chapter 6:the message
858 Words
Chapter 6: The Message
Ethan stared at his phone for a long time.
The message didn’t change.
It didn’t disappear.
It didn’t explain itself.
It just sat there, heavy and certain.
“Don’t ignore me again.”
His first instinct was denial.
Maybe it was a mistake.
Maybe someone else.
Maybe—
No.
Ethan exhaled slowly.
There was only one person in his life who could send a message like that and make it feel like a command instead of a request.
Adrian Blackwood.
---
Ethan locked his phone and tossed it onto his bed.
“This is not normal,” he muttered.
It wasn’t.
A CEO messaging an intern privately.
Watching him too closely.
Pulling him into executive meetings.
Saying things like don’t trust rooms full of people.
And now this.
It wasn’t normal.
But it was happening anyway.
---
The next morning, Ethan arrived at work earlier than usual.
He needed distance.
Clarity.
Control.
If he could just act normal, maybe everything would settle back into place.
Maybe Adrian would stop focusing on him.
Maybe the tension would fade.
Maybe—
“Good morning.”
Ethan froze mid-step.
Adrian stood near the elevator entrance.
Waiting.
Not casually.
Not accidentally.
Waiting.
Ethan straightened immediately. “Good morning, sir.”
A pause.
Adrian studied him.
Then: “You saw the message.”
It wasn’t a question.
Ethan’s jaw tightened slightly. “Yes.”
Another pause.
“Why didn’t you reply?”
Ethan blinked.
That was not appropriate.
Not even remotely.
But Adrian’s expression didn’t change.
As if this was a normal conversation.
As if boundaries didn’t apply to him.
Ethan forced his voice steady. “Because I didn’t know how to respond.”
Adrian nodded slowly.
As if that answer was acceptable.
Then he stepped aside.
“Come with me.”
---
The elevator ride to the executive floor felt longer than usual.
Neither of them spoke.
Ethan stood stiffly, eyes fixed ahead.
Adrian leaned lightly against the wall, calm as always.
But Ethan could feel it.
That awareness.
That focus.
Like Adrian was thinking about something he hadn’t said out loud yet.
---
When the doors opened, Ethan expected the usual conference room.
Instead, Adrian led him somewhere else.
A private office.
Smaller.
Quieter.
More isolated.
Ethan hesitated at the doorway. “Sir… this isn’t the usual meeting room.”
“No,” Adrian said simply.
Ethan frowned. “Then why are we here?”
Adrian walked inside.
“I wanted privacy.”
That should have sounded professional.
It didn’t.
Not with the way he said it.
Ethan stepped in slowly.
The door closed behind him.
A soft click.
Too final.
---
Adrian sat down across from him, gesturing for Ethan to take the seat opposite.
Ethan did.
Carefully.
Watchfully.
The silence stretched for a moment before Adrian spoke.
“You remember that night,” he said.
Ethan’s breath caught slightly.
“…Yes.”
“Completely?”
Ethan frowned. “Of course I do.”
A pause.
Adrian studied him.
Then leaned back slightly.
“Good.”
That word again.
Ethan exhaled slowly. “Why are you asking me this?”
Adrian didn’t answer immediately.
Instead, he reached into a drawer.
And placed something on the table.
Ethan froze.
It was a small object.
Familiar.
Too familiar.
The same umbrella.
The same one from the archive room.
Ethan’s voice dropped slightly. “Why do you still have that?”
Adrian’s eyes stayed on him.
“Because it was yours first.”
Silence.
Heavy.
Confusing.
Ethan shook his head slightly. “No… I gave it to you that night. I don’t even know why we’re talking about it like it’s—”
“Important?” Adrian interrupted softly.
Ethan hesitated.
Adrian continued, voice lower now.
“It is.”
Ethan felt something tighten in his chest.
“…Why?”
A long pause.
Then Adrian stood up slowly.
Walked around the table.
Stopped behind Ethan’s chair.
Close enough that Ethan could feel his presence without seeing him.
Ethan’s breathing slowed.
“Sir…” he said carefully. “This is getting—”
“Dangerous?” Adrian finished.
Ethan swallowed.
Silence again.
Then Adrian spoke, quieter than before.
“You should have replied to the message.”
Ethan frowned slightly. “And say what?”
Adrian leaned down just slightly—enough for his voice to be closer, but still controlled.
“That you remember me too.”
Ethan froze.
The room felt colder.
“…Of course I remember you,” Ethan said slowly.
A pause.
Then Adrian straightened.
And for the first time—
his voice softened.
Not much.
But enough.
“Good,” he said again.
But this time, it didn’t feel like approval.
It felt like possession trying to sound like relief.
Ethan stood quickly. “I think I should go back to work.”
Adrian didn’t stop him.
But as Ethan reached the door—
Adrian’s voice followed him.
Calm.
Certain.
Dangerously quiet.
“You’re not allowed to disappear this time.”
Ethan froze.
But when he turned around—
Adrian was already seated again.
Perfect.
Composed.
Like he hadn’t just said something that changed everything.
- Writer
