LOVE IN PARIS: Married To My Brother-in-law-Chapter 115: Perfection?

But Leila couldn’t take it. She couldn’t hear him right now, couldn’t face him. The thought of him seeing her, of him truly seeing her, was too much. She didn’t want to be pitied, didn’t want his sympathy.

"Stop it please " She whispered, her voice barely audible, choked by tears. "Please. Just stop. You don’t get it. I’m not like the other girls. I’m not pretty enough for you. I’m too... too much." She hated how her voice trembled, how weak she sounded. "You deserve better."

There was a long silence on the other end of the line with Leila’s breathing grew shallow every second as she waited for him to respond, to tell her that it was all a mistake, that they could pretend this hadn’t happened.

But when Tyrell finally spoke, it wasn’t what she expected.

"Leila ". He said softly, his tone calm but firm. "You are more than enough. You always have been. You’re beautiful. You’re strong. And if they can’t see that, then that’s their fucking problem. Not yours. Not ours, that’s their godamned issue Leila"

His words were kind, but they felt distant, like they were coming from a world she couldn’t reach.

"Beautiful."

She didn’t feel like she was beautiful, she didn’t feel like the word describes her just right. Not now. Not with the weight of the world’s judgment crashing down on her.

"I can’t do this, Tyrell. I can’t be what they want me to be". She cried, her tears falling freely now. "I can’t be perfect. I can’t be the woman they think you deserve."

There was another pause, and then Tyrell said something that completely broke her.

"I’m not looking for perfection, Leila". He said, the sincerity in his voice cutting through her storm of emotions. "I’m looking for you. But I can’t make you see yourself the way I see you. You have to believe that you’re enough."

His words was soothing, so comforting but she just wasn’t ready to hear it. She wasn’t ready to believe in herself, not when the whole world had turned against her.

"I can’t," She whispered, her voice trembling. "I just... I just can’t right now."

Before Tyrell could say anything else, she hung up the phone, the finality of her action echoing through the empty room.

She stared at the device, her heart a heavy weight in her chest. She could feel the tears threatening to rise again, but she didn’t want to cry anymore. She didn’t want to be weak. She didn’t want to feel like she had failed.

Few minutes again, the phone began beeping with another call, it was Tyrell again but she didn’t answer it , she couldn’t, she just wanted to be alone and then it was Yvette calling again.

Unable to bear the distraction, with trembling hands, she powered off the phone, turning it completely dark. The silence that followed was deafening, and for a moment, she felt as though she was suffocating in her own pain.

In the stillness of her apartment, she locked the door and curled up in her bed, pulling the blankets around her like a shield.

Her mind raced with thoughts of Tyrell and the kindness and love he had shown her, but she couldn’t let it in or he’ll always be judged by the public all because of her.

But as the tears continued to fall, one after another, Leila knew she couldn’t stay here forever. Even if she didn’t believe it now, she couldn’t live in this darkness. Not forever.

But for tonight, she let herself break.

_____________

Tyrell slumped into a hard, metal-backed chair, exhausted from the endless photo shoots.

The crew bustled around, adjusting equipment and preparing for the next session. He reached for the bottle of water beside him, hoping for a brief reprieve.

His phone buzzed loudly against the table, a sharp contrast to the mellow jazz playing in the background and he picked it up, the screen was lit with dozens of notifications, messages, and a single trending article.

Popular actor Tyrell Henderson and Mystery Woman: Unusual Pair Spotted Together.

His brows furrowed and he clicked the headline, his eyes scanning the picture beneath it. His chest tightened when he saw it, a candid shot of him and Leila smiling together in what had been an unguarded, tender moment. His heart sank as he read through the comments.

"She’s not his type."

"Keith can do so much better."

"She’s fat, and she doesn’t belong by his side."

He felt a sharp pang in his chest, a mix of anger and worry rising like a tide.

He immediately dialed Leila’s number and after ringing twice she picked it up and his heart broke when he heartld her voice, she must be so hurt, so badly hurt, she’s probably crying, they chatted for a while him telling her sincerely what was on his mind and he was halfway done when she hanged up and he immediately called again but she didn’t pick , the line rang—once, twice—but then her voicemail picked up.

"Come on, Leila. Pick up this damned phone". He muttered, running a hand through his hair in frustration.

He felt the familiar rise of panic as he redialed. Still, no answer. His worry turned to dread. She must have been so hurt, he realized, imagining her curled up alone, hurting and he felt like he was in pain himself at the thought of her being hurt. 𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

He stood abruptly, grabbing his jacket and turning to his team. "Let’s move things along. Wrap this shoot as fast as you can." His tone left no room for discussion.

The team exchanged glances but quickly complied, sensing his urgency. Tyrell powered through the session, posing with mechanical precision, but his mind was far from the camera’s lens. Every passing second felt like an eternity.

And the moment the shoot wrapped, he snatched his phone and dialed again, only to be met with dead silence, she had turned off her phone.

"Damn it". He whispered.

He fumbled for his manager’s number. When the call connected, his words came out sharp and forceful. "Fix this immediately. Get that story taken down."

His manager who had also just noticed the news sighed on the other end. "Tyrrll, it’s already everywhere. This isn’t something we can just erase. The internet’s a beast. The only viable move is to issue a statement—"

"What kind of statement?". Tyrell cut in as he changed his clothes immediately, already dreading the answer.

"We’ll deny it. Say she’s just a colleague and that there’s so such relationship between you two. That’s the simplest way to kill the story."

Tyrell clenched his jaw, his grip tightening around his phone. "No."

"Tyrell, it’s the only—"

"I said no!" His voice thundered, causing a few nearby crew members to glance over. "I’m not denying her. I won’t do that to her. Find another way."

"Another way doesn’t exist". His manager, Peter shot back, his tone more measured but firm. "If you don’t want this to escalate, you have to put some distance between you two publicly."

Tyrell chest heaved with frustration. "Do your job, Peter. Figure it out without throwing her under the bus." He hung up before his manager could respond.

He then stormed out of the studio, his pulse racing as he made his way to his car. His mind whirled with all the things and emotions she must have been feeling. She had always been guarded, protective of her insecurities. This would have cut deep no doubt and his only wish was to be by her side at this very moment.

As he revved the engine, his phone vibrated again. This time, it was his sister. Linda.

"Hey, Ty !". Her cheerful voice rang through the speakers. "We’re done with school. Can you come pick me up, Dani just left saying it was urgent and she had to leave?"

He exhaled a breath, forcing himself to sound calm. "Yeah, I’m on my way."

"Are you okay?" She asked, her tone suddenly more cautious.

"I’m fine" . He replied. "Don’t worry about it."

"You sound tense."

"I’m handling it". He said firmly. "I’ll see you soon."

By the time he pulled up to the school, his mind was racing. His sister hopped into the car, filling the space with chatter about her day.

"Hey, Ty". Linda said, leaning forward from the back seat. "You look weird. What’s wrong?"

He forced a smile, though it felt heavy on his face but he didn’t want to worry her. "It’s nothing. Just... a busy day."

"Is it about that picture?". She piped up, her eyes wide with curiosity. "People were talking about it a lot and it’s bad"

He gripped the steering wheel tightly. "Yeah. It’s about that."

"Why are people so mean?". She asked, her voice small. "Why can’t they just mind their business, no wonder Dani left in a hurry. Sister must be feeling so bad . Are we heading to her place already?"