Majek stood outside the old café, the faint glow from the streetlights casting long shadows on the cracked pavement. The place used to be a haven—somewhere he could unwind after hours of studying, somewhere where the noise of the world couldn't touch him. Now, it felt like a ghost of its former self. The warm hum of chatter and laughter had long been replaced by an eerie quiet, like the stillness before a storm.
He hadn't expected to feel so nervous. But here, in the very spot where everything had started to change, the air felt thick with unspoken things—secrets, regrets, and a future that seemed more and more impossible to navigate.
The door to the café creaked open, and Lami emerged, his tall frame silhouetted against the dim light inside. He wasn't alone.
Agnes.
Majek's breath caught in his throat.
She was standing next to him, her gaze fixed on the ground, her expression unreadable. Her hair, usually perfectly styled, fell loosely around her shoulders, as though even she couldn't bring herself to care about appearances tonight. Her presence hit Majek like a punch to the gut. She was so close—so close, and yet there was still a chasm between them.
"Lami," Majek said, his voice tight. "What is this?"
Lami's lips curled into a smile, though it didn't reach his eyes. "You know why you're here, Majek. I told you we needed to talk."
Agnes's head jerked up at the mention of his name, her eyes meeting his for the first time in weeks. There was recognition in her gaze, but it was faint—like a fading echo of something that once burned bright. Her lips parted, as if she were about to speak, but no words came.
Majek took a step forward, his heart pounding in his chest. "Agnes, are you okay?"
Her expression shifted, a fleeting flicker of vulnerability before the walls came back up. She gave a short nod, but it didn't convince him. He could see the pain in her eyes—the confusion, the anger—and the undeniable distance that had grown between them.
"Why am I here, Lami?" Majek asked again, forcing his focus back to the man who had orchestrated this meeting. "What do you want from me?"
Lami stepped closer, his gaze cold and calculating. "You're not the only one who has been holding onto things, Majek. I've been watching you. Watching you both. And I think it's time we cleared the air."
He gestured to Agnes, whose posture stiffened at the motion. "She's still your obsession, isn't she? Despite everything that's happened. You think you can just walk away from her like nothing matters? Like the pact between our families means nothing?"
Majek's fists clenched at his sides. "This isn't about the pact, Lami. It's about Agnes. About her."
Lami's expression darkened, his eyes narrowing dangerously. "You've always been a coward, Majek. Hiding behind your excuses. Hiding behind her. But now, we're past that. You want to be free? You want to walk away from this? Fine. But you'll be leaving more than just a company behind."
Agnes flinched at his words, and Majek felt something crack inside him. Lami's words were venom, poisoning the air between them.
"What are you talking about?" Majek demanded, his voice rising. "You can't manipulate me anymore. Not with your threats. Not with anything."
Lami stepped closer to Majek, his face mere inches from his. "You think you're the only one with a stake in this, Majek? You think you're the only one who's been torn apart by this game? You're not. And you'll learn that soon enough."
Agnes finally spoke, her voice a whisper, but it carried through the tension like a shockwave. "Enough, Lami."
Her words stunned everyone into silence. She looked directly at Majek now, her gaze soft but filled with a complexity he could hardly comprehend. Her expression was torn—she was caught between something dark and something brighter, something she couldn't remember fully, but something she couldn't deny.
"Majek," she said, her voice faltering just slightly, "I don't remember everything. I don't remember us... but I do remember you." Her eyes searched his, almost pleading. "I remember that I cared for you. That I wanted to care for you."
A jolt of hope shot through Majek's chest. He took a slow step forward, as if testing the waters, afraid that one wrong move would send her running. But she didn't pull away.
Lami's low, mocking laugh shattered the fragile moment between them. "Oh, how sweet. But you've forgotten the rest, haven't you? You've forgotten what's really at stake."
Agnes turned to him then, and for the first time, her eyes were fierce. "No. I haven't forgotten. I'm tired of you pretending to control everything. I'm tired of being treated like a pawn in this game."
Lami's jaw tightened, and for a split second, the facade of control slipped. But only for a moment. He straightened and wiped the anger from his face with a smile that was more dangerous than anything Majek had seen from him before.
"Fine," he said, his tone suddenly icy. "If you think you're free to make choices, then prove it."
He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small envelope, handing it to Agnes. "This," he said, "is your future, Agnes. Your real future. Not this fantasy where you think you can be free. You want to remember who you are? You want to remember your place in all of this? Open it."
Agnes hesitated, the envelope feeling like a weight in her hands. Majek stepped forward, his heart hammering in his chest. "Don't listen to him."
She glanced at him briefly before taking the envelope, her fingers trembling as she tore it open. Her eyes scanned the paper inside, and the color drained from her face.
"What is it?" Majek asked, his voice trembling.
Agnes didn't answer immediately. She read the document again, her face pale as the truth began to sink in.
It was a formal contract. A legal agreement. A promise.
A promise to Lami.
Her stomach churned as she realized what it meant. A binding agreement between her father and Lami's family—an official declaration of their impending union.
"I knew it," Lami sneered, his gaze triumphant. "You don't have a choice. You never did."
Majek felt his heart drop into his stomach. Everything he had hoped for seemed to slip further away, like sand through his fingers. But in that moment, something shifted in Agnes's expression. The fear, the confusion—everything that had held her back from taking control—was gone.
She looked at Lami, her face hardening.
"You're wrong," she said, her voice firm. "I do have a choice."
And in that choice, Majek could see it—the first crack in the chains that had held her captive for so long. It was small, but it was enough.