Day Six begins without a countdown.
No red dot.
No viewer count climbing like a heartbeat monitor.
Just quiet.
It's unsettling how loud quiet can be after five days of being watched.
9:06 a.m. – Morning Without Cameras
Sunlight slips through the curtains like it's unsure whether it's welcome.
I'm sitting at the dining table with untouched tea when Darian walks in. No phone. No tablet. Just him. Tired. Real.
"We're not going live today," he says.
I nod. "Good."
He sits opposite me. For a moment, neither of us speaks. There's no script to lean on now. No comments to distract us from the truth.
"I broke the rule yesterday," he says finally.
"You protected me," I reply.
His jaw tightens. "I chose you over optics. I should've done that earlier."
I wrap my hands around the mug. "Why didn't you?"
He doesn't dodge it. Not today.
"Because I thought control was safety," he says. "For the company. For myself. For you." He exhales. "I was wrong."
11:30 a.m. – The Whole Truth
We move to the living room. The couch feels different without an audience. Smaller. More honest.
"Riven didn't just betray me," Darian continues. "He planned it. The photo. The timing. Sending it to you the night before the engagement—he knew you'd react. He counted on it."
I swallow. "And Alina?"
"Helped him," he says. "She signed approvals she knew would lead back to him. Then made sure I couldn't expose it without burning everything."
"You still could've told me," I say quietly.
"I was afraid," he admits. "Afraid you'd see me as weak. Afraid you'd leave."
I look at him, really look at him—the man who stood in front of millions without blinking, now struggling to meet my eyes.
"I already left," I say softly. "What hurt wasn't the truth. It was being excluded from it."
He nods. "I'm sorry."
Not dramatic. Not defensive. Just… sorry.
2:00 p.m. – Choosing Sides
My phone buzzes. A message from an unknown number. I don't open it.
"Riven?" Darian asks.
"Probably," I say. "He wants me to choose."
Darian's voice is steady. "I won't ask you to choose me."
That surprises me.
"I'll ask you to choose yourself," he continues. "Whatever that means—even if it's not with me."
The words land heavy and gentle all at once.
I stand, pace once, then stop in front of him. "I'm choosing the truth," I say. "All of it. Publicly. On my terms."
A beat. "With or without the livestream?"
"With," I decide. "But not like before."
7:40 p.m. – One Camera, One Truth
We set up a single phone on the coffee table.
No lighting.
No angles.
No countdown.
🔴 LIVE (ANNOUNCED)
Viewers: 2.1 MILLION
I sit beside Darian. Close enough to feel the warmth, far enough to choose it.
"I'm Lyra," I begin. "Not a headline. Not a ship. Not a scandal."
The chat slows.
"I posted a photo once because I thought silence was worse than fallout," I continue. "I was wrong about some things. Right about others. And I paid for all of it."
Darian speaks next. "I lied by omission. I used control where I should've used trust."
No interruptions. No spin.
"We're not asking you to believe in us," I say. "We're asking you to stop deciding who we are for us."
A pause.
"If you stay," Darian adds, "stay because you want to. Not because it's entertaining."
We end it together.
🔴 LIVE ENDED
Midnight – After the Truth
The apartment feels lighter. Like it exhaled with us.
I lean back on the couch. "That was terrifying."
"And freeing," he says.
I nod. "I don't know what happens next."
He turns to me. "We find out. Without pretending."
For the first time, I believe him.