Chapter 5.

Evening felt like a weight.

The city lights flickered on one by one, painting the streets in orange and gold. Evelyn walked without direction, letting her heels click on the sidewalk. She didn’t want to think, but her mind refused to rest. Every step echoed yesterday’s events, every heartbeat seemed louder than it should be.

“Theo wants to talk”.Her chest tightened. Part of her longed to see him, to seek comfort in the one person whose presence had always meant safety. The other part, recoiled at the thought of opening herself to him again, after the board, after Lucian’s silent warnings, after everything that had already shifted without her consent.

She ended up in the small park near her apartment, the one she had often visited as a child to escape home. Benches lined the pathways, and the first chill of winter was beginning to settle. She sat, hands tucked into the sleeves of her coat, and watched the branches sway in the wind. The shadows reminded her of how often she had hidden from Lucian’s sharp eyes, from the whispers of judgment she had never been able to avoid.

Her phone buzzed again.

Theo: I’m outside.

She looked up. Across the park, leaning casually against the fence, stood Theo. The same gentle smile, the same eyes that had offered her protection years ago. He waved, but it didn’t reach the tension coiled in her chest.

She stood slowly, voice quiet. “You didn’t have to come.”

“I wanted to,” he said softly. “You looked like you needed someone.”

“I don’t need anyone,” she said, though the tremor in her voice betrayed her.

He stepped closer, hands in his coat pockets. “Maybe not. But we all need someone sometimes, Evelyn.”

The words were simple, but they carried a weight that made her stomach twist. She wanted to look away, wanted to shake him off and walk back into her apartment. But she couldn’t. She had never been able to ignore Theo entirely.

“I can’t do this,” she said finally, breaking the silence. “Not now. Not with everything happening at work."

She stopped herself, refusing to say Lucian’s name. The last thing she needed was to let him invade this space too.

Theo watched her carefully, nodding once. “I know. But running from it doesn’t make it easier. Not for you. Not for anyone.”

Her fists clenched in her coat pockets. “I didn’t ask for any of this.”

“You never do,” he said gently. “But that doesn’t mean you have to face it alone.”

She wanted to believe him, she really did. But everything had shifted too fast. Lucian’s presence at Cross Corp, Sophia’s manipulation, the board’s demands, it all felt like a trap, and she wasn’t sure where she fit in.

They walked in silence for a few minutes, circling the park. Evelyn felt the tension coiling tighter, holding her chest with every step. Theo didn’t reach for her hand. He simply walked beside her, offering a steady presence.

Finally, she stopped at the edge of a fountain. The water reflected the city lights, distorted and shimmering. She stared at it, unwilling to meet his gaze.

“I don’t know how to deal with him,” she admitted, voice barely above a whisper. “Not after everything he’s done. Not after he…” She bit her lip, holding back the words she didn’t want to say. Words that might reveal too much, too soon.

“You mean Lucian,” Theo said softly, as if reading her mind.

She didn’t answer.

Theo crouched slightly, lowering himself to her level. “I’ve always known him better than anyone else,” he said. “And you need to know something, he’s not the same person anymore.”

She laughed bitterly. “Not the same?

He’s the same person who made my life miserable when we were kids. He’s the same person who..” She cut herself off. The words were sharper than she intended, a flash of old anger and fear she couldn’t fully control.

“Maybe not,” he admitted. “But people change. Sometimes slowly, sometimes in ways we don’t expect. That doesn’t mean you have to forgive him. But you should be aware that he’s not the same boy who made you feel small.”

Evelyn stared at the water, her hands twisting together. “And if he hasn’t changed?”

Theo didn’t answer immediately. “Then you’ll know soon enough. But whatever happens, you’re not alone.”

Her throat tightened, but she refused to cry. Not here, not in front of the boy she loves.She wanted to believe him, wanted to believe that Lucian could change, that he could truly care for her now. But the fear, the memory of the pain clung too tightly.

“Why are you always here when I don’t want you to be?” she muttered, more to herself than to him.

“Because I can’t stand seeing you hurt,” Theo said simply.

Her eyes met his then, and she realized that despite the years, despite the walls she’d built, he still had a way of seeing her. And it terrified her.

The city felt distant now, like a dream she wasn’t fully part of. She felt the weight of everything pressing down on her. And it was too much for one person to carry

Theo stood, offering his hand. “Come with me,” he said. “We’ll talk somewhere quieter.”

She hesitated. The rational part of her knew she shouldn’t. The cautious part of her screamed no. But another part, the part that had always trusted him nudged her forward. She took his hand, letting him guide her down the empty streets toward a small cafe he claimed was “good for thinking.”

Inside, the café smelled of roasted coffee and cinnamon. A single lamp cast golden light over their table. Evelyn sat, hands clasped, fingers interlacing like armor. Theo slid into the seat across from her, his expression calm but serious.

“I need to know what you’re thinking,” he said.

“No... nothing ” she muttered.

“No,” he said sharply. “You’re here. That matters. I need you to understand this isn’t just about the board or Sophia or even Lucian.”

She raised an eyebrow. “Oh? Then what is it about?”

He leaned forward, voice low. “It’s about you. Your choices. Your life. And whether you’re going to let anyone at all decide them for you.”

Her chest tightened. “I don’t even know what my choices are anymore.”

Theo’s gaze softened. “Then we figure them out together. But you need to be honest with yourself. Because someone is already making decisions you haven’t agreed to.”

Her hands went cold. She looked down at them, twisting the rings on her fingers. Her mind raced. Lucian. Sophia. The board. Every path felt like a trap.

Theo’s voice pulled her back. “Evelyn. Listen to me. You’re not powerless. Not yet. But you need to decide what do you want or else others will decide for you.

The question hung in the air, heavier than the city outside, heavier than the threats she hadn’t fully faced yet. Evelyn’s heart pounded. The world outside the window felt smaller suddenly, as if everything that mattered had shrunk to this moment, this question.

Before she could answer, her phone buzzed. She ignored it, but the name flashing on the screen froze her blood.

“Lucian Cross”.

She stared at it. And in that single, blinking notification, Evelyn realized that no matter how much she wanted to delay it, the confrontation she had been running from was only just beginning

And this time, there would be no running,no escaping.