Liara’s heartbeat slowed.
“What is it? Just say it.”
A pause.
Then Sia spoke.
“Liara… I heard that Arin is getting married.”
Silence.
The world around Liara stopped.
No sound. No breath. No movement.
Just a heavy, crushing stillness.
“Liara? Are you hearing me?
“We’ll talk later.”
And before Sia could say anything more, she ended the call.
Liara sat on the bed.
No tears came out.
Because sometimes… pain is so deep that even tears refuse to fall.
“Hello, Anya.”
“Yes, tell me, Ella.”
“I was just saying… bring that boy tomorrow to meet Liara.”
“So soon?” Anya sounded a little surprised. “Isn’t that too fast?”
“I want it to be fast,” Ella replied firmly. “The sooner, the better. Why waste time
unnecessarily?”
“Alright… if you say so. I’ll confirm and let you know.”
“Confirm with whom?” Ella’s tone changed slightly. “You said he’s alone.”
“Yes, he is,” Anya clarified quickly. “But I can’t talk to him directly. I’ll speak to his
aunt; she’ll coordinate with him.”
“Oh… I see,” Ella said, her voice easing. “But his aunt isn’t too involved in his personal
life, right?”
“No, not really,” Anya reassured her. “Not in his personal matters.”
“Good,” Ella replied. “Then let me know by tonight. I have to make arrangements.”
“Alright. I’ll call you later.”
“How is this even possible? No… no, Arin can’t get married. He can’t do this to me!”
Liara screamed at the top of her lungs, shaking her head in denial.
Hearing her cries echo through the house, her mother hurried toward her room. The
moment Ella entered, she found Liara trembling, tears streaming endlessly down her face.
“Liara, why are you screaming? What happened?”
“M-Mom…” Liara looked at her with shattered eyes.
Ella stated firmly, “Your voice is audible outside the house.” “What happened? Are you
crying again?”
“N-No… I’m not crying. It’s nothing.”
Ella stared at her for a moment before speaking again. “So now you’re hiding things from
me?
“No, Mom, it’s not like that. Why would I hide anything from you?”
“Arin is getting married.”
The words left Ella’s lips without hesitation
“M-Mom… you knew?”
“Yes, I knew.” Ella’s tone remained cold. “Ever since Arin came into your life, you
stopped seeing anything beyond him. But now you need to accept reality and move on.”
“What, Mom, why are you being so rude to me? Did someone say something against me?
You used to like Arin so much before.”
“Before, I had never seen you suffer like this,” Ella sighed deeply. “Yes, I liked him. But
I never thought he would turn out to be this weak.”
“Mom, I can’t believe you can’t even feel my pain.”
Liara’s voice carried a loneliness so deep that even the walls of the room seemed to
absorb it.
Ella looked at her daughter quietly before speaking in a softer tone. “Liara… mothers are
not emotional like children. The day a woman becomes a mother, she buries her own childish
emotions because she can’t afford to make the wrong decisions for her children. If I become
emotional too, then who will hold you together?”
“That’s enough.” Ella took a deep breath. “Tomorrow, your aunt is coming with a
marriage proposal for you. Be ready.”
“Tomorrow? What do you mean tomorrow?”
“Yes, tomorrow. Because I don’t want you mourning over this any longer.”
“Mom… what has happened to you? Have I become a burden to you now?”
“Don’t you dare say that again!” Ella snapped instantly.
“I just want to see you happy. Can’t you do at least this much for me?”
“Mom… I could give up my life for you,” she whispered brokenly, “but how am I
supposed to give someone else the place in my heart that already belongs to Arin?”
“I know,” Ella said softly, “but you have no other choice but to accept reality”
A suffocating silence spread between them, heavy enough to make it hard to breathe.
“I won’t let Arin enjoy this happiness so easily.”
Ella frowned immediately. “What do you mean, Liara? What are you planning to do?”
For a second, panic crossed Liara’s face. If I tell Mom the truth, she’ll never let me do
anything.
“N-Nothing, Mom,” forcing a smile. “I was just saying it out of anger. What can I even
do?”
“I know you, Liara.”
“I’m your mother.”
Later that evening, Ella was busy working in the kitchen when her phone started ringing.
The sound echoed through the house, but her work kept her too occupied to notice it.
Liara, who was sitting in the lounge nearby, glanced toward the counter.
“Mom, your phone is ringing!” she called out.
No response came from the kitchen.
“Shit… I’ll have to pick it up myself,” Liara muttered under her breath as she walked
toward the phone.
She picked up the call and placed it against her ear.
The moment she answered, a breathtakingly soft voice flowed from the other side, calm,
gentle, and strangely comforting to the heart.
“Hello… am I speaking to Mrs. Ella?”
Liara blinked in confusion. “Hmm… who are you?”
“Myself, IraNo,v. Miss Anya must have told you about me.”
For a moment, Liara’s heart skipped a beat. Could it be him…?
But the very next second, she forced herself to stay calm.
“Sorry, wrong number. No, Miss Ella lives here.”
“And yes, please don’t call here again.”
Liara disconnected the call.
Ella looked at her suspiciously. “Liara, who was on the phone?”
“Oh, Mom, it was just a wrong number.”
“A wrong number?” Ella narrowed her eyes. “But I never get wrong numbers on my
phone.”
Liara forced an awkward smile. “So now you don’t trust me either?”
“Anyway… I’m going to my room to rest.”
“Fine. But only rest, okay? No crying.”
“Okay, Mom.”
The moment she entered, her expression changed completely. Her trembling fingers
instantly dialed Arin’s number.
The call connected after two rings.
“Hello? Liara?” Arin’s worried voice came from the other side. “I’ve been trying to call
you for so long. Where were you? Are you okay?”
Liara let out a bitter laugh. “Honestly, I thought I would never call you again…”
Arin stayed silent.
“But then I heard about your marriage,” she continued painfully, “so I thought maybe I
should hear it from you myself.”
“Liara, are you out of your mind? What are you even saying?”
“Yes,” she whispered brokenly, “I have gone crazy… crazy in your love.”
“Liara…”
“I don’t want to hear excuses, Arin.”
“I don’t want this marriage.”
Liara froze. “What?”
A spark of hope flickered inside her shattered heart. “Then what are you going to do?”
Arin went silent for a few seconds, as if gathering the courage to say the words aloud.
Then finally
“I’m going to marry you.”
Liara’s breath hitched. “W-what? Really?”
“Yes.”
“But… how? Your father agreed?”
“No,” Arin replied quietly. “Not Dad… me. I made the decision.”
“Arin, your father will disown you…”
“I know.”
“And you’d risk all of that for me?”
“Yes, Liara. I would.”
Tears welled up in Liara’s eyes again, but this time they carried hope instead of
heartbreak.
“Are you telling the truth, Arin?” she whispered.
“Yes,” he said firmly. “I’ve already made up my mind.”
“But there’s one condition.”
Liara’s brows furrowed instantly. “What condition?”
Arin took a deep breath before speaking in a low voice. “You’ll have to leave your
mother.”
“What?”
“Liara. We’ll have to leave this city… go somewhere far away.”
“Arin, what are you even saying?” Her voice trembled with disbelief. “Why would I
leave my mother?”
“Because you know how dangerous my father is.”
“If he finds out about us, he could hurt your mom too. We can’t take that risk.”
Liara stared at him in silence for a second before letting out a bitter laugh.
“You’re so selfish, Arin.”
“You’re asking me to leave the only person I have in this world?”
“You know very well that except for my mother, I have no one.”
“And I only have my dad,” Arin snapped back emotionally. “But I’m leaving him too,
aren’t I?”
“Your father is the one standing between us… not my mother.”
Arin ran a frustrated hand through his hair. “Then what do you want me to do?”
“What do you want?”
.“That we secretly get married so one day you can get tired of me and leave me too?”
“Liara, I would never do that.”
“Then how could you even think that I would leave my mother behind crying for me?”
“Because this is the only way for us to stay together!” Arin yelled helplessly.
“No,” Liara whispered firmly. “Not at the cost of my mother.”
“Please, Liara, just listen to me once.”
“I don’t want to hear anything.”
“I made another plan.”
Liara looked at him silently.
“I’ll marry you…” He paused, “and I’ll also marry the girl my father chose for me. That
way you’ll be happy… and Dad will be happy too.”
For a second, Liara couldn’t believe what she had just heard.
Then, suddenly, she laughed.
A painful, mocking laugh.
“Wow, Arin.” She slowly clapped her hands. “What an amazing plan.”
“No, seriously,” she cut him off. “Today I finally realized what kind of creatures men
really are.”
Arin’s expression darkened. “Don’t say that.”
“Why not?” she snapped. “If this is your brilliant solution, then fine. I should do the same
too, right?”
“I’ll marry you…” she said sarcastically, “and I’ll also marry the man my mother chooses
for me. Then you’ll be happy, and Mom will be happy too.”
Arin’s jaw tightened instantly. “What the hell are you saying?”
“No, you tell me what you’re saying, Arin.”
His breathing turned uneven. “That’s different.”
“How is it different?”
“Because you’re mine.”
“Then how did you even imagine that I could share you with someone else?”
“Maybe… fate never intended for us to be together.”
“Liara”
“No, listen to me.” Her voice trembled painfully. “We can never become one because
your thoughts are full of contradictions. And honestly… that scares me.”
Silence fell between them again.
“When a person starts wanting too many things at once,” Liara continued softly, “they
end up hurting the people who love them the most.”
Arin clenched his jaw. “So you’re not going to stand by me?25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhwfiVe154e
and then Add to home screen.