Only made it more impossible to ever imagine a life without him.
☽⟲✧⸸✧⟲☾
Present Day.
The memories faded, and Alice found herself back in her study, staring at the dark monitors.
She didn't bother recalling what happened from that point on, since everything had suddenly gone downhill.
Ashen had somehow lost his spark, slowly devolving from that brilliant man into a reckless and careless shell of himself.
Eventually turning deadbeat and almost corpse-like.
She didn't fully know what had brought about the changes over the years, nor did she know how to keep him from spiraling further after she'd tried everything.
This so-called "breakup" was her last-ditch effort in the hope of moving something in him.
'It looks like it worked, somehow… But at what cost…' she thought bitterly.
But then, she thought about her reason for being here.
While she didn't understand the real cause of Ashen's changes, she had some concrete conjectures.
Sometimes, he would speak in his dreams about cursed eyes…
Other times, he'd devolve into maddened hysteria about "seeing the future" and "knowing what would happen."
Eventually, these bouts of madness subsided, but that was only because sloth and apathy had taken hold of him, silencing everything—including the hysteria.
But Alice knew that something had taken hold of him. Something having to do with his eyes, and illusions…
She'd searched everywhere for a cure on Esperra but only came up with blanks.
So when someone came up to her with tangible proof of the existence of the supernatural, claiming that she'd get a chance to find what she was looking for here, she couldn't help but take it, no matter how crazy it sounded.
As long as it was for him, she'd do it. And if she still failed despite everything, then she'd just stay with that version of him.
That's how their bond worked—bound not only by love, but also by codependency and obsession.
No matter what happens, I will never abandon you.
Even if he'd strayed.
Even if he'd hurt her.
Even if loving him was the stupidest thing she'd ever done.
She was still his.
And he was still hers.
Forever.
Alice opened her eyes and stared at the blank screens.
"Damn you, Ashen Hart," she murmured. "And damn me for loving you anyway."