- 22 hours ago
Step into a world of passion, power, and drama. On this channel, you’ll find captivating billionaire romances, intense mafia sagas, and heartfelt love stories that will keep you hooked until the very last word.
Whether it’s the allure of wealth, the danger of the underworld, or the beauty of love against all odds — Ashley’s Stories brings you tales that are bold, emotional, and unforgettable.
💖 Subscribe now and lose yourself in stories of desire, danger, and destiny.
Whether it’s the allure of wealth, the danger of the underworld, or the beauty of love against all odds — Ashley’s Stories brings you tales that are bold, emotional, and unforgettable.
💖 Subscribe now and lose yourself in stories of desire, danger, and destiny.
Category
🎥
Short filmTranscript
00:00I'm running again. Not in that poetic, life-affirming way people talk about in self-help books.
00:06I mean the kind of running where your chest burns like someone's lighting matches inside it,
00:10and your palms won't stop sweating, and the world feels too sharp to touch.
00:15I'm clutching my daughter's hand as we weave through people on Main Street,
00:18all of them blissfully unaware of the way danger keeps snapping at my heels like an angry god I
00:23still owe favors to. Christmas Eve is supposed to be gentle, right? Soft sweaters, cocoa,
00:28twinkling lights. But it's noon, and the sun is bright enough to sting my eyes.
00:34And all those stupid, cheerful decorations look like someone painted over a crime scene.
00:39Mommy, slow down. My shoe, my shoe keeps coming off. Her voice is tiny, wobbling, and I hate myself
00:47for pulling her this fast. She's five, all curls and heart-shaped cheeks and a bravery she never
00:52asked for. I drop to one knee, my breath shuddering, and tug her sneaker back on while my
00:58nerves ricochet through my ribs. We're almost there, baby, I whisper. I just... I just want to
01:06get inside the store before... before anything. Before anyone spots us. Before the wrong pair of
01:13eyes remembers what I owe. Is someone mad at you? She asks, looking at me like she already knows the
01:19answer. Kids sense everything. I swear they're built like living lie detectors. No, I lie. Because
01:27motherhood is mostly lying to protect innocence. Just... holiday rush. You know how it is.
01:34She nods like she believes me. But her little fingers tighten around mine, and shame slices
01:39through my chest. We step into the small craft store. Warm air, bright colors. The smell of glue
01:45sticks melting under the sun, leaking in through the front windows. The owner lifts a hand in greeting.
01:50She's used to seeing us. This place is our sanctuary. The one corner of the world where I
01:56don't feel hunted. Pick your stickers, I tell my daughter, smoothing my hair back as I glance
02:02over my shoulder. I'll get the card paper. Every Christmas Eve, she makes cards for people
02:08she thinks deserve special feelings. Her words. Not mine. Last year she made one for the firefighter
02:15who let her wear his helmet for three seconds. The year before. For her preschool teacher.
02:21But this year, she's been obsessed with this idea of making a card for someone she's never
02:25even met. Who's the card for again? I ask. Fake casual. She beams. The nice man. The one
02:33from the bakery line. The air lodges in my throat. We don't know him. He smiled at me. She says
02:40simply, like it's enough. I remember the incident. A week ago. A guy in a black sweater. Sleeves
02:47pushed up to his elbows. Standing behind us in line while I tried to stretch twenty dollars
02:51into a treat for her. He didn't say anything. Didn't offer money. Didn't do anything dramatic.
02:58He only looked at her with this quiet softness that felt out of place on someone who looked
03:02like he could break kneecaps for breakfast. She'd waved at him. He'd given a small nod.
03:07That was it. Kids fall in love with kindness the way adults fall in love with escape routes.
03:12Her chosen paper is bright red. She starts gluing on little foam hearts. Humming to herself.
03:18I should be feeling peace. But my nerves won't settle. The sun feels too bright through the windows.
03:24Casting crisp shadows of everything I don't want to face. My phone buzzes. Unknown number.
03:30I freeze. Not again. Not another reminder of what I owe. What I ran from. What I promised someone
03:37powerful I'd deliver before I grew the guts to flee. My voice cracks when I answer.
03:42Hello? Static. A low breath. Then a male voice. Smooth as polished steel.
03:50You can stop hiding, sweetheart. We found you. My blood becomes ice. I hang up so fast my thumb
03:56burns. My daughter looks up. Was that grandma? No. Grandma's dead. But I can't say that.
04:04I force a smile that feels like it might cut me from the inside.
04:07Almost done, baby? I ask, trying to keep my voice steady. She nods proudly.
04:12See? I made the hearts go all around like a hug. Hug? God. If only the world were built that soft.
04:19I pay quickly. And we step back onto the street. The sun reflects off car roofs and storefront
04:26windows. Too bright. Too unforgiving. My pulse won't slow. Every man leaning on a wall feels
04:33like a threat. Every car idling too long feels like a trap. I don't see them until they're
04:38crossing the street toward us. Three men. Heavy jackets. Cold expressions. Not sunlight-friendly
04:45types. My daughter squeezes my hand, sensing the shift in me. I can't outrun them. Not with
04:52her. My lungs collapse around a silent prayer. And then everything stops. Because someone
04:58steps between us and the men. Someone tall. Someone composed. Someone who moves like he's
05:04claiming space he already owns. Him. The man from the bakery line. But this time, he's not
05:11in a sweater. He's in a crisp white shirt and a tailored vest. Sleeves rolled to his
05:15elbows. Revealing ink twisting across strong forearms. Sunlight scatters off the gold ring
05:20on his pinky. Off the chain at his wrist. The type of jewelry men like my nightmares wore.
05:27But he looks different. Not cruel. Just... decisive. Like he could silence a crowd with a single
05:33raised eyebrow. My daughter's voice pops like a bubble. Mommy! It's the nice man! His eyes
05:40slide to her. And something gentle flickers there, before disappearing behind a harder
05:45edge when he looks at me. It feels like being studied by someone who sees more than you want
05:50him to. You're being followed, he says quietly. Voice low enough for only me to hear.
05:56My heart trips. I... no. We're fine. We're just... don't lie. His gaze drops to my daughter.
06:07Not when she's right here. The three men slow, hesitating when they realize he's standing in
06:12their line of path. He doesn't even turn to look at them. He just angles his shoulders slightly,
06:18like he's daring them to try something in broad daylight. The men exchange a look. Then another.
06:24Then they retreat, muttering curses as they disappear around a corner. I almost buckle with relief,
06:31but fear keeps me upright. He turns to me fully now. The sun illuminates his jawline,
06:37the scar near his temple, the tiny flecks of amber in his otherwise dark eyes. He's unreal.
06:44Not beautiful in a fragile way. Beautiful in the way a loaded gun is. Clean lines. Quiet promise.
06:50You running from them? He asks. I swallow. I'm not... this isn't your problem.
06:58His brow lifts slightly. You sure about that? My daughter tugs on my coat.
07:03Can I give him the card now? Kill me. Someone please just kill me. Anything would be easier than this.
07:10She holds out her little red creation, all crooked foam hearts and messy crayon lines.
07:14He blinks, thrown for the first time, as if kindness is more unfamiliar to him than violence.
07:21For me? He asks her. She nods.
07:26You looked like you needed something happy.
07:28For a moment, just a breath, his face softens in a way that makes my throat tighten.
07:34He takes the card with an unexpected tenderness, like he's afraid of crushing it.
07:38Then his eyes lift to mine.
07:40Where's her mother?
07:42The question slices through me.
07:45I... what? My voice breaks.
07:47My... you heard me.
07:49His tone shifts.
07:51Not cruel. Not accusing.
07:53Just unbearably direct.
07:55Where is her mother?
07:57I blink at him, confused, until I realize what he's implying.
08:01He thinks I'm... someone else.
08:03A nanny. A sister. A friend.
08:06Anything but the broken woman standing here with fear braided into every breath.
08:11I'm her mother.
08:12I whisper.
08:14He studies my face again.
08:16Slower this time.
08:17Like he's trying to match the person in front of him with the situation he just walked into.
08:22Something sharp enters his eyes.
08:24Not judgment.
08:25Not pity.
08:27Recognition.
08:28He knows my type.
08:29Or maybe he knows the kind of men who chase after women like me.
08:33And then he steps closer.
08:35Who are you running from?
08:37He asks.
08:38Voice low.
08:39Dangerous calm.
08:40I shouldn't tell him.
08:42I don't know him.
08:44But something in me unravels.
08:46Some thread I've kept twisted tight for too long.
08:49The sun feels too bright.
08:51My fear feels too loud.
08:53And he feels like the first stable thing I've seen in years.
08:56I can't say.
08:58I breathe.
08:59If I say it, it becomes real again.
09:02His jaw flexes.
09:04He leans in just enough that I can smell something on him.
09:07Citrus.
09:08Smoke.
09:09Something expensive.
09:10It's already real.
09:12He says softly.
09:14My daughter presses her face into my side.
09:16I wrap my arm around her automatically, protective instinct spiking through me.
09:21He notices.
09:21And his voice shifts with it.
09:24Come with me.
09:26I shake my head.
09:28No.
09:29I don't go anywhere with strangers.
09:31You already did.
09:32He replies.
09:33Lifting the card slightly.
09:35Your daughter decided that for you.
09:38My stomach flips.
09:39That's not.
09:40You need help.
09:42His eyes lock on mine.
09:44Steady and unyielding.
09:45And I don't walk away from people who look like they're begging the sun to hide them.
09:50Something inside me splinters.
09:52I shouldn't trust you.
09:53I whisper.
09:54Maybe not.
09:56He shrugs one shoulder.
09:58But you already do.
10:00His certainty terrifies me.
10:02Because he's right.
10:03And that's the cliff I'm falling from when he steps aside.
10:06Gestures for us to follow.
10:08And I take one shaky step toward a man whose world looks like the thing I've been running from.
10:13But my daughter squeezes my hand.
10:15And I follow him anyway.
10:16I don't realize I'm shaking until he notices.
10:19He doesn't comment on it.
10:21Which somehow makes it worse.
10:23He just walks a half step ahead of us.
10:25Cutting through the bright, overexcited Christmas Eve crowds like they part for him.
10:29My daughter is humming beside me.
10:31Skipping every few steps.
10:32Trusting this man like she trusts warm weather.
10:35Instinctively.
10:36I wish I had that kind of innocence left.
10:39Where are we going?
10:40I ask.
10:41Breath catching when the sunlight hits his shoulders and sets off the gold in his chain.
10:46He looks too calm for someone who just stared down three men ready to drag me back into my nightmares.
10:51He doesn't slow.
10:53Somewhere safer than the sidewalk.
10:55That's not an answer.
10:57It's the one you get.
10:58My temper flickers.
11:01Small but alive.
11:03I don't know you.
11:04You know enough.
11:06I hate that he's right.
11:08I hate that my chest tightens whenever he looks back to check if we're keeping up.
11:11We turn the corner onto a quieter street.
11:15Storefronts glow under bright afternoon sun.
11:18People rush with shopping bags.
11:20Kids holding candy canes.
11:21Everything looks normal.
11:23Safe.
11:24The contrast slams into me so hard I almost stumble.
11:27He sees.
11:28You okay?
11:30Define okay.
11:31He doesn't smile but something in his expression edges warmer.
11:35Fair.
11:36My daughter tugs his vest.
11:38Mr. Nice Man?
11:39He looks down at her like she's holding a detonator and an angel feather at the same time.
11:44Yeah?
11:44Do you like my card?
11:46His jaw shifts.
11:48He reaches into his vest pocket, pulling it out like it's a fragile relic.
11:52It's the best damn card anyone's ever handed me.
11:55He says softly.
11:56She beams.
11:58And I swear I see the moment it hits him.
12:00Full force.
12:01That she crafted it with pure goodwill.
12:04No one ever does anything for free in the world men like him come from.
12:08Kindness is rare currency.
12:10He clears his throat a little too roughly.
12:13You got glue on my fingers, princess.
12:15You can wash it, she announces.
12:18Yeah.
12:19His voice drops.
12:20I guess I can.
12:22We stop in front of a building I wouldn't have noticed if he didn't turn toward it.
12:25Not because it's hidden.
12:26On the contrary.
12:28It's tall, white stone.
12:30Glass windows shining like polished edges.
12:32Clean lines.
12:34Expensive silence.
12:35The kind of place that swallows secrets whole.
12:38I whisper.
12:39Is this...
12:41Yours?
12:42He answers without turning.
12:45Everything I need is inside.
12:47That's not a yes.
12:49It's worse.
12:50We step into an elevator lined with brushed metal.
12:53No scent of bleach or perfume.
12:55Just clean warmth and something faintly citrus.
12:57Him.
12:58My daughter presses herself against my leg.
13:00She's suddenly shy.
13:01As if she senses gravity thickening around us.
13:05He hits the top floor.
13:07Of course he does.
13:08The doors close.
13:10My heart keeps kicking the back of my ribs like it wants out.
13:13He finally introduces himself.
13:16Name's Luca.
13:17It fits him.
13:18Compact.
13:19Sharp.
13:19Carved from something that's seen both beauty and blood.
13:22Mia.
13:23I reply softly.
13:25He nods.
13:26And the little one?
13:27She peeks out from behind me.
13:29Aria.
13:30He repeats it with surprising gentleness.
13:32Aria.
13:33The elevator hums smoothly upward.
13:36My throat tightens with every passing floor.
13:39What am I doing?
13:41People like him exist in headlines and whispered warnings.
13:44Men with rings that aren't decoration but declarations.
13:47And yet...
13:49He hasn't touched me.
13:50Hasn't crowded me.
13:51Hasn't asked for anything.
13:53He's just making sure no one drags me off the street.
13:56The doors open to a penthouse washed in sunlight.
13:59Gorgeous, huge windows overlook the city.
14:02Everything gleams.
14:03Marble counters.
14:04Soft leather.
14:06Fresh flowers in vases that probably cost more than my rent ever did.
14:09The brightness feels unreal.
14:11Like the world refuses shadows here.
14:14Aria gasps.
14:15It's pretty!
14:17Luca watches her.
14:18And something like awe flickers through him.
14:20Make herself at home, he murmurs.
14:23Kids shouldn't feel scared.
14:25My throat tightens.
14:26Is this...
14:27Where you live?
14:28I ask.
14:29Sometimes.
14:31That means nothing and too much.
14:33He gestures toward the couch.
14:35Sit.
14:36It's not a command, even though it sounds like one.
14:39It's protection, disguised as authority.
14:42I settle onto the edge of the white sofa, while Aria climbs onto the cushions like they're
14:46clouds.
14:47He stands across from me, hands in his pockets.
14:50You gonna tell me the truth now?
14:53He asks quietly.
14:54I bite my lip.
14:56Why do you care?
14:58Because I don't like seeing a woman look over her shoulder like the sky itself is out
15:02to get her.
15:03That's not a reason.
15:05It's the only one I've got.
15:06I look at Aria again.
15:09She's tracing the stitching in the couch like she's memorizing the shape of safety.
15:14My heart aches.
15:16I fold my hands together and whisper the first sliver of truth I've spoken in months.
15:21I used to work for a man.
15:23He was...
15:24Dangerous.
15:25Controlling.
15:26He said if I ever ran, he'd...
15:28My voice fails.
15:30Luca finishes for me.
15:31He'd come after you.
15:33I nod.
15:34He doesn't look surprised.
15:36Just quietly furious.
15:37The way an earthquake is quiet before it splits the earth.
15:40You ran with your kid.
15:42He tilts his head slightly.
15:44Good.
15:45It wasn't brave.
15:46It was stupid.
15:48He steps closer, but not too close.
15:50No.
15:51Stupid is staying.
15:52My eyes burn.
15:54I hate how easy it is to believe him.
15:56Aria hops down.
15:58Mommy, can I see the balcony?
16:00There's no balcony, Luca says, eyes narrowing at the thought of her near an edge.
16:05But there's a sunroom.
16:07Plants.
16:08Books.
16:08Go look.
16:09I'll keep your mom company.
16:11She runs off, leaving her little spark box of joy trailing behind her.
16:16And just like that, the air thickens between us.
16:20Luca lowers himself onto the sofa opposite me.
16:22Not touching.
16:24Not looming.
16:25Just...
16:26Present.
16:27Solid.
16:29A wall I didn't ask for, but suddenly need.
16:31You should have come to me sooner, he says.
16:34My breath stutters.
16:35I don't even know who you are.
16:38You don't need a resume.
16:40You just need to know I don't let certain men put their hands where they don't belong.
16:44He says it quietly.
16:46But the weight of it hits like thunder.
16:48My fingers twist together.
16:50Why did those men back off when they saw you?
16:52He exhales through his nose.
16:54Because they know my face.
16:56Why?
16:58Because I make problems disappear.
17:00My stomach twists.
17:02That sounds like...
17:03It sounds like what it is.
17:06A cold truth settles over me.
17:08He isn't just someone with money.
17:10Or presence.
17:11Or confidence.
17:12He is power.
17:13And the world I fled from fears guys like him.
17:17Are you going to turn me in?
17:19I whisper.
17:20His eyes snapped mine.
17:22Dark and bright all at once.
17:24You think I brought you into my home to hand you over?
17:27I don't know what you want.
17:29His voice drops low.
17:31I want you safe.
17:32A fresh wave of panic and longing slams into me.
17:36Why?
17:37He studies me like I'm a locked door he's determined to open.
17:41Because the second I saw your face in that bakery line, I knew you weren't living.
17:46You were surviving.
17:48The words slice straight through me.
17:50You don't know me.
17:52I whisper.
17:53No, he says.
17:55But I recognize the look of someone who flinches at sunlight because it shows too much.
17:59Something inside me cracks.
18:01Loud.
18:02Painful.
18:03Necessary.
18:04He leans forward, elbows on his knees.
18:07Tell me his name.
18:08I can't.
18:09Tell me what he wants.
18:11I can't.
18:13Tell me why he thinks he owns you.
18:15My breath shatters.
18:17I look away.
18:19Because...
18:20Because I used to owe him money.
18:21A lot.
18:23And instead of calling the cops or breaking my knees, he made me.
18:26Belong to him.
18:28Luca's jaw locks so tight I hear his teeth grind.
18:31You worked for him, he says.
18:33In what way?
18:34I shake my head violently.
18:36Not that way.
18:38I swear.
18:39But he wanted my loyalty.
18:41My time.
18:42My life.
18:43And when I got pregnant, he said my daughter was leverage.
18:47Luca rises to his feet slowly, controlled, terrifying in the stillness of his rage.
18:52He paces once, then stops at the window, sunlight blazing around him like he's carved out of fury and gold.
18:58He wants your kid, he says without turning.
19:01Yes.
19:02And he thinks she belongs to him.
19:04Yes.
19:05He turns, eyes burning.
19:07She doesn't.
19:09No.
19:09I whisper.
19:11She's mine.
19:12He nods once, like that's all he needed.
19:14Then something shifts.
19:17Something subtle but seismic.
19:18He walks back to me and kneels.
19:21Luca kneels.
19:22Right in front of me, like he's grounding a storm.
19:25You're staying here, he says quietly.
19:29No.
19:30It's not a question.
19:32I don't want to drag you into this.
19:34You already did.
19:36His voice is steady but fierce.
19:37And I'm not letting a man who uses kids as bargaining chips breathe the same air as you and Aria.
19:42I swallow hard.
19:44You don't even know us.
19:46I know enough.
19:47His hand lifts, hesitates, then lowers.
19:51He almost touches my knee.
19:53Almost.
19:54But pulls back, denying himself something we both feel humming between us.
19:59Forced closeness becomes something else.
20:01A gravity neither of us chose.
20:04Luca, I whisper.
20:05Why are you doing this?
20:08He looks up at me with a truth he hasn't spoken yet.
20:11And when it leaves his mouth, it detonates.
20:13Because he used to own someone I loved.
20:16My heart stumbles.
20:18Before I can respond, the elevator dings.
20:21He's instantly on his feet.
20:23I freeze.
20:23Breath caught in my throat.
20:25He glances at me.
20:26Voice razor low.
20:28Stay behind me.
20:30My pulse spikes.
20:31Luca, who is it?
20:33He doesn't answer.
20:34He moves toward the foyer with a slow, lethal calm that makes my stomach drop.
20:39The elevator doors slide open.
20:42And the last person I expect to see steps out.
20:44My past.
20:46Alive.
20:48Smiling.
20:49Hello, sweetheart, the man says.
20:51Did you really think I wouldn't find you?
20:55My vision tunnels.
20:57Aria screams my name from the sunroom.
20:59Luca steps forward, blocking their view of each other.
21:02And the world splits at the seams.
21:11Luca doesn't raise his voice.
21:13He doesn't pull a gun.
21:14He doesn't move like a man preparing for violence.
21:17He moves like a man who has violence, distilled down to a single, controlled breath.
21:23My past.
21:24Elias.
21:25Steps out of the elevator as if he owns the air.
21:28His smile is that same razor sliver of arrogance I used to mistake for safety.
21:32His suit pressed.
21:34His hair perfect.
21:36Sunlight glints along the polished watch he wears like a cuff of superiority.
21:41Long time.
21:42He says.
21:43Eyes sliding over me like I'm property he misplaced.
21:46I feel sick.
21:48Aria's voice cracks from the other room.
21:50Mommy?
21:51She's afraid.
21:52Because she remembers him.
21:53She remembers the shouting.
21:55The slammed doors.
21:56The way he looked at her like she was a tool.
21:58I move to run to her.
22:01But Luca blocks my path with one subtle motion.
22:04His hand barely lifts.
22:05Palm toward me in a gesture both protective and commanding.
22:09I've got her.
22:11He murmurs without looking back.
22:13His certainty wraps around my ribs like armor.
22:16Elias studies Luca.
22:18Something smug curls on his lips.
22:21I know who you are.
22:23Luca tilts his head a fraction.
22:25Then you know you shouldn't be here.
22:26Oh, I should be exactly here.
22:30Elias gestures toward me.
22:31She belongs to me.
22:33And the child.
22:34Luca's voice cuts through the sunlight.
22:37Finish that sentence.
22:38I dare you.
22:40Elias falters.
22:41Just a twitch.
22:42Small.
22:43Human.
22:45Fear cracks his bravado before he masks it with a laugh.
22:48You don't know the arrangement she and I had.
22:51Luca finally turns his head toward me.
22:53Not all the way.
22:54Just enough for me to feel his attention like a hand pressed to my spine.
22:58Is that true?
22:59He asks quietly.
23:01An arrangement?
23:03Shame ripples through me.
23:05But not the kind he weaponizes.
23:07Mine is old.
23:08Bruised.
23:09Exhausted.
23:10No.
23:11I whisper.
23:12I didn't choose anything.
23:14He controlled everything.
23:17Elias scoffs.
23:18Words from a woman who ran with my money.
23:21Heat blooms in my cheeks.
23:22Not embarrassment.
23:23Anger.
23:24The kind that finally burns clean.
23:27You told me working it off would take a year.
23:29I say.
23:30Voice trembling with truth I once swallowed.
23:33But every time I got close, you added more.
23:36More hours.
23:37More tasks.
23:38More threats.
23:39You should have worked harder.
23:41She almost died from exhaustion.
23:43Luca says.
23:44Elias stiffens.
23:46This isn't your problem, Luca.
23:48It became my problem, Luca replies.
23:50The moment you followed her into my world.
23:53My breath catches.
23:55Elias's jaw flexes.
23:57He tries to rebuild that smirk, but it slips.
24:01She owes me.
24:02She and the kid come with me.
24:04The word owes tastes like metal in my mouth.
24:07Years of fear and obedience compressed into one syllable.
24:10No.
24:11I say.
24:13Both men freeze.
24:15I've never said no to Elias.
24:17Not like this.
24:18Not with air in my lungs and sunlight on my face.
24:21No.
24:22I repeat, stronger.
24:24You don't own me.
24:25You never did.
24:27Elias laughs.
24:28A brittle sound.
24:29You think this.
24:31He waves at Luca's penthouse.
24:33Changes your debt?
24:34I paid you with my sanity.
24:36I whisper.
24:37And I'm done.
24:38Something inside me shifts.
24:40Like a lock unclicking after years of rust.
24:43Luca steps forward.
24:44Slow.
24:45Deliberate.
24:46You heard her.
24:47Elias's mask cracks.
24:49Thin fissures of panic and fury.
24:51This isn't over.
24:53It is.
24:54Luca says calmly.
24:55Because I'm ending it.
24:57And who are you to end anything?
24:58Elias mutters, trying to salvage his pride.
25:02Someone the sun shines on.
25:04Luca answers softly.
25:05And someone you should fear.
25:07Elias takes one step backward.
25:09Then another.
25:11Luca doesn't raise a hand.
25:13Doesn't need to.
25:14The power in the room shifts entirely onto his side like gravity choosing him.
25:19The elevator doors open behind Elias.
25:21He hesitates.
25:23Looks at me one last time.
25:25Anger.
25:25Humiliation.
25:27Ownership flickering in his gaze.
25:29This isn't over.
25:30He repeats.
25:32Luca's eyes narrow.
25:33For your sake, it is.
25:35And Elias is gone.
25:37The doors slide shut.
25:38Silence.
25:39Not heavy.
25:40Not haunted.
25:41Just...
25:42Quiet.
25:43The kind of quiet you never appreciate until your lungs finally remember how to breathe.
25:46I exhale shakily.
25:48My knees buckle.
25:50Luca is in front of me before I hit the ground.
25:52He doesn't touch me.
25:54He hovers his hands near my arms, close enough to catch me if I want it.
25:58I do.
25:59I sink into him like confession.
26:02He's warm.
26:03Solid.
26:04Present in a way no one has ever been.
26:06His shirt smells faintly of bergamot and sunlight.
26:09You okay?
26:11He murmurs into my hair.
26:12I don't know.
26:13I whisper.
26:14But I'm here.
26:16That's enough.
26:17We stay like that until my breath steadies.
26:20Then...
26:20Mommy?
26:22Aria's voice slices the moment.
26:24I pull away and rush to her.
26:26She flings her arms around my waist and sobs into my shirt.
26:29I was scared.
26:31I thought he was gonna take me again.
26:33Again.
26:34The word torpedoes through me.
26:37Luca kneels beside us, eyes softening at her fear.
26:41You're not going anywhere.
26:43He tells her gently.
26:45Not with him.
26:46Not with anyone you don't choose.
26:48She hiccups.
26:49Do you promise?
26:51He places a hand over his heart.
26:53On every inch of light in this city.
26:56Her small fingers grip his vest.
26:58And something invisible but undeniable forms between them.
27:01A tether.
27:02A beginning.
27:03A new kind of family taking root without permission.
27:06I meet his eyes over her head.
27:09He doesn't smile.
27:10But his face shifts.
27:12Like softness is unfamiliar but welcome territory.
27:15Come on.
27:16He tells us.
27:17Let's get you both water.
27:18Rest.
27:19Safety.
27:20Safety.
27:22I follow the word like stepping into a room I've never dared to imagine.
27:27Time passes.
27:28Weeks.
27:29Then months.
27:30I don't narrate the healing in dramatic scenes.
27:32Because healing is never dramatic.
27:34It's small moments.
27:36Sunlit breakfasts in Luca's kitchen, where Aria draws pictures of him with oversized muscles.
27:42Her laughter echoing in the halls like she's reclaiming sound.
27:45Me sleeping entire nights for the first time in years.
27:49Luca checking on us without asking anything in return.
27:52The way he gives us privacy but shows up when I tremble.
27:55Elias disappears.
27:57Word spreads.
27:58Quiet.
27:58Subtle.
27:59That he relocated.
28:01No one explains.
28:02And I don't ask.
28:03Because the truth is in Luca's eyes whenever the topic brushes too close.
28:07He fixed it.
28:09Permanently.
28:10Not with blood or vengeance.
28:12But with the kind of influence that erases threats without chaos.
28:15The kind of power I never knew could be gentle.
28:19And me?
28:19I start working in a small cafe down the street.
28:23I learn to breathe again without apologizing for it.
28:26I stop flinching at sunlight.
28:28Aria thrives in kindergarten, making friends, drawing endless red cards with foam hearts.
28:34She gives them all to Luca.
28:36Every single one.
28:38He keeps them on a shelf in his office like trophies of the life he didn't know he wanted.
28:43Sometimes he and I talk late.
28:45Sitting across his kitchen island.
28:46Cups of warm tea between us.
28:48Sometimes silence says more than words.
28:51Sometimes our hands brush and he doesn't pull away.
28:54I don't either.
28:55It's slow.
28:56Deliberate.
28:57No fantasy.
28:58No rush.
28:59He never kisses me.
29:01He waits.
29:02For me to be whole.
29:04For me to choose him.
29:05For me to stop surviving long enough to want something more.
29:09Today.
29:10Christmas Eve.
29:11A full year later.
29:13The sun is blazing through the windows of Luca's penthouse again.
29:16Painting gold across everything.
29:17Aria is dancing around in her red dress, shaking glitter off a handmade card she's been hiding behind her back.
29:23Is it time?
29:25She asks.
29:27For what?
29:28Luca teases.
29:29For my Christmas Eve surprise.
29:32He chuckles.
29:33The sound he used to hide but now lets slip freely around us.
29:37Give it here, princess.
29:39She hands him the card.
29:40He reads it twice.
29:42Then his eyes lift to mine.
29:43And for the first time, he looks unsure.
29:47As if my daughter wrote something he's afraid to hope for.
29:50What does it say?
29:52I ask, stepping closer.
29:54He hands it to me.
29:55Three words in her handwriting.
29:56Can he stay?
29:59My breath catches.
30:01Stay?
30:02I whisper.
30:03Aria nods hard.
30:05Mommy.
30:06He's our happy.
30:08My heart fractures open.
30:09Luca is standing perfectly still.
30:12Like he's bracing for rejection.
30:14For me to pull back.
30:16For all the fear he's been careful not to trigger.
30:19I walk toward him slowly.
30:21Not like prey.
30:23Not like someone being saved.
30:24Like someone choosing.
30:26When I stop in front of him, his breath shudders slightly.
30:30You already stayed.
30:32I whisper.
30:34His eyes soften with something I can't name.
30:37He tilts his forehead toward mine.
30:39Not touching.
30:40Just close enough to ask a question without speaking it.
30:43I answer with a single nod.
30:46His hand finally rests on my waist.
30:48Not claiming.
30:49Not demanding.
30:50Just anchoring.
30:51Just real.
30:52When he kisses me, it's not fireworks or fantasy.
30:56It's a quiet seal.
30:57A recognition.
30:58A promise we earned with bruises and courage.
31:01Aria squeals covering her eyes.
31:03Eww!
31:04We pull apart laughing.
31:06And for the first time in years, I feel light.
31:09Not fragile.
31:10Not hunted.
31:11Alive.
31:12Luca's voice is a warm murmur against my cheek.
31:15You sure?
31:16Yes.
31:17I breathe.
31:19I'm done being afraid of the wrong man.
31:21I'm choosing the right one.
31:23His arms circle me carefully.
31:24Reverently.
31:25Like he knows how miracles break if held too tight.
31:28I whisper into his shoulder.
31:31This is the story I never wanted to tell.
31:34He kisses the top of my head.
31:37Maybe it's the one that saves you.
31:39And in this sunlit room, with my daughter dancing and Luca holding me like I deserve peace,
31:43I believe him.
31:45I believe him.
Be the first to comment