Contracted Hearts

Three Days Of Silence

The first day felt endless.

Zara locked the bedroom door immediately after returning from the Cole mansion and never came out again.

At first, Amara assumed she simply needed time to calm down.

An hour passed.

Then two.

Then night came.

Still no sound from inside the room.

Amara stood outside the door carrying a plate of food and knocked gently.

“Zara?”

Silence.

She tried again.

“Please open the door.”

Nothing.

Amara sighed softly and leaned against the wall. “You have to eat something.”

Still nothing.

Inside the room, Zara sat on the floor beside the bed with her knees pulled tightly against her chest while tears rolled endlessly down her face.

Her phone lay beside her vibrating nonstop.

Adrian.

Again.

And again.

And again.

She ignored every single call.

The room around her looked dark despite the afternoon sun outside because she had pulled the curtains shut completely.

Everything felt suffocating.

Her chest.

Her thoughts.

The pregnancy.

The contract.

Adrian’s words.

A stain.

Someone like you.

Well known cleaner.

Every sentence replayed endlessly inside her head until breathing itself became exhausting.

She pressed both hands over her ears tightly like she could physically block the memories out.

But it did not help.

Nothing helped.

A fresh wave of tears escaped her again.

Because deep down, beneath all the anger, she knew the real reason she was hurting this much.

It was because Adrian mattered now.

And she hated herself for it.

Zara laughed bitterly through tears.

“What kind of fool are you?”

The question echoed quietly through the room.

This was supposed to be temporary.

Transactional.

Nothing emotional.

So why did it feel like her heart was breaking?

Another knock came outside the door.

This time louder.

“Zara.”

Amara again.

“You’ve been inside there for hours.”

Silence.

“At least answer me.”

Zara closed her eyes tightly.

“I want to be alone.”

The weakness in her own voice scared her slightly.

Amara heard it too.

“You sound terrible.”

“I’m fine.”

“No you’re not.”

Silence again.

Then Amara’s voice softened.

“Please eat something.”

Zara stared blankly at the untouched water bottle near the bed.

Suddenly even eating felt exhausting.

Everything did.

Her phone vibrated again.

Adrian.

This time she switched it off completely.

Across town, Adrian sat through one of the longest meetings of his life while thinking about absolutely nothing being discussed.

Numbers flashed across screens.

Executives argued about market projections.

Investors asked questions.

None of it stayed inside his head.

Because every few minutes, his mind returned to Zara.

Locked inside her apartment.

Ignoring him.

Ignoring everyone.

Adrian stared blankly at his own phone beneath the conference table.

No response.

Still.

His irritation grew with every passing hour.

Not because she was avoiding him.

But because she was shutting down completely.

And that unsettled him more than he liked.

“Mr. Cole?”

He blinked slightly and looked up.

One of the executives frowned carefully. “Are you with us?”

Adrian straightened immediately. “Continue.”

But honestly?

He barely listened for the rest of the meeting.

The moment it ended, he called Zara again.

Straight to voicemail.

Again.

His jaw tightened instantly.

He tried once more.

Nothing.

By evening, he had called six times.

Still nothing.

And for some reason, the silence bothered him deeply.

Back at the apartment, night settled heavily across the small house.

Amara sat outside Zara’s door looking exhausted herself now.

The untouched plate of food remained on the floor exactly where she left it hours ago.

That worried her more.

“Zara.”

Silence.

“You’re scaring me.”

Nothing.

Amara rubbed her face tiredly before trying again.

“You cannot stay in there forever.”

A long silence followed.

Then finally Zara spoke quietly from inside.

“I’m tired.”

Amara’s chest tightened immediately at how broken she sounded.

“Please open the door.”

“No.”

“Why?”

Silence again.

Then Zara whispered something so softly Amara almost missed it.

“Because if I start talking, I might completely fall apart.”

That broke Amara’s heart instantly.

She leaned her forehead gently against the door.

“You’re not alone.”

Inside the room, Zara cried harder after hearing that.

The second day felt worse.

By morning, Zara still had not properly eaten.

Amara managed to convince her to drink water through endless pleading, but that was all.

She refused to open the door.

Refused sunlight.

Refused conversation.

At some point during the afternoon, their mother called from the hospital asking why Zara sounded strange on the phone the previous day.

Amara lied immediately.

“She’s just stressed.”

The guilt nearly crushed her afterward.

Because Zara was not stressed.

She was emotionally destroyed.

Around noon, Adrian called again.

And again.

And again.

Seven times.

Then nine.

Then twelve.

Still nothing.

By evening, frustration fully settled into him.

He sat inside his office staring at Zara’s unread messages while irritation and worry mixed dangerously inside his chest.

This was becoming ridiculous.

Why was she shutting him out this badly?

He typed another message.

Please answer me.

Then deleted it immediately.

Too desperate.

He typed again.

We need to talk.

Deleted again.

Finally, after several seconds, he sent only three words.

I’m coming over.

Amara opened the apartment door later that evening and immediately looked annoyed after seeing Adrian standing there.

“You have nerve.”

Adrian barely reacted.

“Move.”

“No.”

His eyes shifted briefly toward the hallway behind her.

“Where is she?”

“Inside.”

“Has she eaten?”

Amara folded her arms tightly. “Now you care?”

His expression darkened slightly. “I always cared.”

“That is actually hilarious.”

Adrian exhaled slowly, visibly trying to remain calm.

“I came to see her.”

“She doesn’t want to see you.”

“You asked her?”

“Yes.”

“What did she say?”

Amara looked directly at him now.

“She cried.”

That hit him harder than expected.

For a second, he genuinely looked affected.

Amara noticed immediately.

Good.

“She has barely left that room,” Amara continued coldly. “She barely eats. She barely talks. And all because you made her feel worthless.”

Adrian’s jaw tightened.

“That wasn’t my intention.”

“But that’s what happened.”

Silence.

Painfully heavy silence.

Then Adrian tried moving past her slightly.

Amara blocked him immediately.

“No.”

“I just need five minutes.”

“She said no.”

“Amara.”

“No.” Her voice rose this time. “You don’t get to hurt her and then suddenly decide to play concerned husband.”

His expression hardened immediately.

“You think I’m pretending?”

“I think you don’t even know what you feel.”

That irritated him because somewhere deep down, she was right.

Adrian rubbed his forehead tiredly.

“Please.”

The word surprised even Amara slightly.

Because Adrian Cole did not sound like a man used to begging.

But Amara remained firm anyway.

“She doesn’t want to see you.”

Silence stretched between them.

Then finally Adrian looked toward Zara’s closed door one last time before stepping back slowly.

“Tell her I came.”

Amara’s expression softened only slightly.

“She knows.”

Inside the room, Zara heard everything.

Every word.

Every argument.

Every second of Adrian’s voice outside.

And somehow hearing him sounded worse than not hearing him at all.

Because part of her wanted to open the door.

Part of her wanted to scream at him.

Part of her wanted him to leave.

And the worst part?

Another small painful part wanted him to stay.

She hated herself for that.

By the time Adrian left, Zara cried herself to sleep curled up tightly beneath the blankets.

The third day felt colder than the others.

Zara woke up weak, emotionally exhausted and empty.

Not angry anymore.

Just numb.

She remained in bed staring blankly at the ceiling for hours while silence filled the room.

Outside, Amara knocked repeatedly throughout the morning.

“Zara.”

Nothing.

“Please answer.”

Silence.

By afternoon, Amara became genuinely frightened.

“You’re pregnant,” she said through the door shakily. “You cannot keep doing this to yourself.”

That finally made Zara close her eyes painfully.

Pregnant.

Even now the word still felt unreal.

She placed a trembling hand against her stomach slowly.

Everything about her life had changed within days.

And somehow she no longer recognized herself anymore.

That same evening, Adrian finally returned home after another exhausting day at the office.

The moment he entered the mansion, he knew something was wrong.

Eleanor sat in the living room waiting.

Richard stood beside the fireplace.

Vanessa sat quietly nearby scrolling through her phone.

The atmosphere felt tense immediately.

Eleanor looked up first.

“Did you reach her?”

Adrian loosened his tie tiredly. “No.”

Richard frowned deeply. “Still?”

“She refuses to speak to anyone properly.”

Vanessa slowly lowered her phone now.

“That’s not good.”

Adrian’s irritation returned instantly. “Obviously.”

Eleanor exchanged a glance with Richard before speaking carefully.

“She’s emotional right now.”

“She has reasons to be.”

“That’s not the issue.”

Something about her tone made Adrian narrow his eyes slightly.

“What exactly is the issue then?”

Silence.

Brief but noticeable.

Then Richard answered calmly.

“The baby.”

The atmosphere shifted instantly.

Adrian looked between them carefully now.

“What about the baby?”

Eleanor folded her arms slowly. “If Zara decides to become reckless emotionally, things could become complicated.”

His jaw tightened immediately.

“She wouldn’t do anything.”

But honestly?

He no longer sounded completely sure.

Vanessa finally spoke quietly.

“She threatened it before.”

The room became heavier instantly.

Adrian looked away briefly.

Because that part terrified him more than he wanted to admit.

Eleanor’s voice turned colder now.

“If she tries anything foolish, she will suffer for it.”

Adrian frowned sharply. “Mother.”

“What?” Eleanor replied calmly. “I’m speaking realistically.”

“She’s pregnant, not a criminal.”

“She signed an agreement.”

That sentence lingered strangely in the room.

Adrian noticed it immediately.

Especially the look exchanged between his parents afterward.

A look that felt too careful.

Too knowing.

Something uncomfortable settled inside his chest.

“What agreement exactly?” he asked slowly.

For half a second, nobody answered.

Then Richard spoke smoothly.

“The future of this family depends on that child now.”

Vanessa looked thoughtful beside them.

“And Zara is emotional enough to ruin things if she panics.”

Eleanor nodded once slowly.

“That girl needs to understand some decisions cannot be undone.”

The coldness in her voice unsettled even Vanessa slightly.

Then suddenly a soft sound came from outside the living room.

Barely noticeable.

Like movement.

Everyone turned instantly.

A maid hurried past the hallway too quickly.

Eleanor’s face hardened immediately.

“How long was she standing there?”

Nobody answered.

The tension became sharp instantly.

Richard cursed quietly under his breath.

Vanessa slowly stood up now looking uneasy for the first time all evening.

And Adrian?

Adrian stood there silently realizing something felt deeply wrong.

Not just with Zara.

Not just with the pregnancy.

But with his entire family.

And for the first time since this arrangement began, suspicion truly entered his mind.