CHAPTER 5: HIS DARK PAST
474 Words
After the meeting, Ethan Cruz didn't return to his office immediately.
He walked instead.
Through the glass hallways of Cruz Enterprises, past silent employees, past blinking monitors and ringing phones that no longer reached his attention.
For the first time in a long time, something in his mind wasn't fully controlled.
Lia Santos.
The way she spoke in the meeting.
The way she didn't hesitate even when all eyes turned to her.
And the way she was right.
He should have felt nothing.
He usually did.
But this time... it stayed.
Annoyingly.
Uncomfortably.
Human.
He stopped at the end of the hallway, staring out at the city below.
Rain still fell, but softer now.
Like even the sky was tired.
Ethan's reflection appeared faintly on the glass.
Perfect suit. Perfect posture. Perfect expression.
But inside-
Something wasn't aligned.
And he hated that.
That night, Ethan stayed late in his office.
The building slowly emptied.
Lights dimmed floor by floor until only the executive level remained bright.
Lia had already left hours ago.
But her presence still lingered in the space she worked in.
Ethan noticed things he usually ignored.
The way she organized her desk before leaving.
The way she aligned documents neatly even when no one asked her to.
The way she tried.
He opened a drawer.
Inside was a small folder-old, worn, almost untouched.
He hesitated before pulling it out.
For a moment, he simply stared at it.
Then opened it.
Inside were documents he rarely revisited.
Old reports.
Old names.
A photograph slipped slightly from between the pages.
Ethan's jaw tightened.
He didn't look away.
Not yet.
The photograph showed a younger Ethan Cruz.
Smiling.
But barely recognizable.
Beside him was a woman.
Warm smile. Soft eyes. The kind of presence that made even silence feel safe.
Her name was never spoken in the company.
Not anymore.
She was part of the reason Ethan became who he was.
A betrayal.
A loss.
A decision he never forgave.
He closed the folder slowly.
The sound echoed in the quiet office.
Ethan leaned back in his chair, eyes fixed on nothing.
His voice was low when he finally spoke-barely above a whisper.
"I won't make that mistake again."
But even as he said it...
Lia's face appeared in his mind again.
Not the confident assistant in the meeting.
Not the quiet worker at her desk.
But the way she looked when she wasn't afraid to speak.
And for the first time in years...
Ethan Cruz felt something dangerous.
Not anger.
Not control.
But doubt.
He stood up abruptly and walked to the window again.
The city lights blurred through the rain.
And somewhere inside him-
a wall he built years ago...
cracked just slightly.
Not enough to break.
But enough to let something in.
Something he had avoided for a very long time.
- Writer
