For when you're broken

Three

Leo didn’t rush home after the interview. He stayed in the back seat of the black Mercedes while Mr. Chen spoke softly on the phone, giving quiet orders Leo only half-heard. The city lights slid past the window, neon signs flickering in the tinted glass — too bright for his weary eyes.

“In his phone, Sophia’s message waited: ‘We need to talk.”

We?, he thought. She’d barely used that word for months.

When he finally stepped out in front of the old apartment block, he hesitated. The cracked concrete steps, the flickering hallway light — none of it felt like his anymore.

Inside, the apartment door was ajar. He pushed it open and found Sophia sitting on the couch, the same couch he’d slept on the night before. Her hair was down, a loose sweater pulled over her knees like a shield. The TV was off — she’d been waiting in the dark.

When she saw him, she stood so fast the blanket slipped to the floor.

“Leo—”

“Sit,” he said softly. He shut the door behind him. For a moment, neither spoke. He crossed to the rickety kitchen counter, poured himself a glass of water. The tap sputtered. The pipes moaned like they always did.

She stayed standing.

“You humiliated my mother,” she said finally, her voice tense.

Leo set the glass down. “She humiliated me for three years.”

“That’s different.” Sophia’s eyes shone in the dim light — a spark of something like anger, or maybe fear. “You made her lose face in front of everyone. She—”

“She deserved it.” Leo’s tone was flat. He stepped closer. Sophia took a half-step back.

For three years he’d always been the one to shrink, to bow his head, to mumble sorry for things he never did. Tonight, he didn’t.

“I’m your husband, Sophia,” he said. “Do you remember that?”

She flinched. “I didn’t want any of that to happen. I didn’t know—”

“No,” he cut in. “You didn’t want to stand up. There’s a difference.”

She bit her lip. The silence stretched between them like a tight wire.

Then she tried to change tactics. “Where did you get that money, Leo? Who called you that night? Are you really—” Her words broke off as if she couldn’t say “Young Master Zhang” out loud.

He studied her face. This woman he’d loved — maybe still did, though the feeling felt warped now, worn down by all the insults and cold shoulders.

“My grandfather left it to me,” he said. “Everything.”

Sophia’s laugh was short and sharp. “And you didn’t think to tell me?”

“Would you have believed me?”

She didn’t answer.

A soft knock on the door broke the standoff. Sophia flinched again — the knock was too soft, too polite.

Leo’s eyes narrowed. He crossed the room, swung the door open.

Mrs. Li stepped in without waiting to be invited. She was dressed in an immaculate silk cheongsam, hair pinned up, makeup flawless as always — as if the entire restaurant fiasco had never happened.

“Leo,” she said, her voice dripping honey. “Or should I say — Young Master Zhang?”

He didn’t move aside. She clicked her tongue. “Really, blocking the door? Is that what you do to family now?, Or just those who threaten your new throne?””

He let her pass. Sophia shrank a little as her mother walked into the tiny living room, her expensive perfume choking the stale apartment air.

Mrs. Li sat herself primly on the couch — the same spot Leo had slept so many nights when Sophia told him not to come to bed.

She patted the cushion beside her. “Sophia, come here.”

Sophia obeyed automatically, like she always did. Leo watched it, with folded arms.

Mrs. Li turned her attention to him, eyes glittering. “Leo. Let’s speak plainly. You embarrassed me. Fine. You have money now — fine. But money comes and goes. Family? Family remains.”

Leo raised an eyebrow. “You called me a dog last night.”

“And tonight I’m calling you, son.” She gave a thin smile. “We’re practical people, Leo. Why hold grudges? Especially when the Zhang and Li families could become powerful together.”

He barked a short laugh. “Powerful for you, you mean.”

Mrs. Li didn’t blink. “A mother only wants her daughter to live well. With your status, Sophia can have the life she deserves. And with our connections, you’ll have allies you can trust. This business you’ve inherited, do you really think you can handle it alone? Do you think your grandfather didn’t keep secrets from you?”

The air in the room changed. Leo watched her closely — the way her painted nails tapped the armrest, the manipulative tone in her voice. She wasn’t here to plead. She was here to make a deal — or to stake her claim.

“What you want is influence. Control. Your hands in the Zhang Group’s heart.”

Mrs. Li’s smile widened. “I want what’s best for my daughter.”

Sophia looked between them, her face pale. “Mom, stop—”

“Quiet, Sophia!” her mother snapped. Then she turned the smile back on Leo. “Do you think you can keep this… empire… safe? Alone? With no one on your side?”

Leo stepped forward, closing the space until he was standing over her. Mrs. Li’s smile flickered, but she didn’t look away.

“You think you’re on my side?” he said softly.

Mrs. Li’s mask slipped for half a heartbeat. “We’re family.”

Leo leaned closer. “If we were family… you wouldn’t insult me in public. You’ll stop ordering Sophia around like she’s a pawn. And you’ll stay out of my business.”

Mrs. Li’s jaw tightened. She opened her mouth — then shut it again.

Leo straightened. “Go home, Mrs. Li and take your daughter with you.”

Mrs. Li rose gracefully, smoothed her cheongsam. She placed a hand on Sophia’s shoulder — a possessive grip that made Sophia wince.

“My door is open, Sophia,” she said pointedly. “Your husband might think he’s powerful now, but this world is not kind to people who forget who they owe.”

Then she swept out, Carla following silently behind her.