12:10 PM – The Unspoken Agreement
The door closed behind Isabella with a quiet click.
She stood in the entryway, her breath uneven, her thoughts tangled.
She had walked back inside.
She had chosen this.
But had she really?
Ethan remained by the doorway, watching her as if waiting for her to speak first.
She didn't.
Because what was there to say?
That she hated him? He already knew.
That she wanted to leave? She had tried.
That she wasn't sure if she had just lost or won?
She wasn't even sure of the answer herself.
Her fingers curled into fists.
The silence between them stretched, thick and suffocating.
Then Ethan spoke.
"Now you understand," he said simply.
Her head snapped up, eyes narrowing.
"Understand what?" she bit out.
Ethan tilted his head slightly, a flicker of amusement in his expression.
"That leaving means nothing if you don't know what you're running toward."
Her stomach twisted.
She hated that he was right.
But was he really?
Or was this just another one of his games?
---
12:15 PM – The Question She Never Asked
Isabella exhaled sharply.
She had spent so much time trying to escape, fighting against him, resisting him—
But had she ever stopped to ask the real question?
Her gaze met his.
"What do you want from me?"
Ethan's expression didn't change.
But something in his eyes did.
Just for a second.
A flicker of something unreadable.
Something that almost looked like… regret.
But it was gone too quickly for her to be sure.
"I already told you," he said smoothly. "I want you to think for yourself."
Her jaw clenched.
"That's not an answer."
He smiled, but it wasn't amusement this time.
It was something colder.
Darker.
"Isn't it?"
She hated how he spoke in riddles.
How he always gave just enough to keep her questioning, but never enough to truly understand.
What was the point of this?
Why did he care so much about what she thought, how she reacted?
Was this just entertainment to him?
Or was there something more?
---
12:20 PM – The Terms of Their Agreement
Ethan took a step forward.
Slow.
Deliberate.
Isabella didn't move.
Didn't flinch.
She refused to give him that satisfaction.
But her heart pounded as he closed the distance between them.
He stopped just a few feet away.
Too close.
Too far.
"I'll make you a deal," he said.
Her breath caught.
A deal?
Her fingers twitched.
Did she want to hear this?
Did she have a choice?
"What kind of deal?" she asked cautiously.
Ethan's gaze didn't waver.
"You stay," he said. "On your terms."
Her chest tightened.
Her terms?
That sounded too good to be true.
And with Ethan, it probably was.
Her voice was steady when she asked, "What's the catch?"
A slow smirk tugged at his lips.
"There's always a catch," he admitted.
She waited.
And then—
"You stay," he repeated. "But this time, you stop trying to escape. You stop fighting just to fight. You stop playing defense and actually start playing the game."
Her stomach flipped.
Was that what she had been doing?
Fighting blindly, without strategy, without direction?
Had she already been playing his game—just badly?
She hated that the thought made sense.
She hated that he made sense.
"What do I get in return?" she asked.
Ethan's gaze darkened, just slightly.
"Freedom," he said.
She blinked.
"What?"
He took another step, voice low.
"You get freedom," he repeated. "Real freedom. The kind that isn't about running away, but about having control."
Control.
She shivered.
That was what he was offering.
Not an open door.
Not an escape route.
But control over her own choices.
But was that really freedom?
Or just another version of his manipulation?
---
12:30 PM – The Line She Had to Cross
The silence between them stretched again.
Isabella's mind raced.
If she agreed, she wouldn't try to escape anymore.
But in return, she would get something she had never had here.
Power.
The ability to make her own choices.
A chance to stop being a pawn and start being a player.
Could she trust him?
No.
Did she have another option?
Also no.
Her pulse thrummed in her ears.
Then she nodded.
"Fine," she said. "I'll play your game."
Ethan's lips curved into a slow, satisfied smile.
"Good," he murmured.
Something told her she had just made a deal with the devil.
But maybe—just maybe—this time, she would win.q