CHAPTER 27
1219 Words
“Who Was She?”
---
Hazel’s POV
Outside the Office – Afternoon
I ran.
Down the hallway. Out of the building. Into the blinding afternoon light.
But I didn’t feel the sun on my skin.
I didn’t hear the traffic. The honking. The wind.
All I saw was him.
His hands on her waist.
His lips on hers.
And that look in his eyes after. Guilt. But not fast enough.
The sting in my chest was unbearable, like my lungs had given up. Like my heart couldn’t make sense of how quickly everything had crumbled.
I didn’t even realize where I was going until I found myself standing in front of Mia’s apartment, panting like I’d run a marathon through hell.
The door opened before I could knock.
“Hazel?” Mira’s tiny voice broke through my haze.
Seconds later, Mia appeared, her eyes wide as she took in my blotchy face, trembling hands, and uneven breaths.
“What happened?!” she asked, already pulling me inside.
I tried to speak. I really did.
But the words broke apart in my throat.
And all I could do… was cry.
She and Mira wrapped me in their arms.
And for a moment, I let myself fall apart.
---
Raymond’s POV
Later That Evening
We’d searched for what felt like hours.
I checked every corner of downtown, every park bench, every quiet bookstore Hazel might've run to. And Alexander? He looked like a man unraveling by the second.
He wasn’t saying much. But his silence said everything.
Until I remembered something—the address I'd shoved in my wallet.
Mia’s.
“She’s close to Hazel,” I muttered to myself, digging it out. “If she went anywhere…”
Alex looked at me, hope flashing in his tired eyes for the first time all day. “Let’s go.”
Without another word, we were gone.
---
Mia’s POV
Evening – My Apartment
There was a knock at the door.
I peeked through the peephole, and immediately my blood boiled.
Alexander.
I swung the door open so fast it nearly came off the hinges.
“What the hell are you doing here?”
His expression was tired. Haunted. But I didn’t care.
“You think you can show up after making her cry herself to sleep?!”
“Mia—please,” he said, his voice raw. “I need to see her. I need to explain.”
“She trusted you. She was finally letting her guard down—”
“Mia,” Raymond interrupted gently. “There’s more to this than what we saw.”
I turned to him, arms crossed, still fuming.
But I stepped aside.
Hazel deserved to hear the truth from him—even if I was two seconds from punching his stupid, handsome face.
“Talk,” I muttered. “But if she cries again, I’m kicking your rich ass out the window.”
---
Hazel’s POV
Living Room
I sat curled on the couch, wrapped in one of Mia’s blankets.
My head throbbed. My chest ached. I felt hollow and heavy all at once.
When I heard footsteps behind me, I didn’t have to look.
I knew it was him.
My heart recognized him even when I didn’t want it to.
“Who was she?” I asked, not turning around.
There was a pause. Then the couch dipped beside me.
“Her name is Vassane,” he said, voice low. Careful. “She’s… from a past I buried years ago.”
I turned to face him, finally. His face was worn, his eyes rimmed in red. And yet, he still looked like him. The man I’d begun to fall for. The man who made me feel safe.
Until today.
“She kissed you,” I whispered. “Like she still mattered to you.”
“She doesn’t,” he said quickly. “Hazel—she was never supposed to be there. I didn’t even know she was in Seattle. She just showed up, pushed her way in. I wasn’t thinking. I didn’t even get the chance to react before she—”
His voice cracked.
I clenched my jaw, my fists trembling.
“She hurt you,” I said quietly. “Didn’t she?”
He looked at me. And in his eyes, I saw it—pain. Deep, unspoken, and buried beneath years of pretending not to care.
“She broke me,” he admitted. “She used me to climb the social ladder. Lied to my face for months. I loved her… and she ripped me apart.”
He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees, his hands clasped tightly.
“I became the cold version of myself because of her. I swore I’d never let anyone close again. Until you.”
My chest twisted. I didn’t know what to say.
“I didn’t cheat, Hazel. I swear it. I would never do that to you. You’re the one who melted the walls I thought were unbreakable.”
His voice softened. “But I was a coward. I should’ve told you about her. I didn’t want to bring her into our world. I didn’t want her darkness to touch you.”
I looked down at my lap, my fingers clutching the edge of the blanket.
“Why didn’t you come after me?”
“I did,” he said, urgent now. “Raymond and I searched everywhere. We didn’t stop until we found you.”
I looked up slowly. And he looked… broken.
“I want to trust you,” I whispered.
He moved closer, gently reaching for my hand. “Then let me earn it. Every single day.”
---
Mia’s POV
Just Outside the Living Room
I had my ear pressed to the wall. Don’t judge me.
Raymond stood next to me, arms crossed, doing the exact same thing.
“She used him,” I whispered.
Raymond gave a slow nod. “Told you. He’s not just some CEO with an ice cube for a heart.”
I rolled my eyes. “Still. If he screws up again, I swear—I will become a one-woman wrecking crew.”
Raymond chuckled. “Remind me never to date you.”
I smirked. “You wouldn’t last five minutes.”
His smile faded slightly, and he looked down. “Probably not.”
I frowned.
But before I could ask what he meant—Hazel’s voice broke the silence from inside.
And when I peeked back in, they were holding hands.
---
Vassane’s POV
Luxury Hotel – Night
I lounged on the balcony, my red silk robe flowing like fire in the wind.
Seattle glimmered below me.
The wine in my glass was sweet. Almost as sweet as victory.
Alex hadn’t come after me.
But he would.
He always did.
I smiled to myself, lips painted like sin.
The game had only just begun.
Let’s see how far his little toy Hazel could go before she broke.
Because darling, I didn’t lose.
I reclaimed what was mine.
---
TO BE CONTINUED…
Hazel now knows the truth—but will her heart recover?
Alex is finally opening all the doors he once kept locked.
Vassane isn’t giving up—she’s just getting started.
And Mia and Raymond? They’re not just side characters anymore…
- Writer
