chapter 10 - No Way Out
1218 Words
Arianne stepped back inside her family’s house, only to be met by the familiar expressions of expectation from her older brother and sister. They had tasks they wanted her to handle, problems they needed her help with, but as always, their gratitude was nowhere to be found. She moved through the day quietly, offering assistance and advice, but their dismissive attitudes felt like a familiar weight pressing down on her.
By evening, she finally retreated to her room. Closing the door behind her, she sank onto her bed, the soft sheets doing little to comfort her racing mind. Her thoughts kept circling back to the marriage certificate she had seen earlier, the one Damien had handed to his grandmother.
What am I supposed to do? she whispered to the darkness. How can I get tied to someone I just met yesterday?
A pang of regret sliced through her chest. Accepting his invitation had seemed harmless at the time, but now she felt trapped by the whirlwind of events and emotions she could barely process.
Just as she was trying to distract herself with a deep breath, her phone vibrated sharply on the bedside table. The number flashed across the screen, Damien. Her chest tightened instinctively, and without a second thought, she ignored the call. Before she could hesitate, she blocked the number entirely, silencing the insistent buzzing of his presence.
Yet blocking him brought little relief. Her mind replayed his intense gaze, the calm authority in his voice, and the certainty with which he claimed her. Sleep eluded her. Hours dragged by as she tossed and turned, her mind refusing to quiet.
Eventually, exhaustion claimed her, and she slipped into a restless, shallow sleep, haunted by the events of the day and the chilling certainty that Damien would not let this go so easily.
Damian stared at his phone, watching the call go unanswered. He raised an eyebrow, irritation flickering across his usually composed face. She hadn’t even given him a moment of courtesy, not a single word.
So, she dares to ignore me?
His jaw tightened. Every instinct in him screamed at the audacity of it. He had been patient once, allowing her small freedoms, but this, this was defiance. And defiance, in his world, could not go unpunished.
When he saw that she had blocked his number entirely, a slow, dangerous smile spread across his face. Good. Let her try to run. Let her believe she has control.
Damian leaned back in his chair, fingers tapping lightly on the leather armrest. He was calm, coldly calm, but inside, a storm was building. This was not rejection. This was a challenge. And he never lost challenges.
She thinks she can escape me? She will learn soon enough that her world now revolves around me.
He pulled his phone close again, considering his next move. There would be no unnecessary calls, no pleading messages. He would be patient, meticulous. She would respond, not because she wanted to, but because she had no other choice.
And when she finally realizes the truth, she will stop resisting. She always does.
Arianne woke with a heavy head, the remnants of restless dreams clinging to her skin like a fog. Something in her felt different, strange, unsettled, as if yesterday’s whirlwind had carved an invisible scar across her heart.
It’s Sunday, she reminded herself as she dressed with care, smoothing down her simple dress. I’ll go out today. Just for myself. Some air, some freedom.
But when she descended the stairs for breakfast, her small hope withered instantly.
Everyone was already gathered around the long table. her parents, her brother, her sister and next to them, seated comfortably as if he belonged, was him. Her fiancé Adrien
The sight of him once used to bring her some sense of relief, a shield her parents had crafted for her future. But today, looking at him filled her chest with something sharp and ugly. Hatred. It startled her how strong it was, how immediate.
He barely even acknowledged her presence, glancing at her once before turning back to his conversation with her brother and sister, laughing softly, as if she were invisible.
Arianne clenched her fingers against her skirt, forcing herself to greet her parents before sitting quietly at the table. She refused to look at him again.
As her spoon dipped into her porridge, her mind spun back to yesterday, to Damien, to his piercing eyes, to that infuriating confidence, and most of all, to the weight of the marriage certificate now sitting in his possession.
Her stomach knotted. That certificate was dangerous, absurd, impossible… and yet, as her fiancé’s voice droned in the background, a flicker of thought took root inside her.
Maybe this isn’t a curse. Maybe… it’s an escape.
She hated herself for thinking it, but it was true. If she played it carefully, this bizarre bond with Damien might be the only weapon she had to end this engagement her parents had forced upon her.
Her fiancé never once looked her way as she silently ate. She watched him from the corner of her eye, and her hatred hardened further. She no longer wanted him, no longer wanted this future.
No, she needed to take this opportunity. That certificate, that claim Damien had made over her, she could turn it into her shield.
For the first time, she allowed herself the smallest smile. Yes, she thought. This will end today.
Her fiancé kept his composure, laughing lightly as he spoke with her siblings Julien and Isabelle , but inside his chest, unease pressed against his ribs. Since she entered the dining room, she hadn’t even looked at him, hadn’t offered her usual shy smile, hadn’t hurried to sit closer, hadn’t greeted him with the warmth he had grown accustomed to.
Before, she always made it clear he was the axis of her world. Now, nothing.
Her cold indifference scraped at his pride, but he forced himself to maintain his mask, his tone casual, his posture relaxed. Control that was everything. He was supposed to be the center of her existence, and he would not let her forget it.
The clinking of silverware filled the silence, until her father, in his usual blunt way, looked across the table and asked, “Don’t you think it’s time for you two to get married?”
The question sliced through the air like a blade.
Arianne’s hand froze halfway to her mouth, her spoon trembling. Her heart thudded painfully as though trying to claw its way out of her chest.
Before her fiancé could open his mouth, her sister leaned forward with a sly smile, eyes glinting with something sharp. She’s still too naive, Dad, she said smoothly, as if speaking for both sides. Let’s wait at least two more years.
Her sister’s gaze lingered on her, heavy and condescending, like a chain fastened around her neck.
The weight of it all became unbearable.
Suddenly, Arianne stood, her chair scraping loudly against the floor. Her voice trembled but rang clear:
“Dad… I don’t want to marry . You should just break it off.”
The room went utterly still. Every head turned toward her, eyes wide, mouths slightly open as if the world had tilted on its axis in that single moment.
- Writer
