Chapter 5: Breaking Rules
558 Words
The next morning, Ava woke up to silence.
Too much silence.
No laughter. No warmth. Just the ticking of a clock somewhere in the mansion.
She walked into the dining area—and froze.
A long table.
One plate.
Lucas sat at the far end, already eating.
“Good morning,” Ava said, trying.
Lucas didn’t look up.
“You’re late.”
Ava frowned.
“Late? For what? Being your fake wife?”
Lucas finally looked at her, his expression cold.
“For appearances, discipline matters.”
Ava laughed bitterly.
“Oh, sorry. I forgot I married a robot.”
The words hung in the air.
Lucas slowly put down his fork.
“Watch your tone.”
“Or what?” Ava challenged. “You’ll fire me? Oh wait—you *can’t*. I’m your wife.”
Wrong move.
Lucas stood, towering over her.
“You are here because you needed something,” he said sharply. “Don’t forget that.”
Ava felt the sting.
“Yeah,” she shot back. “And you’re here because you can’t get what you want without pretending to love someone.”
Silence.
Heavy. Dangerous.
For a moment, it felt like something inside Lucas cracked.
But just as quickly—he shut it down.
“Stay within your role,” he said coldly.
Ava clenched her fists.
This wasn’t just a contract anymore.
This was a battlefield.
---
Days passed.
Tension filled every corner of the mansion.
Until Ava decided—
Enough.
One afternoon, she walked into Lucas’s office without knocking.
He looked up immediately, irritation flashing in his eyes.
“I said no interruptions.”
“Yeah, I heard,” Ava said casually, looking around. “You really need better lighting in here.”
Lucas stood.
“Get out.”
“No.”
That single word shocked even her.
“I’m your wife,” she continued. “At least for the public. If someone sees us acting like strangers, your precious deal is gone.”
Lucas’s jaw tightened.
Ava stepped closer.
“So maybe stop treating me like furniture.”
For a moment, they stood inches apart.
Tension. Heat. Anger.
Something else.
Lucas exhaled slowly.
“…Fine.”
Ava blinked.
“Fine?”
“We adjust,” he said. “But don’t overstep.”
A small victory.
But Ava didn’t realize—
Breaking one rule would lead to breaking all of them.
---
Ava visited her family that weekend.
Her younger brother ran toward her.
“Ate! You’re back!”
She hugged him tightly.
Her aunt smiled.
“You look… different.”
“Married life,” Ava joked weakly.
But when she entered their home—
She froze.
The leaking roof? Fixed.
The broken walls? Repaired.
New furniture.
“What… happened?” she asked.
Her aunt hesitated.
“A man came. Said it was already paid for.”
Ava’s heart dropped.
Lucas.
---
That night, she confronted him.
“You fixed my house.”
Lucas didn’t look up from his laptop.
“It was necessary.”
“Necessary?” Ava repeated. “That wasn’t in the contract.”
“It doesn’t have to be.”
Ava stared at him.
“Why?”
Lucas paused.
For a second—just a second—his expression softened.
“…Because I can.”
That answer wasn’t enough.
But it meant something.
And that scared her.
- Writer
