That was the last time Lyla saw Carlo three years ago.Now, sitting at a café near the entrance of Westhaven College, where she now teaches, Lyla cradled a cup of hot latte, her mind far away. Hudson had offered to pick her up and take her to the location Carlo had designated, but she refused. She chose this café, right across the campus entrance. Three years ago, Carlo had vanished from her life without a trace, leaving her to wrestle with self-doubt and confusion, trapped in a cycle of pain and desire in her dreams.Three years later, she would not let him hold that power over her again.Lyla often found herself replaying memories of their time together. She couldn’t forget the day after Carlo’s abrupt departure when she locked herself in her dorm room all day, refusing to face the world. But eventually, she had to attend her evening lecture. Walking into the classroom, she was met with the heated buzz of gossip."Did you hear? Jessica killed someone."“Killed someone? When did this
Seeing that smile, it felt like someone punched Lyla in the chest, leaving a heavy pressure behind. She had wanted to question him about why he had disappeared so suddenly and why he had just as suddenly reappeared, but now, she no longer felt the desire to ask.She feared being deceived, but even more, she dreaded his evasive and cryptic answers that would drag her back into a whirlpool of pain."What do you want?" she asked, her tone cold and composed.Carlo remained nonchalant. "I forgot to return something to you." He leaned down, picking up a sleek laptop bag from beside his feet, and placed it in front of her.Lyla quietly unzipped the bag, already knowing that inside was the laptop Carlo had dismantled three years ago.Without even bothering to check the contents, she zipped it back up, a bitter smile forming on her lips. "Thanks, but I’ve already bought a new one. I don’t need this old one anymore."At that moment, a waitress arrived at their table, carrying a tray. She placed
“Ah, so you’re mad because of that waitress?” Carlo’s face lit up with a look of mock realization, but it was so exaggerated that anyone could tell he was faking it. The only genuine thing was the smug smile plastered on his face. “I only gave her my business card. Are you jealous?”Lyla felt like a needle had just pierced her heart. She tried to suppress her emotions, keeping her voice cold as she replied, “No. What I’m saying is, if you hurt any of my students at this school, I will call the police.”“Hurt them?” Carlo let out a chuckle. “It was just a business card. How could I have possibly hurt her? I can give you one too, if you want.” He reached into his coat pocket and pulled out an identical card.“I don’t want it...” Lyla started to refuse, but her eyes caught something on the card that surprised her. Furrowing her brow, she asked, “Wait a minute, who’s James Donovan?”“Who knows,” Carlo shrugged casually, “someone stuffed it in my pocket at a party, I guess.”It felt as if t
That evening, Lyla went to the movies with Lucas, as planned, but she couldn’t recall much about the film. Her mind was consumed by thoughts of Carlo’s sudden reappearance, leaving her restless throughout the night.She found it impossible not to wonder where Carlo had been for the past three years. Yet, another part of her knew she should let go of this dangerous man once and for all. The dim light of the cinema blurred her thoughts, and by the time they left, her mind was still in a haze.“What’s wrong?” Lucas noticed her distracted demeanor, gently taking her cold hand in his.Lyla didn’t pull away like she usually did. She forced a smile and shook her head. “Nothing, I’ve just been tired these days.”“Is it because of the assistant professor application?” Lucas asked. “Don’t worry, you’re incredibly qualified. Your application is solid. It’s just a matter of waiting for the committee to approve.”“Yeah,” Lyla nodded absentmindedly.“I’ll drive you home,” Lucas smiled, guiding her
“Are you stalking me?” Lyla demanded angrily.“I’m too busy for that,” Carlo shrugged dismissively. “I’ve been waiting here the whole day.”“Waiting for me?” Lyla scoffed, her voice dripping with sarcasm. “I’ve moved on. I don’t need anyone waiting for me.” She emphasized the phrase " waiting for me". With those words, full of hidden meaning, she turned and started walking away without looking back.“If that kiss had made you happy, I would’ve left without a word and never bothered you again,” Carlo’s voice echoed behind her.Lyla’s steps faltered. She turned around to find Carlo leaning against his car, holding a tissue. Even under the dim streetlights, his serious expression was clear—gone was the playful nonchalance he usually wore.After a moment’s hesitation, Lyla walked back toward him. She forced a smile, trying to appear unfazed as she took the tissue from his hand and wiped the remaining tears from her eyes.“I was happy,” she said with a hollow laugh. “He asked me to be his g
Lyla was so stunned that she could barely think.She remained silent, watching as Carlo followed her into the apartment building, stepped into the same elevator, and exited on the same floor, walking straight to the room across from hers.That room, until today, had belonged to a senior student majoring in physics."It did cost me some money," Carlo said casually, inserting a key into the door. "But college students are easy to deal with.""Is that so?" Lyla shot him a withering glance as she pulled her own key from her bag.But Carlo was struggling with his key. It got stuck in the lock, and no matter how hard he twisted, it wouldn't budge. In frustration, he twisted harder—until the key snapped in half.“Damn it!” He cursed, throwing the broken key to the floor.Now it was Lyla's turn to smirk triumphantly. She unlocked her door but didn’t go inside just yet. This was the moment she'd been waiting for. With a smug look, she said, "I guess that easy-going student didn’t tell you the
Outside, the black Mercedes was parked right where Lyla had noticed it earlier when she sat down. Compared to the sleek silver Aston Martin, this car seemed far more discreet—so low-key that when she first saw it last night, she never would have connected it to the flamboyant, arrogant Carlo.“That car?” Carlo’s eyes remained fixed on the spinning washing machine drum as he shrugged casually. “It burned.”“You’re talking nonsense again!” Lyla muttered under her breath, flipping the pages of her book with exaggerated force.Carlo didn’t respond. His eyes were still on the rotating drum, but the mechanical hum of the machine seemed to morph in his mind into the crackling sound of flames and the thunderous roar of an explosion.In his memory, the scene from that night replayed vividly. When he received that message behind the curtain, he had rushed home to gather his belongings. In his haste, he didn’t bother parking in the underground garage but left the car right outside his luxury apa
Carlo wasn’t lying.When Lyla arrived at the university and checked the student system, she received a notification confirming Carlo’s enrollment in the graduate program. She knew there was no escaping him now.In the first class that morning, Lyla spotted Carlo the moment she stepped into the lecture hall. He was dressed in a gray hoodie, loose sweatpants, and sneakers, his usual clean-shaven look making him appear several years younger, blending in effortlessly with the other students around him.A few stylish girls were gathered around him, chatting and laughing. When Lyla entered, Carlo raised a hand to wave at her. "Hi, Professor Sinclair, I was just telling them about your impressive research in BDSM psychology. Do you think we could be lucky enough to learn some of that here?"The girls around him either looked intrigued or slightly flustered, with a few retreating back to their seats, blushing.Lyla felt her face flush slightly. Ever since that scandal three years ago, she ha