Z A R A Alejandro snakes his arms around my waist, "Mmm, it smells good. You're cooking?""Mhm," I answer."Special occasion?" He tucks his chin into the crook of my neck. I stop stirring the pasta and slightly turn my head. "It's Christmas, don't you celebrate?"I do," he says. "It's just that I haven't spent Christmas with someone in years." I raise a brow. "I can hear the lie seeping through your teeth."He raises a brow. "What makes you think I'm lying, my love?""Don't try to convince me that you didn't find someone to sleep around with every Christmas," I frown. He chuckles. "I mean, I haven't spent it with anyone important in years.""Oh?" I act amused. I cover the pot with a lid and lower the gas on the stove so I can turn around and look at him. "I'm important? Since when?""Since I met you," he answers nonchalantly.I roll my eyes. "You've also been a fabulous liar since I met you." He takes me by surprise by picking me up and sitting me down on the granite countertop so I'
Y A S M E E N Everything needs to be perfect. I have never wanted to perfect something so much in my life because I never had to impress someone as hard-headed as Marcus Wang before. In fact, I've never actually wanted to impress a boy before. I always went with the flow and as everyone knows by now, that never worked out. But something about Marcus makes me want to work harder, makes me crave his attention, and makes me pull for his approval. It is absolutely maddening and honestly, I would not want it any other way. Why? Because I thrive from the feeling of every nerve in my body pulling me towards him. So many people are afraid to fall, afraid of things not working out, and afraid they will end up torn into pieces but that doesn't bother me. Of course, I do care about being heartbroken and would prefer if I do not end up in a million pieces, but it's all part of life, no? We fall, we get hurt, and we learn. It's all part of the experience or maybe I'm just an insane masochist who
M A R C U S "At Yasmeen's? Like a date?" The shock present in Elijah's tone is irritatingly clear.I roll my eyes. "No, not a date.""That reminds me, I have to go grab something of hers from Yasmeen's apartment. I'll go grab it while you freshen up for your date," he says."it's not a date," I clarify again."Whatever you say, loverboy," he chuckles as he drives us to my apartment complex.• • •Fuck, why the hell am I so nervous? It's not a date, she just asked to cook for me and I agreed. There's nothing wrong with wanting to go somewhere for food. I changed out of three outfits already and I'm still trying to convince myself that this isn't a date. It isn't. It's nothing like that. Yasmeen isn't for me and I am not for her. We don't belong together and I should always remember that; I should always remember my place. Yet, the thought of her with someone else... Fuck this, whether she's happy with someone else or not is none of my problems.She had to go on and choose my birthdate
Z A R A "Elijah? What are you doing here?" The shock in my voice is apparent. No one is allowed up to our apartment without permission from Alejandro, except for Alejandro himself and Charlotte."Why?" He asks."Didn't you leave for Italy a couple of days ago?" I furrow my brows. That's what Yasmeen told me the other day. She told me that Elijah had left a couple of days ago to visit family."No, I leave tonight," he clarifies."And?" There's a hint of attitude in my tone because I'm still holding a grudge for how he almost had me killed by Alejandro by being reckless "What are you doing here? If Alejandro finds out—""You're not going to invite me in?" He interrupts my sentence. I'm silent, slowly pushing the door forward to not allow him to enter any further."Come with me," he says."W-What?" I blink, trying to wonder why he would try this again when it didn't work the first time."Come with me to Italy. Let's run away," he pauses before saying, "Together.""Are you insane?" I'm s
Y A S M E E N I couldn't sit still. I keep walking back and forth in Alejandro's office. Marcus left the second he dropped me off, so I had to ask the receptionist to ring me up at Alejandro's office. I can feel the adrenaline in my veins rushing at the horrible thought of what could've happened to Zara. My thoughts are interrupted when the door opens, hitting the wall hard. I jump at the loud sound, seeing Alejandro walk in. I can safely say he has probably slept less than me in the past three days. There are dark shadows under his eyes, he has a rough, unkempt stubble, and his lips are dry and cracked. The only thing that's put together are his clothes but even his tie is not on properly. But seeing him only made my uneasiness worst, whatever news he has can't be any better than all the possibilities that have been going through my head."Shut the fuck up! I want a location by tonight or I'll send your fucking limbs to your wife!" He yells into the phone, making me flinch."Alejand
Y A S M E E N A group of men come in and drag the women's bodies away, leaving us alone together."It hurts... It hurts everywhere, Marcus," I cough up blood as I speak."Shh, I know. I know." He leans down to press his forehead against mine, the tip of our noses brushing slightly. "It's going to be okay; you're going to be okay."I raise my hand to softly to touch his face. He looks so disheveled, poor Marcus. "Your hair's so fluffy," I say as my hand slowly trails to his hair, running my fingers through them. He grabs my hand and places it against his lips, leaving a soft kiss. Then, he rests his cheek against that hand. "I'm sorry I didn't believe you,""I would say it's alright but it's not. Look where it got me," I pout teasingly. His expression turns grim, and I quickly inform him that I'm kidding. "It's okay, really. I couldn't believe myself when the woman showed up."I can feel my consciousness slipping away as my arm limps in his grasp."Just hold on just a little longer. D
Y A S M E E N The light reaches my eyes as I squint them, groaning. Not wanting to wake up, I snuggle further into the blanket until I feel a slight stinging slither across my arm. All the memories of my violent night come flooding through my mind as I notice I'm patched up. Though there isn't much pain in my body as there was before, the subtle aching left behind is still present as I try to sit up. I don't recognize the room or any part of my surroundings.Another part of that day pops up uninvited into my mind: If you keep this up, Ms. Yasmeen Yasin, the next time I see you, I'll have you pinned against the wall fucking you senseless. A blush creeps up my cheeks, heating up my whole entire body. If this man doesn't marry me after this, I might just die from heartbreak.The door opens softly, and I jump out of fear of another attack or something."Sorry, Ms. Yasin, I didn't mean to frighten you," the woman has a stethoscope around her neck and my body relaxes a bit. "I'm your docto
Z A R A"Take me home?" My voice is instantly quiet. I wrap my arms around my stomach in a firmer manner, afraid of what may happen.In minutes, Frank explains his task to infiltrate Philip's hideout but at that time, Frank wasn't informed of all the details."You're saying Alejandro knew that there would be an attempt on my life?" Frank nods. "Yet he let it happen." He nods again."I was just a pawn in his sick game?"Frank pauses, picking his next words very carefully. "Again, I was not informed of all the details—just enough to gather information and put Boss' plan into action. The knowledge of whether you were a pawn or not is not under my understanding."I don't have time to think hard about any of this. I will take Frank's help and escape this place. "Since when did your speech get so formal?"He looks at me in confusion."You sound formal, instead of rude.""I've always talked like this," he states."Right..." I give him a small smile. "How are we leaving this place?"He gives
this is the (more or less) tragic ending I originally had in mind before changing it due to popular demand! Enjoy (or sob idk 💀- - - A L E J A N D R O Regrets.Something I never expected to feel.I watched the dark blood seep through her clothes staining them the color of death. Her eyes slowly draining any little life it had left as she begged for my mercy. She begged me to put an end to her misery, begged me to drive my knife through her chest. She did once tell me her favorite flowers were white roses but here I stained them red, disappointing her one last time before she runs away from me.Regrets.More regrets.But now here I am, dressed in black standing in front of the only person I gave a shit about."It would be appalling to ask for your forgiveness now, wouldn't it, Zara?" I grip the flowers in my hand. "Say, what do you think about my suit?" I stand back to give her a full view of it. "Does seeing me dressed like this still make you smile?"Silence.I smooth down the wr
"Fuck, Yasmeen. Take it off," he demands."Patience, my king," I giggle.I start to leave a trail of kisses down the center as I pull down his boxers. Once it's completely off, his sizeable erect cock springs out in front of me."I see the big guy has missed me," I trace a finger down his length."You have no fucking idea," he grins, sitting on the edge of the bed. "I want to watch you shove my dick down your throat.""Your wish is my command," I say as slide out of the bed. I position myself in between his legs on my knees before taking his cock into my mouth, wetting it with my saliva.Marcus throws his head back, gripping my hair and occasionally pulling and pushing his cock deeper into my throat."Fuck, Yasmeen. Deeper, go deeper. Let me feel that pretty mouth of yours wrapped around my cock," he groans.I do as he asks and takes in as much of him as I can into my mouth. My hands simultaneously get him off as my tongue and mouth work around the tip."Look at me," he demands. "Look
Y A S M E E N Marital bliss only lasts so long before we go back to being normal. Marcus only let it last a couple of days before he dashed out, working his usual odd hours.But, God, is he so perfect? Just seeing him, even if it's just a glimpse, makes me giggle like a school girl. That man is all mine to devour whenever I please.With that being said, I've devoured him enough times yet I can never get enough of him. I'm always on a high around him yet he's so laid-back. A perfect match, I suppose?Nowadays, Zara is being watched like a hawk by Alejandro because she's a couple of months pregnant. This also means I get to spend less time with her because he barely ever leaves her side and I don't get to talk about the fun stuff while he's around.I've mentioned children to Marcus but he's definitely not ready and I'm totally fine with waiting because I'm very content with his full attention towards me right now.Maybe sometime in the future.Can you imagine? A little me running aroun
Five Years Later -"Liyana! Look! Papa's home!" I grin with relief as I carry a sleepy Alanna in my arms.Alejandro had been on a business trip for the last three days and it gets tough to care for the kids without him."Papa! Papa! Papa!" She runs with her hands up in the air, impatiently waiting for Alejandro to pick her up.Alejandro picks up Liyana and gives her cheek a kiss. "My beautiful Princess, how was your day?""Me and mama played!" She says excitedly. "We missed you!""Oh, that must've been tons of fun!" Alejandro says. "Look what I've brought for my girls," he holds up a big bag of toys, shaking it in front of Liyana.She squeals, grabbing the bag. "Papa's the best!" She gives him a tight hug, making my heart melt. This never gets old."Please keep your voice down, my Jaan [my life], your sister's trying to sleep," I say in a quieter tone.My sweet Liyana nods. She quickly slips out of Alejandro's arms and runs towards her room to play with her new toys in private to not
Z A R A "What's on your mind, my love?" Alejandro asks softly."Our wedding anniversary is coming up," I state."Is it, now?" There's a mischievous tone to his voice.He pulls me closer, and my back curls back against the chest."It is," I say slowly. "Can I ask for something?""You can ask for the stars, my love, and I'll find a way to present them to you," he murmurs against my ear, giving me goosebumps.Our relationship has been... as stable as a relationship can be with all the horrible things that happened to us in the past year.Of course, we fight. And I always—and will always—bring up the way he's hurt me in the past. There's no coming back from that and Alejandro has accepted that. He knows I'll bring it up whether on purpose or by accident because those events burned an unfixable hole in my heart. I may be able to forgive but I'll never be able to forget.8But he's trying, whether it's genuine effort or not, he is trying. We go to weekly therapy sessions to work on ourselves
M A R C U S "Alejandro's not at home," Zara says once she sees me at the door. "He'll be back soon, though. You're welcome to wait inside. I'm baking cookies!" I raise a brow, she's much cheerier than usual.The events that occurred a year ago have left a lot of us shaken up to this day. All of us took it hard but the women took it the hardest.Zara hasn't been wholeheartedly happy since then. I assume she just pretends to be okay a lot of the time. It's not hard to miss the lack of spark in her eyes.Sometimes, when she's with Alejandro, the spark does come back, very slightly but it's there. From what I heard from Charlotte, the couple has been going to regular therapy for their relationship for about a year now.I never saw Alejandro as a therapy guy but it's obvious he'd do anything to make Zara happy, she's his whole entire world.A twinge of jealousy arises through my chest. I chose Alejandro, but he chose Zara. But maybe it's not that, maybe that's not what's making me enviou
A L E J A N D R O Minutes.Hours.Days.Weeks.How long has it been since I heard the sweet sound of her laughter? The crinkle at the corner of her eyes when she smiles? The smell of her sweet fragrance that whiffed around in the air when she passed by? What about the way her hands fit wholly in mine? The way one touch of her skin set my entire heart on fire? The way she had me wrapped around her finger without even knowing it?Will I get to feel that warmth of, not only her skin but her presence ever again? Her silhouette itself brought me enough peace to last days and now seeing her still, cold body laying motionless is just a reminder of my biggest failure yet.I'm losing myself, physically and mentally. I need her to show me where I belong, remind me of who I am, and remind me why the thought of losing her is tearing me apart.I scoff at myself. Why the fuck would she want me? Why the fuck would she want to be with me after all of this? She'd be happier drifting far away from me
Y A S M E E N I didn't know. I lied. I lied to Philip. I don't know what Elijah told him. I don't know what Marcus's true intentions were. I don't know if Philip was saying that to spite me but Marcus's reaction didn't help."You're quite obviously not his first choice", Philip's words ring in my ears. "Now that his boyfriend found a new toy, he needs something to keep him preoccupied too."I think deep down inside, I knew I was a second choice. Obviously, I was the second choice. If he was ready to get over someone, the next would be the second choice for a bit until they build the relationship up to become the first choice but..."Tell her how your initial plan was to mess with her because you were envious of her close relationship with Alejandro. How you thought you'd get to Alejandro by hurting her," Philip had said.But did he truly want to hurt me because he couldn't bear my bond with Alejandro? Were his intentions evil to begin with?If I die today, I want one last chance to a
"Zara, no!" I hear Alejandro shout before numerous bullets fly across the room.Miraculously, with all the pain and unstableness, I land a hit on Philip's chest right near his heart—or maybe even on his heart. I feel too disoriented to be able to confirm the exact location of the bullet. I mentally thank Charlotte for all her training. Now that Philip's out of the way, maybeAlejandro can...I look down as the adrenaline pumps through my body, numbing me, and realize the worst of it. Unfortunately, two of bullets from Philip's men ended up in my body and I instantly slump against the floor, bleeding out at an extremely fast rate.Alejandro manages to grab the gun off of my hand and in the matter of seconds, lands to shoot all four men point-blank in the forehead before they could even blink. But the only reason he was able to do so was because of the distraction I created."Where was this talent when we needed it?" I choke as I tease him one last time.He falls down on his knees, pick