The music inside the club had faded into a distant echo.
All Maya could hear was her own heartbeat.
"A deal?" she repeated softly, her eyes fixed on Adrian.
"What kind of deal forces someone to give up their life?"
Adrian swallowed hard.
Shiya crossed her arms, watching them like a spectator at the edge of a cliff.
"You want the truth?" she said coolly. "Or just the version that won't hurt you?"
"Stop," Adrian snapped.
"This is my truth to tell."
He turned to Maya, his voice low, almost shaking.
"Five years ago… my family was on the verge of collapse. Legal trouble. Financial ruin. Someone very close to me would've gone to prison."
He paused, pain flashing across his face.
"Shiya's family had the power to stop it."
Maya's chest tightened.
"And the price?"
Adrian exhaled slowly.
"Me."
Silence shattered inside her."I had to stay with her. Get engaged. Be the perfect future husband. No questions. No escape."
Shiya smirked faintly. "It wasn't blackmail. It was… protection."
Maya looked at her sharply.
"You call stealing someone's freedom protection?"
Shiya's smile slipped—for just a second.
---
Maya's Breaking Point
"So everything," Maya whispered, turning back to Adrian,
"your distance… your fear… even meeting me—"
"Meeting you was the first real thing in my life," Adrian said immediately.
"And that terrified me."
His voice cracked.
"Because loving you meant risking everything. And losing you before I even had you."
Maya stepped back.
Tears burned her eyes, but she refused to let them fall.
"I don't want to be your rebellion," she said.
"I don't want to be the reason you lose your family… your safety… your past."
"You're not," Adrian said desperately.
"You're the reason I finally want a future."That word—future—hit her harder than the truth.
---
Shiya's Warning
Shiya placed her glass down slowly.
"You think this ends here?" she asked calmly.
"My family doesn't lose. And they definitely don't forgive."
She looked directly at Maya.
"If you stay with him… you will get hurt."
Maya didn't look away.
"I already am," she replied.
"But at least now, I know why."
For the first time, Shiya looked… threatened.
---
Parallel MomentsOutside the club—
Alex sat on the curb, Emila beside him, wrapped in his jacket.
"I didn't mean what I said," she murmured.
"I just… wanted to feel important."
Alex sighed, pulling her closer.
"You are important. I just forget to say it."
Across the parking lot, Max helped Lila into the car.
"Next time," Max said quietly,
"don't test my silence. I'm not good at losing you."
Lila smiled softly.
"Then don't go quiet when I need you."
He kissed her forehead—gentler this time.
---
The Choice
Back inside, Adrian looked at Maya one last time.
"I won't force you to stay," he said.
"But I won't lie anymore either."
Maya stared at him, heart torn between fear and love.
"I need time," she said finally.
"To decide if I'm strong enough for this worldAdrian nodded, pain clear in his eyes.
"I'll wait."
She turned to leave, then paused.
"But Adrian," she added softly,
"don't make choices for me anymore. Let me choose too."
As she walked away, Shiya leaned closer to Adrian.
"You chose love," she whispered.
"Let's see what it costs you."
Adrian watched Maya disappear into the night—
knowing the real battle had just begun.