Chapter Two: Two Broken Souls
941 Words
Chapter Two: Two Broken Souls
The Grand Monarch Hotel bar was unusually quiet for a Friday night. Warm golden lights reflected against polished marble floors while a pianist played a slow melody in the corner. Expensive laughter echoed from a group of executives celebrating another successful business deal, but to Ariana Cole, the entire room sounded distant.
She sat alone at the counter, her fingers wrapped around a glass of whiskey she had no business drinking.
Only an hour ago, she had walked into Room 2501, expecting the happiest moment of her life. Instead, she found Ethan kissing another woman.
Three years.
Three years of trust, sacrifices, birthdays, anniversaries, and promises... all destroyed in seconds.
She swallowed another sip, ignoring the burning sensation in her throat.
"Another one?" the bartender asked gently.
Ariana gave a weak smile. "Just this one."
The bartender nodded and quietly refilled her glass.
Across the room, Damien Blackwood sat alone in a private corner, his expensive black suit perfectly tailored. However, the loosened tie around his neck suggested even billionaires had nights they wished to forget.
His phone vibrated again.
Victor: *The board meeting has been moved to tomorrow morning. We found the leak, but the media already has the documents.*
Damien closed his eyes briefly. Months of planning... billions of dollars... everything had begun falling apart because someone he trusted had betrayed him.
Before he could think, another notification appeared.
His mother's name flashed across the screen.
Mother: *Don't forget the engagement dinner next week. Eleanor's family is expecting an announcement.*
His expression hardened. Without reading another word, he locked the phone and placed it face down on the counter.
"Another whiskey," he said.
The bartender hesitated.
"Sir... perhaps you've had enough."
Damien slowly raised his eyes. There was no anger in them—only exhaustion.
"I asked for another whiskey."
The bartender quietly obeyed.
As Damien reached for the glass, movement at the opposite end of the bar caught his attention.
A young woman sat alone.
She wasn't scrolling through her phone or chatting with friends. She simply stared at the amber liquid before her as though it carried the answers to every question in her life.
Then she wiped away a tear.
Damien looked away almost immediately.
Other people's pain had never been his concern.
Tonight wasn't going to be any different.
Unfortunately, fate had other plans.
A loud burst of laughter shattered the calm atmosphere as three well-dressed businessmen entered the bar. Already intoxicated, they occupied the stools beside Ariana.
One of them smiled.
"Well... aren't you too beautiful to be drinking alone?"
Ariana forced a polite smile.
"I'm waiting for someone."
It was a lie.
She simply wanted to be left alone.
The man leaned closer.
"Then, until they arrive, how about I keep you company?"
"No, thank you."
"I insist."
"I said no."
His smile slowly disappeared.
"You've got quite the attitude."
Ariana picked up her handbag.
"I think I'll leave."
As she stood, the man reached out and grabbed her wrist.
"You don't get to embarrass me in front of my friends."
Fear flashed across her face.
Before she could react, another hand firmly gripped the man's arm.
"You heard her."
The voice was calm.
Cold.
Dangerously calm.
The businessman turned.
"And who the hell are you?"
Damien released the man's arm with deliberate slowness.
"Someone asking you to let go."
The drunken man laughed.
"You think wearing an expensive suit makes you important?"
One of his friends looked closely at Damien's face.
His confidence vanished instantly.
"Oh my God..."
He grabbed his friend's shoulder.
"That's Damien Blackwood."
The colour drained from the man's face.
"The CEO?"
Damien didn't confirm it.
He didn't have to.
"I'll give you five seconds to apologize."
"I'm... I'm sorry."
"Not to me."
The man looked at Ariana.
"I'm sorry."
Damien stepped aside.
"You may leave now."
Within seconds, the three men disappeared from the bar without another word.
Silence settled over the room once more.
Ariana slowly released the breath she'd been holding.
"Thank you."
Damien adjusted the sleeve of his jacket.
"I didn't do it for thanks."
"Still... you helped me."
He simply nodded.
She studied him for a moment.
Up close, he was even more striking than she'd first realized. Tall. Broad shoulders. Sharp features. But beneath the confidence was something unexpected.
Sadness.
The same sadness she had seen in the mirror earlier that evening.
"You look like someone who's had a worse night than I have," she said softly.
One corner of Damien's mouth almost lifted.
"That's unlikely."
"You'd be surprised."
For a brief moment, neither of them spoke.
The bartender walked over with two fresh glasses.
"This one's on the house," he said with a smile. "You both look like you could use a little kindness tonight."
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Ariana laughed quietly.h.f ynh h jg v
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It was the first genuine laugh she'd managed all evening.
Damien looked at her.
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"You laugh even after crying."
"I don't like people seeing me fall apart."
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"I understand."
She tilted her head.
"You do?"
He stared into the whiskey before answering.
"More than you think."9
Outside, rain began tapping softly against the hotel's floor-to-ceiling windows. The city lights blurred behind the droplets, turning the skyline into a watercolour painting.
Inside the quiet bar, two strangers sat side by side, carrying wounds they had no intention of sharing.
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Neither of them realized that this conversation... was the beginning of a story that would change both their lives forever.
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- Writer
