The darkness, tinged with the remnants of sunset, slowly crept across the sky until the stars began to shimmer freely between the feathery clouds that hung above the outskirts of the sprawling city.
Inside, the room was drowning in pitch blackness and bitter cold. Kaiser held Charlotte close under the blanket, keeping her wrapped tightly to shield her from the chill, while he remained bare-chested, wearing only his sweatpants.
He didn't feel the cold. On the contrary, he realized he possessed a strange ability to adapt to any freezing temperature that swept through the room as if the cold could not touch him the way it did others.
With his free hand, he gently traced the features of her sleeping face. He couldn't see her clearly, but the faint glimmer of light sneaking in was enough to show him what he needed, in the warmth of this calm that always comes before the storm.
He had always wanted to hold her like this. But when the opportunity finally came, she was with a man he couldn't stand… a man who saw nothing in him but enmity.
Even so, there was a silver lining: he had kissed her today. Who knows? Maybe she would leave that man and give him another chance… a chance that no longer felt as impossible as it once had.
"Another chance…"
He whispered it softly, his breath heavy with the scent of alcohol brushing her face like a calm sea breeze… that deceptive breeze before the storm.
As if it were a sign from fate, Charlotte's phone lit up the room for a brief moment before darkness swallowed everything once more.
Kaiser sighed in silence, lay on his back, and reached for the phone without hesitation. He unlocked the screen, and the name "Leonid" flashed in the notifications, tightening the knot in his chest. Still, there was some comfort in it: no hearts, no poetic nicknames, just "Leonid," plain and simple.
He boldly pulled down the notification bar and read the message:
[Leonid: I hope you're alright now, my darling.]
He curled his lip in disdain.
"My darling?... Disgusting."
On the quiet evening streets, the taxi turned and stopped in front of the apartment building.
"Thank you."
Natalia whispered as she paid the fare, then stepped out quietly.
Her footsteps were soft, and the elegant red dress hugged her body with quiet femininity. In her hand, she held a bouquet of mourning flowers, cradling it as if it carried a painful memory. She entered the building with hurried steps, slowing only when she noticed a man standing beside the elevator.
Cigarette smoke curled above his head as he leaned a shoulder against the marble wall. The air felt suffocating and cold, and Natalia shivered lightly before stopping next to him.
He didn't look at her, just kept smoking, eyes fixed on the elevator's closed doors.
She waited in silence, but time passed… and the elevator didn't move.
She frowned, looking up, then toward the elevator button it wasn't even lit.
"Excuse me, sir…"
She reached out with her free hand to press the button, feeling foolish for waiting for something that hadn't even been activated.
Maybe the man hadn't noticed, or maybe his half-drunken state left him completely unaware.
But she noticed… eventually, even if late.
"Please, step aside…"
She tried to reach for the button without touching him, but stopped abruptly when he lowered his head and looked at her with sharp eyes.
Her hand froze in midair and quickly pulled back.
Those eyes… green, dark, piercing staring at her with a cold warning that needed no words.
A few strands of his hair shifted with the motion, and he scanned her slowly, like an appraiser evaluating an object.
And when he noticed her unease, he raised his hand and pressed the button indifferently.
"Th-thank you,"
Natalia stammered, avoiding his gaze, fixing her eyes on anything but him.
A tense minute passed until the elevator finally arrived.
Natalia hesitated before stepping in… the idea of riding up with this strange man unsettled her.
But his cold voice sliced through her hesitation:
"Aren't you coming in?"
His tone was calm to the point of ice… it made her legs move against her will.
Her breath became almost shaky, as if even exhaling too loudly might irritate him.
Just as the doors were about to close, a voice echoed through the lobby:
"Wait for me!"
It was one of the residents from the eighth floor, running toward them at full speed.
Without needing to think, Natalia knew she had to stop the doors. A third person would make her feel safer.
She stepped forward to press the open button, but was startled by a hand suddenly grabbing her wrist, yanking her back.
"Hey—! What's wrong with you?!"
She cried out, the mourning flowers falling from her hand as she stepped back, the elevator doors closing directly in front of the other man.
Her eyes widened in shock as she turned to face the man who had nearly crushed her wrist.
"That was rude!"
She said sharply, hugging herself instinctively, trying to contain the discomfort clearly etched on her face.
Devin brought his cigarette to his lips and took a long drag, as if she didn't exist… just an annoying noise in the background.
Just an insect beside him.
And he wished he could crush her… but simply, he wasn't in the mood to play with two women at once.
"Don't you hear me? How dare you touch me like that? Say something!"
Natalia yelled, shattering the heavy silence in the elevator.
Finally, Devin's lips moved not to smoke, but to speak.
"Shut your mouth, lady."
The words froze in her throat.
When he turned to her, she stepped back twice, as if the air itself had grown heavier.
Until her back met the ornate wall behind her.
He looked at her intently, reading everything on her face… the fear, the hatred, the brokenness.
And after a long silence, he said in a cold tone:
"Good… an obedient lady."
"O…obedient?"
The word left her mouth laced with bitterness, as if she were about to vomit from sheer emotional nausea.
And in the next moment, the elevator stopped, and the doors opened.
Devin left without looking back.
As for Natalia, she gathered her courage despite the tension. She bent down first, picked up the bouquet of mourning flowers, then stepped out of the elevator slowly, raising her phone cautiously.
In one swift motion, she took a photo of him… or two… or dozens, until she captured a clear shot of his face and body.
She had to report him whether to Kaiser, building security, or even the police.
When he entered his apartment, Natalia was still standing beside the scattered flowers on the floor.
She knelt down quietly and began arranging them, just as another door suddenly opened.
She turned quickly and saw Leonid standing at the threshold of his apartment.
He was on his way out, casually elegant, his silver strands of hair falling gracefully over his forehead.
"You're offering mourning flowers too."
Leonid whispered gently, then closed the door behind him.
Natalia felt a bit embarrassed by how intently she'd been watching him. She lowered her eyes and said:
"Well… he was a sweet puppy."
Then added:
"By the way, how's Charlotte?"
Leonid replied in a calm voice:
"She's resting in her apartment. She says she needs some time alone."
"Yes, that sounds like her… Let her take her time. She'll be okay tomorrow."
Natalia stood up, smoothing her dress with a soft motion.
She noticed Leonid's eyes studying her, and her cheeks flushed without her realizing. Slowly, she raised her head and looked directly at him.
"Is there something wrong with my face?"
"No."
Leonid replied quickly, then added in a lower tone:
"Sorry for staring…"
He paused for a moment, then said quietly:
"And thank you."
He was truly grateful for that small gesture. Without saying more, Leonid turned and began walking toward the elevator.
Natalia stood there watching his back with glistening eyes, sparkling with a mix of emotions.
It wasn't the first time someone had thanked her, but… somehow, Leonid's thank you felt different.
Genuine. From the heart.
And after a brief moment of reflection, she couldn't help but admit to herself just how lucky Charlotte was to have met a man like Leonid.
Leonid took out his phone and checked it as he walked toward the elevator, which opened its doors just as he reached it.
He didn't slow his pace, even when a stranger with a grim expression and a scowling mouth stepped out.
He pressed the button for the ground floor and turned his eyes back to the phone screen.
His light-colored eyes stared at the message he had sent to Charlotte… one that still had no reply.
"Did she fall asleep already?"
He murmured to himself, unable to suppress the rare worry that had begun to creep in.
He stared at the screen for a moment, then sighed and turned off the phone. As the elevator stopped and its doors slid open, he started walking again.
Ever since he realized how he felt about her, he'd been cursed with this constant worry, not just when something was obviously wrong, but especially when she was suffering silently and said nothing at all.