As i opened the car door and was about to step out, a voice suddenly called from the side me.

‎"Mr. Blackwood."

‎I turned.

‎Aiden was walking toward me, his gaze fixed steadily on mine.

‎"Can we talk?"

‎I studied him for a moment and leaned back in my seat.

‎"What about?"

‎"It’s about Alicia."

‎Of course it was.

‎The memory of him telling Alicia not to trust me flashed through my mind.

‎I opened the passenger door slightly.

‎"Get in."

‎Aiden hesitated briefly before getting into the car.

‎The moment the door shut, silence filled the space between us.

‎"Go ahead," I said calmly.

‎Aiden looked directly at me.

‎"Mr. Blackwood, I’m here to ask you to leave Alicia alone."

‎I raised a brow slowly.

‎His expression remained serious.

‎"I know no one probably speaks to you like this," he continued, "but someone has to."

‎"And?"

‎"You’re someone who can get anything you want easily. Power, money, status." His jaw tightened slightly. "But Alicia shouldn’t be dragged into your mess. She shouldn’t be the one paying for your mistakes."

‎My gaze darkened slightly.

‎"And what exactly does this have to do with you?"

‎"I’m Alicia’s friend,I have the right to look out for her."he said clearly irritated

‎"Friend? A friend with ulterior motives?" I shot back, my words hitting their mark.

‎Aiden didn’t avoid my eyes.

‎"I care about her."

‎The atmosphere inside the car turned colder instantly.

‎He continued before I could speak again.

‎"Even if I didn’t have feelings for her, I’d still say the same thing. She doesn’t deserve what’s happening to her right now."

‎Feelings.

‎So he admitted it openly.

‎Before all this, Aiden had always been respectful toward me. Calm. Measured.

‎I had never seen him like this before.

‎"So this is about jealousy?" I asked quietly.

‎Aiden let out a humorless laugh.

‎"If this was about jealousy, I would’ve been happy watching your relationship fall apart."

‎His eyes sharpened.

‎"But I’m angry because she’s the one suffering."

‎He reached into his pocket and unlocked his phone.

‎"Do you know why I got into a fight?"

‎Before I could answer, he pressed play.

‎Voices immediately filled the car.

‎"...looks pretty cheap."

‎"You noticed too?"

‎"That body of hers... the waist, the backside,those legs....no wonder men can’t stay away."

‎Laughter followed.

‎Then another voice:

‎"If I had one night with her,I would use the best of it..."

‎A sharp crashing sound interrupted it.

‎The recording became chaotic.

‎Shouting.

‎Cursing.

‎Then someone yelled:

‎"Aiden, stop! You’re a public figure!"

‎The noise settled briefly before another disgusting voice sneered:

‎"Alicia seem to be pretty close to Alicia. You’re probably one of her clients too, right?"

‎"Shameless woman."

‎Silence.

‎Aiden stopped the recording.

‎My fingers had unknowingly clenched tightly against my knee.

‎The veins on the back of my hand stood out sharply.

‎A cold heaviness settled in my chest.

‎Suddenly, Freddy’s message from earlier resurfaced in my mind.

‎Words could ruin a person far more thoroughly than physical injuries ever could.

‎Especially for a woman.

‎Because no matter how she defended herself, there would always be people waiting to drag her back into the mud.

‎Aiden took a slow breath, trying to steady himself.

‎"This is only what I heard personally," he said quietly. "Who knows how many people are talking about her like this behind closed doors?"

‎His voice hardened again.

‎"You’re a man, Mr. Blackwood. Don’t tell me you don’t understand what those people are really thinking."

‎I remained silent.

‎Aiden looked at me coldly.

‎"She shouldn’t have to go through this."

‎His next words landed heavily.

‎"And it’s all because of you."

‎The car fell quiet again.

‎Then he added:

‎"If you still have any conscience left, stay away from Alicia and go back to the woman you actually care about."

‎Lilian.

‎Even now, everyone still believed Lilian was the woman I loved.

‎A bitter laugh almost escaped me.

‎After a long silence, I finally spoke.

‎"What is it you really want, Aiden?"

‎His brows furrowed immediately.

‎"What?"

‎I looked at him steadily.

‎"Do you truly care about Alicia..."

‎"...or are you using her to get closer to our family?"

‎The air froze instantly.

‎"Aiden," I continued calmly, "you may be able to fool Alicia. But you can’t fool me."

‎His expression changed completely.

‎Anger flashed across his face.

‎The veins in his fists bulged sharply as he clenched them.

‎For a moment, it looked like he wanted to hit me.

‎But then he laughed bitterly instead.

‎"There’s seriously no point talking to you."

‎He opened the car door violently.

‎"I’ve said everything I needed to say."

‎Before getting out, he turned back one last time.

‎"If you really care about Alicia even a little..."

‎"...then stop hurting her."

‎The car door slammed shut.

‎I sat there silently, watching his figure walk away.

‎But the recording continued replaying in my mind.

‎Again.

‎And again.

‎And again....

Even after returning to the office, I couldn’t focus.

The documents in front of me remained untouched for a long time.

By the time the sky outside began to darken, I finally pushed my chair back and left the office.

Earlier, when I brought Alicia’s phone over, I had Jane pass it to her because she was still in a meeting. I assumed she would still be working.

But when I arrived outside her office, the lights were already off.

The door was locked.

I checked my phone instinctively.

No messages.

No calls.

I went downstairs to the garage but didn’t find Jim there either.

Only then did I realize—

Alicia had already gone home.

She hadn’t waited for me.

A strange heaviness settled in my chest.

I got into the sports car I usually kept at the company and drove back to the villa.

By the time I arrived, the lights in the master bedroom were already off.

The villa was unusually quiet.

After entering, I switched on the living room lights and glanced instinctively toward the drawer nearby.

The spare key to the master bedroom had been returned.

For some reason, my gaze lingered on it for a moment before I quietly headed upstairs.

The bedroom was dark.

Only faint moonlight slipped through the curtains, barely illuminating the bed.

Alicia was asleep beneath the blanket, curled slightly into herself.

From where I stood, she looked unexpectedly small.

Fragile.

I walked over quietly and sat at the edge of the bed.

Carefully, I lifted a corner of the blanket.

Her long brown hair spread loosely across the pillow, partially covering her face.

At first, she seemed peaceful.

Then I noticed the tight wrinkle between her brows.

Sweat dampened her temples.

Her breathing gradually became uneven.

Her fingers clenched the sheets tightly as though trapped inside some terrible dream.

My expression darkened slightly.

Not again.

Alicia trembled faintly beneath the blanket, her lips moving weakly.

I leaned closer.

"...I didn’t do anything... please let me go..."

The fragmented whisper was barely audible.

A tear slid silently from the corner of her eye and disappeared into the pillow.

Something tightened painfully in my chest.

It must have been because of what happened earlier today.

The phone calls.

The harassment.

The endless insults online.

I reached out instinctively, gently patting her back while wiping away the sweat on her forehead.

"Sleep," I murmured quietly.

"I won’t let anyone hurt you again." 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

Her trembling gradually eased slightly.

Then another soft whisper escaped her lips.

"...Mom... Dad... I miss you..."

My hand paused briefly.

"...Can you take me home?"

For some reason, those words hurt even more.

Especially tonight.....