Yuna:
I didn't know how long I had been sitting there.
Back pressed against the door.
Knees pulled close.
Head resting against the cold wood behind me.
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Time felt strange inside that room.
Too slow.
Too quiet.
Too empty.
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At some point, I stopped crying.
Not because it didn't hurt anymore—
But because I didn't have the strength to keep doing it.
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Then—
Voices.
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Muffled.
Faint.
But close enough.
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I held my breath without realizing it, my body going still as I tried to focus.
I couldn't hear everything.
Only pieces.
Broken words slipping through the silence.
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"…liability…"
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My heart stopped.
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"…no one talks to her…"
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That one hit harder.
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Like something inside my chest cracked quietly.
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I didn't move at first.
Didn't react.
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Because for a second—
I thought I heard it wrong.
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But the silence that followed confirmed it.
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That's what they thought of me.
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That's what he thought of me.
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A liability.
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My fingers curled slowly against the floor.
---
"…I see," I whispered.
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It wasn't loud.
It wasn't angry.
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Just… empty.
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Then something inside me shifted.
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Not soft.
Not broken.
---
Sharp.
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I pushed myself up from the floor, my legs slightly unsteady but holding me anyway. My chest rose and fell quickly now, emotions building again—but this time, it wasn't just pain.
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It was frustration.
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No—
More than that.
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"I'm not a liability," I said under my breath.
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My eyes moved to the door.
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"I'm not."
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My hand slammed against it suddenly.
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"Ethan!"
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My voice echoed in the room.
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"Open the door!"
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No response.
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I hit it again.
Harder.
---
"You can't keep me here!"
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My voice rose, shaking now with anger.
---
"You can't just lock me up like this!"
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Again.
Again.
Again.
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"Ethan, open the door!"
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My palm stung, but I didn't stop.
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"I'm not something you can control!"
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My voice cracked slightly, but I pushed through it.
---
"Do you hear me?!"
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Silence.
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Then—
Footsteps.
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My body froze.
---
They were coming closer.
Slow.
Steady.
---
I stepped back instinctively, my breathing uneven now as I stared at the door.
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The handle turned.
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The door opened.
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And he was there.
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Ethan.
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He stepped inside without a word.
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Then closed the door behind him.
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The click of the lock sounded louder than before.
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Final.
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I swallowed slightly, my heartbeat picking up again as I looked at him.
---
His expression—
Was cold.
---
Colder than before.
---
His eyes held something dark.
Controlled.
But still there.
---
He started walking toward me.
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Slow.
Deliberate.
---
I stepped back.
---
"Stop," I said immediately.
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He didn't.
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Another step forward.
---
I stepped back again.
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"Ethan, stop."
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Still—
He didn't listen.
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My back hit the edge of the bed.
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I didn't notice until it was too late.
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My balance slipped—
And I fell back onto it.
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Before I could react—
Before I could get up—
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He was there.
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His hand grabbed my wrist, pulling me back down as I tried to move.
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"Let go—" I struggled, my voice rising again.
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But he didn't.
---
He held me there.
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Firm.
Unyielding.
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My breath quickened as I looked up at him.
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He leaned over me.
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Close.
Too close.
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My heart pounded harder—not from fear alone, but from everything mixed together.
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"Ethan…" I said again, softer now, unsure.
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His gaze didn't change.
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"Be good, Yuna," he said.
---
His voice was low.
Controlled.
But there was something underneath it.
---
Something I couldn't fully read.
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"…then you'll get a reward."
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The words confused me.
Shocked me.
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For a second—
I didn't know how to react.
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My brows furrowed slightly, my chest rising and falling quickly as I stared at him.
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"What does that even mean…" I whispered.
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But he didn't answer.
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He just looked at me for one more second.
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Then—
He let go.
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Stepped back.
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Just like that.
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The space between us returned.
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Too suddenly.
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Too quietly.
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He turned without another word.
---
Walked to the door.
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Opened it.
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And left.
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The door closed again.
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Locking me in—
Once more.
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I stayed there.
On the bed.
Frozen.
---
My wrist still tingled where he had held it.
My heart still racing.
My mind trying to catch up.
---
"What… was that…" I murmured.
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Anger.
Confusion.
Hurt.
---
Everything mixed together again.
---
I slowly sat up, pulling my hand back to myself, staring at the door.
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"…Reward?" I repeated softly.
---
A bitter feeling rose in my chest.
---
"I'm not some pet…" I whispered.
---
My eyes stung again.
---
"I don't need your reward."
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Silence filled the room again.
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But this time—
It didn't feel just empty.
---
It felt tense.
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Because something had changed.
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In him.
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And in me.
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And I didn't know yet—
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If that change would bring us closer—
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Or break us apart even more.
I didn't move for a long time after he left.
Not because I couldn't—
But because I didn't know what to do next.
---
My body still remembered the way he had held me down.
Not painfully.
But firmly enough to stop me.
---
Like he wasn't trying to hurt me—
But wasn't giving me a choice either.
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I slowly pulled my knees up onto the bed, wrapping my arms around them again, resting my forehead lightly against them.
---
"What are you doing, Ethan…" I whispered.
---
My voice sounded smaller now.
Quieter.
---
Not shouting anymore.
Not fighting.
---
Just… trying to understand.
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Because nothing about this felt simple anymore.
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He was angry.
That much I understood.
---
He was scared too.
I could see that now.
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But this—
This wasn't just anger.
This wasn't just protection.
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This was control.
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And that's what hurt the most.
---
"I didn't come to be locked away…" I said softly, my fingers tightening slightly against my arms.
---
"I came because I wanted to stand with you…"
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My chest tightened again, but the tears didn't fall like before.
---
They stayed there.
Burning.
---
Because now, more than sadness—
I felt something else.
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Frustration.
---
Not at him alone.
But at myself too.
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"Why didn't I think…" I murmured.
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He was right about one thing.
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I didn't think.
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I just acted.
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I followed my feelings without understanding the consequences.
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And now—
I was here.
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Locked.
Separated.
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From him.
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But still—
Even knowing that—
Even understanding his side—
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It didn't make this right.
---
I lifted my head slowly, looking toward the door again.
---
"You don't get to decide everything for me…" I said quietly.
---
My voice wasn't loud anymore.
But it was steady.
---
"I'm not someone you can just control like this."
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The silence didn't respond.
---
But I didn't expect it to.
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I shifted slightly, lying back on the bed this time, staring up at the ceiling.
---
The chandelier light above cast soft shadows across the room, moving slightly as the air shifted.
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It looked calm.
Peaceful.
---
But I wasn't.
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My mind replayed everything.
The fight.
The gunshot.
His reaction.
The way he looked at me.
The way he said I was a liability—
Even if I didn't hear it directly from him.
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I closed my eyes for a moment.
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"…Maybe I am," I whispered.
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The thought came quietly.
Unexpected.
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Because no matter how much I hated it—
There was truth in it.
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I had stepped into something dangerous.
Without fully understanding it.
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And now—
I was part of it.
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But that didn't mean I would stay like this.
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It didn't mean I would stay weak.
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My eyes opened again slowly.
---
"If I'm a liability…" I said softly,
---
"…then I'll change that."
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The words felt different.
Stronger.
---
Because this wasn't just about proving him wrong anymore.
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It was about proving to myself—
That I belonged beside him.
Not behind a locked door.
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I turned my head slightly, looking toward the window again.
---
Somewhere out there—
He was planning.
Fighting.
Carrying everything alone.
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And I—
Was stuck here.
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Not because I was weak.
---
But because he thought I was.
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My fingers tightened slightly against the bedsheet.
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"Then I'll show you…" I whispered.
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Not with anger.
Not with rebellion.
---
But with action.
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Because no matter how many times he pushed me away—
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I wasn't going to stay where he left me.
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Not this time.
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And not ever again.