The Bigshot's Superstar Wife-Chapter 202: Confrontation

Xavier stood in front of her, his eyes dark with an emotion she couldn't name. His words lingered between them, thick as smoke in the cold air.

"You betrayed me, Athena."

Athena's breath hitched. The accusation struck her harder than any blade. Her hands clenched at her sides, and she forced herself to meet his gaze.

"I don't remember," she admitted, voice barely above a whisper.

Xavier scoffed, a bitter smile curling on his lips. "Of course, you don't." He stepped closer, his presence overwhelming, suffocating. "You forgot me. You forgot us. You forgot everything we fought for."

Athena flinched but held her ground. "Then tell me," she challenged. "If you hate me so much, if I truly betrayed you, then tell me how."

Xavier's expression hardened. His jaw tightened as if restraining the flood of emotions threatening to spill out.

"We were partners," he finally said, his voice low, filled with a quiet intensity. "More than that." He exhaled sharply, shaking his head. "You and I—we were trained together, fought together, lived in the same shadows. You were my equal. My—" He stopped himself.

Athena swallowed, her throat dry. "Your what?"

He exhaled, his gaze flickering with something unreadable. "My everything."

Silence stretched between them. The fire crackled in the distance, casting flickering shadows over his face. Athena's chest tightened, a strange pain blooming inside her.

"And yet, you tried to kill me."

She felt her blood run cold.

"What?"

Xavier's smile was devoid of warmth. "You put a blade through my chest, Athena. You left me to die."

A wave of nausea washed over her. That couldn't be true. She had no memory of it, but her gut twisted at the certainty in his voice.

She tried to speak, but her throat felt constricted. "Why would I do that?"

Xavier's gaze darkened. "Because that was your mission."

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Athena staggered back a step. "My mission?"

"You were an assassin, Athena." His voice was sharp, cold. "We both were. But you… you were different. You were the best."

She shook her head, backing away. "No… I—"

He grabbed her wrist before she could retreat further. His grip was firm, unyielding, but not painful.

"I don't expect you to remember," he said, voice quieter now. "But I need you to understand."

Athena's pulse pounded. This couldn't be true. It didn't feel real. But deep down, something inside her recognized the weight of his words. The familiarity of his touch. The way her body knew how to react to his presence.

And that terrified her.

Xavier studied her expression, his own softening ever so slightly. "You weren't supposed to fail, Athena." His fingers loosened around her wrist. "But something changed. You changed."

Her breath came out uneven. "What do you mean?"

Xavier hesitated, then exhaled. "You disappeared before you could finish the job."

Athena's heart pounded.

"The job?"

Xavier's lips curled into a smirk, though there was no amusement behind it. "Killing me."

She sucked in a sharp breath.

"You couldn't do it," he continued. "You hesitated. You ran. And that's when they came for you."

Athena's head spun. Her memories were nothing but fragments, pieces of a puzzle she didn't have the full picture for.

She had been an assassin. She had been sent to kill him.

But she hadn't.

And now, here they were.

"I don't understand," she whispered. "If I tried to kill you… why are you helping me?"

Xavier chuckled, though there was a bitterness to it. "Because I need to know why." His grip tightened for a second before he let go completely. "I need to know what changed in you that day. Why you abandoned everything we stood for."

Athena's fingers curled into fists. "What if I never remember?"

Xavier smirked, stepping back. "Then I'll just have to make you."

A chill ran down her spine at his words.

And yet, for reasons she couldn't explain, she wasn't afraid.

She was intrigued.

Something told her… this was only the beginning.

Athena stared at Xavier, searching his face for something—anything—that would help her understand the truth buried in the gaps of her lost memories. But all she found was a man who had once known her better than she knew herself. And now, she was a stranger to him, just as he was to her.

She clenched her fists, her nails digging into her palms. The weight of his words pressed on her chest, making it hard to breathe. If she had been an assassin, if she had been trained to kill him—then what had stopped her? Why had she run?

Xavier watched her with quiet intensity, waiting for her to process everything. His smirk had faded, replaced by something more guarded. He wasn't angry, not truly. He was searching, just as she was.

She let out a slow, shaky breath. "You said I disappeared. That I ran before finishing the job." Her voice was steadier than she expected. "What happened after that? Did they come after me?"

His jaw tightened, and for the first time since their conversation began, a flicker of something close to pain crossed his expression. "They erased you," he said finally. "Wiped your existence from every database. Burned every trace of you. They made sure you were nothing but a ghost."

Her stomach twisted. "Then how did I survive?"

Xavier let out a bitter chuckle. "That's the question, isn't it?" His eyes darkened. "You were the best, Athena. If anyone could fake their own death, disappear off the grid, it would be you. But I don't think you planned it." He leaned in slightly, voice dropping lower. "I think someone helped you."

A sharp pain shot through her skull, sudden and unbearable. She clutched her head, gasping, as a fragmented memory flickered in her mind. A pair of hands, strong and steady, gripping her shoulders. A voice whispering, "Run. Forget everything. Survive."

The memory vanished as quickly as it came, leaving her breathless and shaken.

Xavier noticed. His expression shifted, his curiosity sharpening. "What did you see?"

She shook her head, trying to steady herself. "I… I don't know. Someone told me to run. To forget." Her voice was barely above a whisper. "But I don't know who they were."

Xavier was silent for a moment, studying her. Then, unexpectedly, he smiled—not the sharp, taunting smirk she was used to, but something quieter. Almost… sad. "Looks like we both have missing pieces, then."

Athena swallowed hard, her mind spinning with more questions than answers. One thing was clear, though—her past wasn't just lost. It had been taken from her. And now, she needed to find out why.