Thest word hung in the air, stretching out until the room fell silent.


    They were married now, after all. If anything happened between them, it was only natural. He was just overthinking it.


    He held his breath for a whole minute before blurting out, "I ate. I just wanted to see where you''ve been goingtely."


    What he didn''t say: he was terrified that one day he''d wake up, and ra would suddenly tell him she was leaving the city. The idea of being left behind haunted him.


    ra slid into her seat at the table. After another day of chaos, she was actually starving. She looked up at Dn. "Come eat with me."


    He closed hisptop and joined her, but didn''t start eating right away. Instead, he set her favorite foods-freshly baked croissants, crispy bacon, and a steaming bowl of soup-right by her hand. He ced the soup in front of her before even touching his own te.


    ra was used to being taken care of like this. She started eating, slow and steady, savoring each bite.


    Ryan, though, couldn''t get used to it at all. He wanted to cover his eyes. The Dn he was seeing right now-there was no way this was the real Dn.


    After they finished, ra reminded Dn, "Just stay here and get some work done. I have to go out for a bit. And don''t let your guys follow me, got it?"


    A flicker of worry crossed his face. He hesitated, pressed his lips together, but finally nodded.


    ra took Ryan with her. As soon as Ryan buckled into the passenger seat, he couldn''t hold back anymore.


    "ra, what did you do to him? Did you put a spell on Dn or something?"


    ra couldn''t help butugh, though there was a hint of bitterness in her voice. Dn really was obedient. Stubborn, for sure, but also impossibly obedient.


    She sighed, started the car, and headed for the hospital.


    Ryan didn''t go upstairs with her.


    ra found Aiden in his hospital room. He looked a lot better today, his face less pale than before. He greeted her with a polite, "Ma''am."


    She pulled up a chair and sat beside his bed. "Aiden, does Dn have some sort of mental illness? I''ve seen him taking medication."


    Aiden''s eyes darted away, but he seemed to make up his mind quickly. "Honestly, the boss has a lot of issues. When ites to his feelings, if he doesn''t want to talk, I don''t ask. He doesn''t tell the doctor much, either. But you''ve been around him long enough to see it. When it''s about you, no matter what decision you make, he always assumes the worst. At first, he gets frantic. Then he goes quiet. After that, it''s like nothing matters at all. It always goes in that order."


    When he forced her to marry him, when he locked her up in Palm Bay—that was the frantic stage.


    Now, he was stuck in the numb silence, pretending nothing affected him. Because somewhere deep down, he was bracing for the worst.


    ra had always known: Dn was terrified she''d get her memory back.


    Lately, she could feel it-like she was on the edge of remembering something important. The headaches came more often, sharper each time.


    "Aiden, you know how stubborn he is. He won''t tell me anything. Maybe it''s just..." She trailed off, struggling to find the right word.


    Aiden finished for her. "Maybe the boss never believed there was any real future between you two. He thinks any happiness he has is just an illusion, waiting to be shattered. That makes him anxious-so anxious that eventually, he just gives up on hoping for anything at all. And for him, that''s actually the safest ce to be."


    No expectations meant he didn''t have to think too much or do anything. Just drift along, letting things happen.


    If someone hated him, he''d just watch. If people misunderstood him, he wouldn''t bother exining.


    That''s how he''d always lived.


    Honestly, ra felt exhausted, too. Anyone would be, loving someone like this- torn between heartbreak and helplessness.


    It wasn''t his fault. It really was an illness.


    That''s why she''d wanted to ask him herselfst night, but she''d held back. It was easier toe to Aiden directly.


    ra took a deep breath, rubbing her temples. "So what should I do? He''s not acting like himself these days."


    That feeling unsettled her. It was like, if she even thought about leaving, Dn would just quietly disappear from her life.


    But most of the time, those thoughts about leaving-they only existed in Dn''s mind.