"Charlotte."
Her body trembled involuntarily upon hearing her name from his lips.
Charlotte didn't dare lift her head. Her voice barely escaped, cracked, as if the words were choking in her throat:
"I... I'm sorry."
That was all she could say. All she had left.
"That's enough."
Leonid replied in a monotonous voice filled with pain, barely holding back a storm within his chest.
"Tell me... about what you said. Was that truly all that happened between you two?"
She clenched her fists so tightly her nails dug into her palms. A long silence preceded her confession:
"Yes..."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes..."
Charlotte repeated, her voice broken, guilt carving deep into her.
"I'm sorry."
"I don't want your sorry."
He said coldly, then lowered himself beside her, kneeling on one knee.
Charlotte's breath hitched at his closeness, but she held herself together.
"I just want to know... how many painful secrets are you still hiding from me?"
He reached out, brushed the tangled strands of hair from her face, then gently lifted her chin, forcing her eyes to meet his.
"Today… it was supposed to be special for both of us. But instead, I was slapped with a harsh truth."
Her lips trembled, and she whispered:
"Leonid, I—"
"Shh..."
He placed a finger gently on her wounded lips, cutting her off with a tenderness that didn't match his usual harshness.
"I know... you want to apologize, explain... but I don't need your justifications."
He closed his eyes for a moment, sighed, then added softly:
"I believe you, Charlotte. I've always believed you... and I still do."
His hand slid to her tear-streaked cheek, his gaze never leaving her shattered expression.
"What I need from you is trust. Trust me... and tell me what's hurting you too."
Give me more, that's what he wanted.
He gently stroked her cheek with his thumb, noticing how tightly she pressed her lips together, as if refusing to speak, refusing even to fall apart in front of him.
He leaned closer and whispered:
"Holding everything inside is devouring you, Charlotte. Do you want to stay miserable? To live in an endless loop of torment, while everyone piles guilt onto you? Do you really think that's justice for yourself?"
His words pierced her depths like a quiet but bleeding stab.
Her tears flowed uncontrollably, and her trembling hands reached out to cling to his.
"I'm sorry... I'm sorry..."
She repeated it with a shaking plea, as if it was the only thing she knew how to say.
Leonid stared into her eyes for a long moment, silence heavy, then gently loosened her grip and pulled his hands away.
"I said I don't want your sorry… Enough."
Her hands froze in the air, her eyes filled with painful questions. She stared at her empty palms, not understanding.
Does he not want her anymore?
Has he lost hope in her?
Does he hate her now?
"You need to untie this knot… and fast."
He said in a low voice, sharp as a blade. Then he stood up and took a deep breath. His heart, often described as an icy mountain, was truly burning inside.
"I'm angry, Charlotte… Angry that you went through all this without telling me. If I hadn't overheard that conversation by chance, you would've stayed silent forever, wouldn't you?"
He glanced around for a moment, trying to calm his charged nerves, then looked back at her with eyes that still held a trace of compassion:
"Were you really going to keep something like that from me? Who am I to you? Just a passing stranger? Or were all the things you said to me just empty words?"
He ran a hand through his hair roughly, his eyes still locked on her face.
"I won't bring up what Kaiser did at least not now. But don't think for a second I'll forget it. And don't go near him again… Anyone who dares do such a thing once won't hesitate to try again."
His voice was a dark mix of protection, anger, and frustration. Then silence fell before he finally spoke again, in a low but decisive tone:
"As for us… I can't talk to you while I'm like this. I won't come back to you until you tell me everything. Everything, Charlotte. Do you understand what that means?"
He said it with a deadly calm, in his usual cold tone. His eyes no longer carried even a shadow of compassion.
"You...?"
Her shoulders trembled, and the tips of her fingers began to go numb.
"We...?"
The word echoed in her mind like a painful refrain. Her heart pounded wildly, as if something deep inside her was being torn away.
"Yes."
He answered firmly, decisively there was no room for doubt. He meant every word.
"Why...?"
She choked on her tears and whispered the question, then raised her eyes to him with desperate pleading.
"Why?!"
But before he could speak, Daniel stepped forward, placing himself between them, his furious eyes locked onto Leonid.
"Is that all you've got?! Didn't you just say you were angry about what he did, not about her? So why are you deciding to leave her now?!"
His voice trembled with rage and betrayal.
"Have you forgotten why you forced me to help you today? Forgotten how much of your money you spent?!"
Leonid stood silently for a few seconds, staring into Daniel's eyes before answering in a calm but charged voice:
"I haven't forgotten your help. And I never cared about the money I spent."
Then, with sharper conviction:
"But I do care, Daniel, about living in a healthy relationship. One without secrets. One free of poison. Do you understand now?"
He tilted his head slightly, then turned his sharp gaze to Charlotte.
"If you want to keep secrets from your friends or your family, that's your business... but when it comes to me no. Silence and secrecy are betrayal when the one who loves you is the last to know.
"
"Betrayal?! I don't care what you call it!"
Daniel shouted, lunging toward Leonid and grabbing the collar of his shirt, barely restraining himself from punching him.
"After everything between you two, you're walking away now? You don't deserve her! You're nothing but... scum!"
Leonid remained silent, his eyes locked on Daniel's, his expression stone-cold. Deep down, he knew Daniel was right.
To walk away from Charlotte, to leave her crying and in pain, without reaching for her or holding her... only someone lower than scum would do that.
And right now, he was that someone.
Daniel raised his fist, ready to strike, but Leonid whispered quietly:
"Take care of her."
A few pleading words, yet they carried enough pain and love to silence the room.
Then Leonid took Daniel's hands, who had frozen in place, and gently pushed them away from him.
He then turned and walked away with steady steps… without looking back.
Leonid opened the door and closed it quietly behind him, then leaned against it, his eyes fixed on the ceiling.
He stood there, listening to Daniel's soft voice comforting Charlotte, who hadn't stopped crying.
He was certain Daniel was holding her… and deep down, he wished it were him.
To hold her close, to ease her pain, to wipe away her tears… but he had given up that right.
He let out a deep sigh and turned toward his apartment, only to stop when he saw Maxime standing at the door, waiting.
"Oh, Mr. Leonid. I was just about to knock."
Maxime tipped his hat in a brief greeting, then continued in a formal tone:
"I'm glad to see you. I have something to report."
Leonid replied coldly, pressing his temples:
"Make it quick… I have a terrible headache."
"Well, regarding your relationship with Miss Charlotte—"
"It's over."
Leonid cut him off with icy finality, without lifting his eyes:
"If you were planning to offer your congratulations… don't bother. There's nothing between us anymore."
He then moved quietly, opened his apartment door, and stepped inside without a backward glance, leaving the door to close behind him.
Maxime stood for a few moments, staring at the closed door, then murmured in a low voice, his tone holding a subtle note of satisfaction:
"Well… that was unexpected. But good to hear."
A small smile curved his lips as he turned and walked confidently toward the elevator.
"Stop crying, Charlotte… it won't change anything now."
Daniel comforted her in a low voice, though it carried a faint firmness, sitting in front of her with his arms wrapped around her.
"I'm the one at fault, Daniel… I should have stayed silent even if I was wronged. I shouldn't have said anything."
His expression changed when he heard Charlotte's broken voice. He furrowed his brows in a pain he couldn't hide, then spoke softly but firmly:
"You're wrong, yes… but not because you spoke, rather because you chose silence when you should have trusted us."
He paused for a moment, then grabbed her shoulders and forced her to look into his eyes.
"Just imagine if I were the one hurting and being harmed… and I kept everything from you, then one day you heard me pouring out my pain to someone else, crying bitterly and suffering… wouldn't you be angry? Wouldn't you feel betrayed?"
He lowered his voice further, as if whispering a truth she didn't want to hear:
"That's how Leonid feels, Charlotte. He's angry because you were hurt and are still hurting, yet you didn't trust him enough to tell him. He's angry because you chose to push him away."
He gently wiped her tears and whispered,
"Do you understand?"