VARYA’S POVIn my bed I remained, trapped in a storm of feelings, uncertain as to what was real or an imagination with the force of nature ever since it happened to me.The silence in the room was occasionally broken by some sounds coming from somewhere far away. All parts of me were sore, but even more unbearable was the hurt I felt inside me.The door creaked open, and I glanced up, expecting to see Kylo or Jasmin. But instead, Dora and Cassandra marched in with determination, their faces set with contempt.My heart sank as I saw Kylo following them, his face taut with frustration as he tried to call them back.“Varya needs to rest. Don’t disturb her,” Kylo’s voice was firm, but it fell on deaf ears.Cassandra was the first to speak, her tone dripping with scorn."In case you didn’t hear what my brother said earlier, let me make it clear. He doesn’t love you or care about you. He’s just doing his duties. So, if you played this accident game to get pity from him, it’s not happening.
KYLO’S POVI stood by the doorway, watching as Dora and Cassandra stormed into Varya's room with their usual determination. My attempts to call them back, to stop them from disturbing her, had fallen on deaf ears.They had always been headstrong, but this time, something felt different—a tension in the air that made my chest tighten with unease.“In case you didn’t hear what my brother said earlier,” Cassandra began, her voice laced with venom,“let me make it clear. He doesn’t love you or care about you. He’s just doing his duties. So, if you played this accident game to get pity from him, it’s not happening. Get well and get out of this house.”Her words struck like a dagger to my heart. I had said those things, hadn’t I? I had made it clear that I didn’t care, that I only wanted her to pay for the scandal she had caused.But hearing them repeated by Cassandra made them feel crueler than I had intended. Did I really mean it? Was I truly that indifferent?Before I could process my th
DORA’S POVThe atmosphere in Varya's room was thick with tension. Cassandra’s words hung in the air like a poisonous cloud, suffocating and malicious. I stood beside her, feeling the familiar rush of satisfaction as she delivered her venomous message to Varya.But something was gnawing at the edges of my confidence, a feeling I couldn’t quite shake.“And would she leave her house?”The unexpected voice from the doorway froze me in place. I turned slowly, my heart lurching in my chest. Grandpa Cassian stood there, his stern gaze sweeping over the room. The air seemed to be still as his presence demanded attention.My pulse quickened, and a cold sweat broke out on the back of my neck. What was he doing here? He wasn’t supposed to be back for another month. How much had he heard?Cassandra stammered beside me, her usual confidence faltering. “Grandpa, you weren’t supposed to be back until next month. We… we didn’t know.”Grandpa ignored her, his eyes now fixed on Varya. I followed his ga
KYLO’S POVThe moment the truth came out, everything shifted. As Grandpa Cassian spoke, detailing how he had seen Varya that day at the hotel, the weight of my actions started pressing down on me. I almost choked as it hit home—Varya wasn’t flirting with anyone else.She wasn’t cheating on me either. All these while I was punishing her for something that she did not do.The truth hit me like an uppercut to the ribs; I was left shaken and breathless. My thinking kept going over every mean thing I had said to her, every harsh stare and casual move away.I thought she had betrayed me and brought shame to our family name so much so that I couldn’t possibly think otherwise. And yet, here she was, standing innocent in the wake of my accusations.As Grandpa continued to speak, recounting his encounter with Varya, I couldn’t bring myself to look at her. Shame gnawed at me, biting deeper with each passing second.How could I have been so blind? So quick to judge without even giving her a chanc
VARYA’S POV The mansion feels so empty without Kylo. Each time I move, my feet make sounds that roll across the shiny floor; that is the only sound that reminds me of the loneliness that has set in my heart. One day I convinced myself that it was normal, that it was what was promised when we got married; it could never be about love and companionship but a part of me wants the man that made me feel safe in this cruel world. But he is not here; he has left for a business trip; I am here all alone with Dora and Cassandra. Whereas earlier they used to humiliate with their winks and sneers, now they are openly abusive. One hardly has to remind ourselves of it anymore. I can see it in the way they look at me; the hatred in their eyes, the way they speak to each other when they assume that I am out of earshot. The staff has also followed this trend and taken their positions. The respect that they used to keep in their behavior has transformed into rudeness. It’s in the way they bar
Every dawn, I wrestle out of bed, gripping the worn-out edges of a routine that’s barely keeping me intact. I stand up, get dressed, and make an attempt at readying myself for whatever lies ahead but it seems more challenging every day.The longer shockingly Kylo is away, the more I feel like am coming apart.I channel my attention towards work which is the only thing left in me under control. My designs have always served as an asylum to escape the stifling reality surrounding my life here. But even that doesn’t seem easy anymore. As I sit at my desk with my pencil poised above the paper, it wouldn’t allow any line to be drawn by hand.The blank page seems to taunt me as if reminding me about how hollow I am inside.It doesn’t help that Dora and Cassandra have made it their mission to destroy whatever little peace I have left. They’re always watching, waiting for me to slip up.It started with small things—misplacing my sketches, moving my tools so I’d waste time looking for them—but
They go in a circle, days following days; either in utter silence or choking to death. Every morning, I get up, in the same bed, in the same damp, chilly, uncomfortable room wanting the day something will be different.But it never does. Kylo is still absent, and I am still alive, to suffer in this house which is gradually transforming into a mausoleum with every passing day.This loneliness lingers like an old friend that follows one around, but an unwelcome friend all the same. I attempted to keep the days occupied, keep the mind busy with something that could occupy and possibly distract from the growing anxiety and void within me, and it only grows harder to conceal.I found that even elements that I used to consider as my safe havens like the designs I create are now becoming a nuisance to me. There I am, at my desk, ready to work, holding a pencil, but ideas no longer flow as once did. My head is too muddled, too heavy with what has occurred.With this, I end up being on my own
KYLO’S POVOn this return trip, my expectations were that everything would remain constant. It may have been immature on my part but after all that had transpired, I held out hope that Varya and I could begin again as if nothing had taken place.In our relationship, there was an undeniable difference, a subtle one perhaps, but still noticeable in the way she looked at me before our words became more loving and less impersonal before I left.It was as if we were finally moving away from the bitterness that had characterized our union from its inception. A new dimension was gradually emerging in her personality towards me; warm-hearted, sensitive, and perhaps even tenderly affectionate.But now, standing in the doorway of our home, I felt a coldness that was unrelated to the air conditioning. Varya was waiting for me just like any wife would, but something was off with her. She was not like the person I had left behind at all.The tentative warmth that had begun to melt our hearts had d