Chapter 10 The Consequence of Choosing Him
The silence after the kiss did not fade.
The feeling remained there .
Aria could still feel it on her lips warm, undeniable, too real to belong to a mistake. Her fingers were still pressed lightly against Anderson's shirt, as if her body had forgotten how to release him.
Around them, the world had restarted.
But she hadn't.
People were still staring.
Whispers still moved through the hall like invisible currents.
But none of it reached her properly.
All she could feel was him.
Anderson didn't move immediately.
His hand remained on her waist, steady, controlled, like he was holding something fragile that might break if pressure changed even slightly. His eyes were locked on hers not shocked, not angry, not confused.
Watching.
Measuring.
Understanding.
Aria's throat tightened.
"I" she started, then stopped.
She didn't even know what she was trying to explain.
Jealousy wasn't logical.
Neither was the way she had reacted.
Anderson finally exhaled slowly.
Not irritation.
Amusement.
"You're shaking," he said quietly.
Her fingers stiffened against his shirt.
"I'm not."
His gaze dropped briefly to her hand.
"You are."
That simple correction made her realize it.
Her body was betraying her.
Again.
She pulled her hand back quickly, stepping half a pace away as if distance could reset what just happened.
The woman who had touched Anderson earlier was still standing there.
Watching.
Smiling faintly now.
Not offended.
Interested.
That made something uncomfortable twist inside Aria again.
Anderson didn't look at her.
He was still looking at Aria.
Only Aria.
"Let's leave," he said.
It wasn't a suggestion.
It was final.
---
The car ride back was heavier than before.
Not silent.
Weighted.
Aria kept her eyes on the window, but the reflection kept giving her back pieces of him his posture, his calm expression, the way his hand rested near hers without touching.
As if restraint was deliberate.
As if touching her was a decision he was choosing not to make yet.
That thought made her stomach tighten.
She shifted slightly.
Anderson's voice came quietly.
"You regret it."
It wasn't a question.
Aria hesitated.
Then shook her head.
"I don't know what I feel."
A pause.
Then "Say it properly," he said.
Her eyes flicked to him.
"What?"
He turned slightly toward her.
"Don't lie in confusion."
That sentence hit differently.
Because he wasn't accusing her.
He was reading her too precisely.
Aria's fingers curled into her palm.
"I didn't like her touching you," she admitted finally.
Silence followed.
Not awkward.
Tense.
Then Anderson leaned back slightly, as if settling into a thought.
"You acted on instinct," he said.
"I acted on stupidity," she corrected.
A faint shift in his expression.
Almost… approval.
"Good," he said again.
That word again.
Good.
It unsettled her more than criticism would have.
The car slowed as the mansion gates appeared again.
But instead of relief, Aria felt something else rise in her chest.
Something tighter.
More complicated.
Like leaving the world outside meant stepping back into something she didn't fully understand yet.
---
Inside the mansion, everything was quieter than usual.
Too quiet.
Aria walked ahead, but she could feel him behind her.
Not following.
Accompanying.
There was a difference.
She reached the staircase, then stopped halfway.
Without turning, she spoke.
"Do you always let people touch you like that?"
A pause.
Then his voice from behind her.
"No."
That single word made her turn.
Anderson stood a few steps below her, hands in his pockets, expression unreadable again.
"But you didn't stop her."
His gaze lifted slightly.
"I was watching you."
That answer didn't help.
It made things worse.
Aria frowned.
"That's not an answer."
"It is," he replied.
She stared at him.
Trying to understand him was becoming its own kind of exhaustion.
Finally, she turned and continued upstairs.
But his words followed her.
Not loud.
Just persistent.
Like they were meant to stay inside her head.
---
Later that night, Aria couldn't sleep.
The room was too large.
Too quiet.
Too aware.
She sat by the window, knees drawn slightly up, watching the city glow in the distance.
Her fingers brushed her lips absentmindedly.
A memory.
A mistake.
Or something worse.
The door opened behind her.
She didn't turn immediately.
She already knew who it was.
Anderson stepped inside.
This time, he didn't announce himself.
He simply walked in like he belonged there.
Which he did.
He stopped near the bed, glancing at her before shifting his gaze to the window.
"You're still awake."
Aria sighed softly.
"I can't sleep."
A pause.
Then he walked closer.
Not rushing.
Not invading.
Just closing space.
He stopped beside her.
Close enough that she could feel warmth again.
But he didn't sit.
He didn't touch.
He just stood there.
Watching the same city she was.
"You think too much," he said.
"I don't think enough," she replied.
That made something shift in his expression.
Barely visible.
But real.
A faint exhale left him.
"Tonight," he said, "you reacted before thinking."
Aria looked up at him slightly.
"I know."
Silence.
Then"Do you regret it?" he asked again.
This time, softer.
Not testing.
Just asking.
Aria hesitated longer this time.
Then shook her head.
"No."
The word felt heavier than anything she had said all day.
Anderson's gaze lowered slightly.
To her face.
To her lips.
A second of stillness passed.
Then he turned slightly away, as if forcing distance into the moment.
"You should sleep," he said.
But he didn't leave.
That was the problem.
Aria stood slowly.
"Why are you still here?"
A pause.
Then
"Because you're not calm yet," he said.
That answer shouldn't have meant anything.
But it did.
Because it wasn't about control.
It was about noticing.
She stepped closer without thinking.
Just slightly.
And his gaze dropped to her movement immediately.
Too fast.
Too aware.
Aria whispered without meaning to, "You always notice everything about me."
Anderson didn't answer immediately.
Then quietly
"Yes."
That single word hung between them.
Heavy.
Personal.
Dangerous.
Aria's breath slowed.
"I don't understand why."
His eyes held hers now.
For longer than usual.
Then"Because you're the only thing I can't predict."
That sentence changed the air.
Something inside Aria tightened.
Not fear.
Not comfort.
Something in between.
A pull.
A fall.
A warning.
Anderson stepped back slightly.
Creating space again.
But the damage was already done.
"Sleep," he said again.
This time firmer.
And he left.
The door closed.
Silence returned.
But this time, it wasn't empty.
It was full.
Of everything neither of them said.
---
And then Aria's phone lit up.
A single unknown message.
No name.
Just a sentence.
> "You shouldn't be staying with him."
Her fingers went cold.
Another message followed immediately.
> "He is not the only Vance you should be afraid of."
Aria stared at the screen.
Heartbeat rising.
And from the hallway outside her room…
A faint sound.
Footsteps.
Not Anderson's.
Slow.
Deliberate.
Approaching her door.
The handle turned slightly.
Not enough to open.
Just enough to test.
And then Silence.
Aria stood frozen.
Eyes locked on the door.
Because whoever was on the other side…
Was smiling.