Argus looked at them, his eyes cold and absolute. “Celine is the person I love the most. She is my life. Without her, I don’t have one.”
My chest tightened. So that’s what love looked like to him.
The surgery lasted a full day and night.
Celine survived.
Even though Argus lost a lot of blood himself, he looked like he didn’t care at all. He cleared out the entire hospital floor, made all the doctors focus on her alone, and stayed by her side every second.
Everyone talked about them. Said how deep their love was. How rare it was.
I just stood there quietly. And somehow, I remembered my dad. How he lay there, alone. How no one fought like this for him. How easy it was for someone to decide whether he lived or died.
Life and death really just depended on who you mattered to.
Funny, right?
—
Celine stayed in the hospital for half a month ans Argus stayed with her the whole time.
Not even once did he leave her side.
During those two weeks, I packed everything I had and left the villa.
Five years.
Gone just like that.
I rented a small apartment with what little money I had left and went back to working at the bar where I used to do part-time shifts.
Just two more weeks.
I only had to survive two more weeks before I could officially return to the National Research Institute.
That’s what I told myself. But I didn’t expect to see him again so soon.
That night, the bar was packed.
Argus had booked the whole place to celebrate Celine being discharged.
Lights dim, music loud, people everywhere.
And right in the center of it all…
Him and her.
He stayed close to Celine the whole time, his attention always on her. His friends surrounded her too, laughing, talking, treating her like she was something precious.
I didn’t want anything to do with them anymore.
So I texted my boss and asked for leave.
I just wanted to leave quietly.
But—
“Dahlia.”
Her voice stopped me.
I froze.
Celine walked toward me slowly, her eyes still slightly red, like she had been crying. “After everything you did to me… you’re not even going to apologize?” she said softly. “You’re just going to run away like this?”
I looked at her.
Then I answered calmly, “I already told you. I didn’t do anything. If you keep spreading lies about me, I’ll sue you for defamation.”
Her expression stiffened.
I turned to leave.
But before I could take more than a few steps, someone blocked my way. It was Argus’s bodyguards.
“STOP!”
My chest tightened.