Sanya stood frozen, his cruel words echoing in her head.
You'll still belong to me.
The air between them was thick, suffocating. Aarush's eyes held no warmth, only a cold, calculated darkness that made her insides twist. He had won. Again. Just like always.
Her hands clenched into fists, her nails digging into her palm as she forced herself to meet his gaze. "You're a monster."
Aarush chuckled, the sound low and mocking. "And you're a fool if you thought you could ever escape me."
Her throat burned, but she refused to let the tears fall. Not in front of him. Not when he wanted to break her.
She turned sharply on her heel, heading toward the stairs.
"Where do you think you're going?" Aarush's voice was sharp, edged with warning.
She didn't stop. "To sleep."
"Did I say you could leave?"
Sanya halted mid-step, her fingers trembling. Slowly, she turned back to face him. "Do I need your permission for that too?" Her voice wavered, but the defiance in her eyes was unmistakable.
Aarush smirked, stepping closer, his presence suffocating. "You need my permission for everything, Sanya."
Her jaw tightened. "I'm not your prisoner."
His gaze darkened, something unreadable flickering in his eyes before he scoffed. "Aren't you?" He tilted his head, studying her with a cruel amusement. "Go on, then. Go to sleep. But don't forget—" His voice dropped lower, sending a shiver down her spine. "This is just the beginning."
Sanya barely made it up the first step when his voice cut through the silence, sharp and commanding.
"Come here."
She stopped mid-step, her breath catching in her throat. The weight of his words pressed down on her, making her legs feel weak.
She wanted to ignore him. She wanted to keep walking, to lock herself in a room where he couldn't reach her, where his cruel words wouldn't shatter her over and over again.
But she couldn't.
Her feet felt like lead as she turned around, her head bowed, her fingers trembling at her sides.
"I said, come here."
His tone was laced with impatience, with a warning that sent a shiver down her spine.
Slowly, hesitantly, she took small steps toward him. The closer she got, the more suffocated she felt. Her heart pounded violently in her chest, fear and pain intertwining in a twisted dance.
The moment she was within reach, Aarush's fingers wrapped around her jaw, his grip unforgiving as he forced her to look up at him.
Her wide, tear-filled eyes met his cold ones, and for a second, she searched for something—anything—that wasn't hatred in his gaze. But there was nothing.
Only resentment. Only anger.
A single tear slipped down her cheek, but she didn't dare move.
His grip tightened, his thumb pressing against the delicate bone of her jaw. She whimpered, her lashes fluttering shut for a second, trying to block out the pain—both physical and emotional.
"This is nothing," he said, his voice low, dangerous. "Nothing compared to what I felt that day."
Sanya's brows knitted together, her lips trembling. "What—" she started, her voice barely above a whisper, but he didn't let her finish.
His eyes burned into hers, his fury swallowing her whole. "You should have thought before ruining my life," he continued, his words slicing her apart, "Because this? This is just the beginning."
A strangled sob broke from her throat.
"Aarush…" she whimpered, her hands coming up to clutch his wrist, not in defiance, but in desperation.
He didn't budge. His hold remained firm, unyielding.
"Why are you doing this?" Her voice cracked as fresh tears streamed down her face. "You're hurting me—"
His jaw clenched, a flicker of something unreadable passing through his gaze. But it disappeared as quickly as it came, replaced by something colder, something crueler.
Suddenly, he let go of her, shoving her back with enough force that she stumbled, barely catching herself before falling to the floor.
She looked up at him, her chest rising and falling in ragged breaths.
There was nothing left of the Aarush she had once loved.
Nothing left of the boy who had once smiled at her, who had once made her feel safe.
Only this man, this stranger who stood before her with eyes filled with a hatred so deep, it made her soul ache.
"You will regret this one day," she whispered, hugging herself as if that would keep her from falling apart. "Mark my words, Aarush. You will regret everything."
A bitter chuckle left his lips, but there was no amusement in it. "I don't regret anything, Sanya." His voice was cold, merciless. "But you? You will regret ever being in my life."
Her heart clenched, the pain so unbearable that she felt like she couldn't breathe.
"I already do," she whispered brokenly, more to herself than to him.
And yet, despite everything, despite the way he looked at her with such cruelty, despite the way he had shattered her heart into a million pieces—
She still loved him.
And she hated herself for it.
Sanya lost her balance completely, her legs giving out beneath her. She crashed onto the cold marble floor, her hands barely breaking the fall. A sharp pain shot through her knees, but it was nothing compared to the agony twisting inside her chest.
Tears streamed down her face, hot and unstoppable, as sobs wracked her fragile frame. She gasped for air, but it felt like she was suffocating. Like her heart was being crushed under the weight of everything he had just said.
And he…
He didn't even glance back.
Aarush turned on his heel and walked away, his steps steady, unhurried, as if the sight of her crumbling at his feet meant nothing. As if her pain was insignificant.
The door shut behind him with a soft click, and the silence that followed was deafening.
Sanya clutched her chest, her fingers curling into the fabric of her dress as if that could somehow hold her together. But it couldn't.
Nothing could.
Because the only person she had ever loved had just left her there—broken, crying, and alone.