The sky burned gold and pink as waves whispered against the shore—peaceful to the world, but not to Jennifer.
She stood barefoot at the edge of the water, her arms folded tightly. The breeze kissed her skin, but couldn't calm the storm rising inside her. Zen stood a few steps behind her, his hands in his pockets, like he wanted to say something but didn't dare.
Their last night in Thailand.
"I don't want this to end," Jennifer murmured. "This… whatever this is."
Zen stepped closer, voice low. "Me neither."
She turned to face him.
"can I ask you something?,she spoke.He stared at her and then spoke, what is it, Zen? You kiss me like I belong to you, but you never say it. You never tell me what I am to you."
His eyes locked with hers, troubled, heavy. "You already know what you are to me."
"No," she said, voice rising. "I don't. I want to hear it. I deserve to hear it."
Zen opened his mouth—paused—and shut it again.
He wanted to tell his true identity,who he was,what was his secret,why did he lied,but he was scared
Scared of losing her,scared of revealing the truth, didn't know how'd she react,what if she'd never accept him?
He was afraid of losing her
Jennifer blinked hard and turned away. "Of course."
Before either could say more, Roby's voice broke in: "Oiii! You two done making out with the ocean?"
Jennifer wiped her face quickly. "We're coming!"
Zen's jaw clenched. A thousand words lodged in his throat—but none brave enough to escape.
Back at the resort, Ana was throwing clothes into her suitcase like a woman on a mission.
"You guys are packing slow," she huffed. "We leave in the morning, people!"
"Where's the fire?" Roby grinned, raiding the mini-bar again.
Jennifer laughed faintly, but Zen stayed silent. He sat on the couch, hands gripping his knees, staring at the floor like it was about to crack open.
"I saw someone weird downstairs," Ana said, zipping her suitcase. "Total Cruella energy. Designer everything, sunglasses indoors, barking at the receptionist."
Roby added, "She asked for someone named Kevin Richard. Sound familiar?"
Jennifer furrowed her brows. "Kevin…?"
Zen froze.
"Maybe it's just a coincidence," Jennifer said slowly, looking at him.
Zen forced a smile. "Yeah. Probably."
Ana narrowed her eyes. "She was pissed. Like she flew across the world just to kill a man."
Later that night, they went out for one last dinner—oceanfront, under a canopy of lights. The air was sweet with jasmine and grilled seafood. Everyone was laughing. Everyone but Zen.
Jennifer leaned in, whispering, "Are you okay?"
He stared at her, as if memorizing her face. "I have something to tell you."
"Then tell me."
But before he could—before he could say the words he'd buried under months of pretending—
A voice sharper than shattered glass cut through the night.
"Kevin."
The entire table turned.
A woman in a pale green suit stood behind them, heels dug into the sand like they were marble floors. Her hair was perfect. Her fury wasn't.
Zen stood slowly. "No."
Jennifer's eyes widened. "Who is she?"
Zen swallowed hard. "My mother."
Silence.
"I've had enough of your disappearing acts," the woman spat. "You vanish, cut off your cards, and run away to play peasant. Did you think I wouldn't find you?see here I am done with you and your father's stupid games.Enough is enough."
"Mother, not here," Zen growled.
"Oh, you don't get to say not here when I've flown twelve hours to fix your disaster."
She turned to Jennifer, eyes icy. "So this is the girl?"
Jennifer's voice was shaky. "I don't understand."
"My son," she hissed, "is Kevin Richard—heir to Richard Industries, worth billions. The amount of money he owns is something you can never even imagine.But apparently, he prefers pretending to be poor."
"Mom",Zen shouted.
"If it's not about the girl than what else?"
"What stops you from coming back?",his mom asked.
Jennifer's world shifted on its axis.
"Kevin?" she echoed.
Zen—Kevin—finally looked at her. "Jennifer…"
She backed away. "No. You don't get to say my name like that. Not now."
"Let me explain," he pleaded.
But his mother cut in. "He's always been reckless. Now he thinks he's in love with someone beneath him."
"Stop it," Zen snapped.
"You lied to me," Jennifer whispered, eyes glistening. "For months. I trusted you."
"I didn't lie to hurt you," Zen said, his voice cracking. "I lied to escape them. To be someone else. To be with you without being… this version of me."
Jennifer took a shaky breath. "And what version was I loving? Zen? Kevin? Or just another lie?"
He reached for her. She stepped back.
"I need space," she said. "I need to breathe."
And she walked away into the dark.
Back in the room, Roby slammed the door shut. "What the hell just happened?"
Ana folded her arms. "Your best friend is a billionaire -uh ahhh sorry multi billionaire runaway who never mentioned it. That's what happened."
Zen sat on the floor, elbows on his knees, head in his hands.
"I didn't mean to hurt her," he murmured.
"You should've told her," Ana said. "Before your Ice Queen mother flew in and dropped a nuclear bomb on your relationship."
Zen's voice cracked. "I was afraid I'd lose her."
Ana walked over, crouched in front of him. "Well, now you might've lost her for good."
He didn't respond. He just stared blankly ahead.
Outside the window, the waves kept moving. The sun had set long ago—but the night had only just begun.
He walked after her,wanted to talk but she locked herself in and gave no response.
Zen's POV
I wanted to tell her God, I should have told her a hundred times. Every time she looked at me like I was her peace, every time her fingers slipped between mine, I felt it rise in my throat the truth. But then fear would slam it back down like a fist to the chest. I wasn't just hiding a name, I was hiding scars, expectations, a life so heavy it had already crushed most of who I used to be. With Jennifer, I finally felt seen… not as Kevin Richard, heir to a family empire, but as someone she loved for who I was, not for what I came from. I was terrified that if she knew the truth, she'd look at me differently. Not with love, but with judgment or worse distance. So I stayed silent, praying she'd never ask… and now I know that silence cost me everything.