The others had gone after Xie Lian, leaving the room heavy with a suffocating silence. The only sound now was Wei Zhan's shallow breathing and the occasional crackle of the lantern flame.
Saanvi stood still, her hands clenched at her sides, nails digging into her skin.
Wei Zhan, the prince—the fool—lay half-conscious, whispering a name that shattered another soul. And Saanvi? She had seen it. She had felt it coming. And still, she couldn't stop it.
Her voice was low, trembling. "It happened…"
Vihaan looked up from where he knelt beside Wei Zhan, quietly adjusting the damp cloth on his forehead.
"The one thing I feared the most," she whispered, as if saying it out loud made it final.
Vihaan's gaze softened. "Saanvi…"
She turned sharply, eyes blazing.
"Don't."
The single word struck like a whip.
Vihaan flinched but didn't speak.
"Don't say anything. Don't try to comfort me. Don't you dare speak to me like you understand."
Her voice rose with each word, shaking with fury and hurt. "You think this is about love triangles? About two boys and a broken heart? You think this is some stupid drama playing out again?"
Vihaan stood slowly, keeping his distance, calm despite the storm.
"I know it hurts—"
"NO, YOU DON'T!" she exploded, stepping toward him. "You don't know anything! You didn't see what I saw in the past! You didn't live through it—watching people fall apart, destroying themselves over the same cursed bond! The same destined path!"
She stopped, breath heaving, fists trembling at her sides.
"I've spent lifetimes watching hearts break over this," she said, her voice cracking. "And now it's happening again. Again! And I—"
She turned her face away, choking on the weight of her emotions.
Vihaan took a step closer, gently—too gently.
Saanvi glared at him through a veil of unshed tears. "You think I'm strong, don't you? That I can hold it together every time the world falls apart. But I'm tired, Vihaan. I'm so tired of fate playing with the hearts of those I care about."
She whispered like a confession, "I thought I could stop it this time. I thought I had done enough."
Vihaan's voice was soft. "You're not alone, Saanvi. I've always—"
"No!" she snapped, her voice sharp again. "Don't stand there and act like you're my shield. You think just by being near me, you're helping. But you don't do anything! You just watch! Always watching me like I'm going to break—but never doing a damn thing to stop it."
That one cut deep.
Vihaan's jaw tensed. He said nothing.
Saanvi's anger began to tremble into something rawer—grief. "I keep carrying this weight, Vihaan... and you—you just follow me around like a ghost, like some reminder of everything I lost."
Silence. Wei Zhan mumbled something in his sleep again, but neither of them looked at him this time.
Vihaan's eyes darkened with quiet ache. His voice, barely a whisper: "Maybe that's all I know how to be. The one who stays. Even when you push me away."
Her lips parted, but nothing came out.
For a long, heavy second, nothing moved. The space between them was filled with a thousand unspoken memories, too painful to name.
Then finally, she turned away from him—her voice low, tired.
"I didn't need someone who stayed. I needed someone who fought."
And with that, she left the room, her footsteps echoing like thunder across the quiet inn.
Vihaan didn't follow her.
He just stared at the door, eyes distant, heart heavy.
And for the first time, even he didn't know if staying would be enough anymore.
---
Scene: Silent Devotion
The door clicked softly behind her, and silence fell again.
Vihaan stood alone in the room now, with only Wei Zhan's unconscious form for company. The air felt colder somehow, heavier.
He slowly turned toward the window, watching the faint moonlight spill through the paper panels. His jaw clenched, but his eyes shimmered with restrained pain.
Then, as if the pressure inside him finally cracked open, he whispered aloud—to no one, and yet to her.
"Do you think I don't understand you?"
His voice was raw, shaking slightly.
"You're wrong, Saanvi." He let out a bitter laugh, though there was no amusement in it. "No one in this world understands you better than I do. Not even yourself."
He turned from the window and stared at the empty space where she had stood minutes ago, as though her presence still lingered.
"You think I've just been standing beside you… watching?" His voice broke a little. "No. I've been walking through fire with you. Again and again. Lifetime after lifetime. You just don't remember."
His fingers curled into fists at his sides, trembling.
"Do you know how it feels, Saanvi?" he asked softly, his voice carrying the weight of centuries. "To be beside the one you love more than anything, and have her look right through you like you're a stranger?"
He looked down at the floor, swallowing hard.
"But still... even if you don't recognize me... even if you scold me with words that cut deeper than any blade..." He breathed in, steadying his voice. "I'll still follow you. Everywhere. Every lifetime. Because you're the only truth I've ever known."
He stepped toward the bed and sat gently next to Wei Zhan, whose face was still pale in restless sleep.
Vihaan glanced at him briefly, then closed his eyes.
"One day... when your memories return... you'll remember who I am. And when that day comes, I know it will hurt you to recall the way you shouted at me. The way you pushed me away."
He paused, his voice softer now.
"But don't carry that guilt, Saanvi. Just remember this—"
"I've always loved you."
"And this time… I'll win your heart again."
With that, Vihaan leaned back slightly and stared up at the ceiling. No more words, no more tears—only the quiet echo of love that never stopped burning.
---
Scene: Behind the Locked Door
The air was thick with tension as Xie Lian stormed down the hallway, his steps shaky but determined. His vision was blurred, not from tears—he refused to let himself cry—but from the whirlpool of emotions crashing inside him.
He reached one of the empty guest rooms, slammed the door shut, and locked it with trembling fingers.
Then he collapsed to the floor.
His back against the door, knees pulled to his chest, he buried his face into his arms.
The silence was deafening.
"Why…" he whispered to himself, voice trembling. "Why him…? Why not me…?"
From outside, footsteps approached. Then came the gentle knock.
"Xie Lian," Tianlan's voice came through softly. "Please open the door."
No reply.
"We know you're hurting. But shutting yourself away won't make it better," Devran said next, his voice firm yet laced with worry. "We're here for you."
Still, silence.
Inside, Xie Lian's lips quivered.
"He said Tianlan... he said your name," he murmured brokenly to himself, voice cracking. "All this time, I thought... it was me. That he loved me..."
Another knock.
"Xie Lian, please," Riku added. "You're not alone, okay? Whatever this is, we can face it together!"
But it only made the ache worse.
He curled tighter into himself, shaking.
"I'm always the one who's chosen last, aren't I?" he whispered into the silence. "Even when I give everything... even when I love with everything... it's still never enough."
A long pause. Then Saanvi's voice—gentle, careful.
"Xie Lian, I know what it feels like to be forgotten. To watch someone you love call out another's name. I know that pain. Please... open the door. Talk to us."
His breath hitched.
He wanted to open the door.
He wanted someone to hold him, to tell him this wasn't the end, that his heart hadn't been shattered beyond repair.
But the fear of seeing their pity—the fear of facing Tianlan and pretending it didn't hurt—froze him.
"Please go away," he whispered hoarsely. "Just leave me alone…"
Silence followed.
And then… the sound of footsteps slowly retreating.
One by one, they left, unsure of what else to say.
Inside the locked room, Xie Lian pressed a hand to his chest.
"Why did it have to be you, Wei Zhan…?" he whispered, his voice breaking into a sob.
"Why didn't you choose me…?"
The moonlight spilled through the small window, casting long shadows across the room. And in the silence, a quiet storm raged within him—of love, jealousy, heartbreak, and unanswered hope.
----