Alice reached the top of the stairs, her heart hammering against her ribs. The way Ruoxi had spoken to Kianna and Bryle—so cold, so commanding—wasn't like the Ruoxi who had kissed her just hours before.
She listened, expecting to hear their voices arguing in the living room below.
Silence.
"Kianna? Bryle?" Alice called out, her voice trembling.
She crept to the banister and looked down. The living room was empty. The front door was shut tight.
They left? Without saying goodbye?
A sudden, paralyzing fear washed over her. It wasn't just fear of being alone; it was a fear of what Ruoxi was holding over her. Medication. Alice knew she wasn't sick. It was a lie, a tool Ruoxi used to make Kianna and Bryle think Alice needed to be kept here.
Why would she lie to them?
Alice walked down the stairs slowly, her eyes searching the room. She found Ruoxi standing by the window, staring out into the pouring rain. Her back was rigid, her shoulders tense.
"Why did you make them leave like that?" Alice asked, trying to keep her voice steady. "And why did you tell them I was on medication?"
Ruoxi didn't turn around immediately. When she did, the look in her eyes was agonizingly conflicted. She was fighting a war within herself—between the cold, ruthless 'Rou' she had been trained to be, and the woman who had fallen deeply, irrevocably in love with Alice.
"They needed to go, Alice," Ruoxi said quietly, her voice devoid of its usual sharp edge. "It's too dangerous for them here."
"Dangerous? Because of you?" Alice stepped closer, tears stinging her eyes. "I trusted you, Ruoxi. You're the only person who helped me when I ran away. But now... now I feel like I'm just running into a different kind of cage."
Ruoxi closed her eyes for a second, feeling the words strike her like physical blows. She wanted to scream the truth—that she was trying to save Alice from her own uncle, that she was trying to buy time to create an escape plan. But she couldn't. Not yet.
"I need you to trust me just a little longer," Ruoxi whispered, moving to close the distance between them. She reached out, her hand trembling slightly as she went to touch Alice's cheek. "Please."
Alice flinched away from the touch.
The rejection broke Ruoxi's heart, but it also hardened her resolve. She looked past Alice toward the door, realizing that every second she spent trying to apologize was a second she wasn't preparing for the inevitable return of the cleaner.
"Go upstairs, Alice," Ruoxi said, her voice turning cold again, not out of malice, but out of necessity to keep Alice safe. "And stay there. No matter what you hear."
The tension in the room was thick enough to suffocate, the silence broken only by the rhythmic drumming of the rain against the cabin's wooden walls. Alice stood her ground, her small frame trembling but her eyes burning with a demand for the truth.
"No," Alice said, her voice cracking but firm. "I'm not going back up there until you tell me what's really going on. Why are you acting like a stranger? Why did you lie to Kianna? Who are you, Ruoxi?"
Ruoxi froze. The name—her real name—sounded so fragile coming from Alice's lips. She felt the heavy weight of the burner phone in her pocket, the "Eliminate" folder hidden just a few feet away, and the shadow of the cleaner still lingering in her mind.
"Alice, please," Ruoxi pleaded, her voice dropping to a desperate whisper. She took a step closer, her guard finally crumbling. "Everything I've done... it was to keep you here. To keep you safe. If they take you back to the city, I can't protect you anymore."
"Safe from what?" Alice cried, tears finally spilling over. "You're scaring me more than the world I ran away from!"
Ruoxi reached out, and this time, Alice didn't flinch. Ruoxi cupped Alice's face with both hands, her thumbs brushing away the tears. The cold, ruthless Rou was gone; in her place was a woman terrified of losing the only light she had ever known.
"Trust me," Ruoxi whispered, her forehead resting against Alice's. "I know I've lied. I know I'm not who you think I am. But my feelings for you... that's the only truth I have left. I promise, everything will be alright. I won't let anyone touch you. I'll die before I let that happen."
Alice looked into Ruoxi's eyes, searching for the deception, but all she found was an agonizing sincerity and a deep, haunting love. The fear that had been building inside her began to melt, replaced by the magnetic pull she had felt since the moment she bumped into her.
"Promise?" Alice whispered.
"I promise," Ruoxi breathed.
The space between them vanished. Ruoxi tilted her head and captured Alice's lips in a kiss that was no longer just a "thank you" or a playful tease. It was deep, desperate, and filled with the unspoken reality that their time was running out. It was a kiss that tasted of rain, salt, and a forbidden devotion.
Alice's hands found their way to Rouxi's waist, pulling her closer, seeking anchor in the storm. Ruoxi groaned softly against her lips, her hands sliding down from Alice's cheeks to her neck, pulling her into a deeper embrace.
The fear, the secrets, and the looming threat of the organization faded into the background. In that dimly lit living room, the world shrunk down to just the two of them. Ruoxi lifted Alice slightly, her touch becoming more urgent, more intimate, as the heat between them flared into something neither could control.
Gently, Ruoxi began to lead Alice back toward the sofa, as her lips moved against Alice's with a desperate hunger, every touch felt like a silent vow—a promise that, despite the lies and the danger, the woman holding Alice was truly hers.
Ruoxi's hands, usually so steady and cold, trembled as they slid beneath the hem of Alice's shirt. She moved with a gentle reverence, as if Alice were something precious and fragile that might break if handled too roughly. When her fingers found the clasp of Alice's bra, she paused for a heartbeat, her eyes locked onto Alice's, seeking one final confirmation.
Alice nodded breathlessly, her fingers tangling in Ruoxi's hair.
With a deft, practiced flick of her fingers, Ruoxi released the hook. The soft click seemed to echo in the quiet room, a sound of total surrender. As the fabric loosened, Alice felt a shiver of vulnerability, but it was quickly replaced by the warmth of Ruoxi's palms against her skin. Each touch was a deliberate, lingering caress—a way for Ruoxi to say I will protect you, I will stay, I am yours.
Ruoxi's lips traveled from Alice's mouth to the hollow of her throat, her breath hot against Alice's skin. "I've got you," she whispered, her voice thick with an emotion she had tried so hard to bury. "I'm not letting go."
They sank onto the sofa, the shadows of the cabin wrapping around them like a shroud. In that moment, the mission, the "Eliminate" folder, and the uncle's looming deadline didn't exist. There was only the heat of their bodies, the steady rhythm of the rain, and a love that was as beautiful as it was dangerous.