The door closed softly behind Leena.
Her footsteps faded down the hospital corridor until the hallway returned to its usual quiet. Inside the room, the machines continued their steady rhythm, measuring a life that refused to fully leave.
A few minutes later, a nurse pushed the door open.
She stepped inside, checking the monitor out of habit. Her eyes moved across the room, routine and practiced—until they stopped at the small table beside the bed.
The flowers.
Yellow and white tulips.
Fresh.
She frowned slightly. No one had signed in as a visitor that morning.
The nurse walked closer and adjusted the blanket over Richie's shoulder. His eyes remained open but distant, trapped somewhere between awareness and silence.
"Someone came to see you," she murmured.
She straightened the tulips in their glass of water.
For a moment, the room felt less clinical.
Then she turned off the extra light and left.
The flowers remained.
Bright against the quiet.
Sami — Morning
Sami woke up later than usual.
Sunlight pushed through the blinds in narrow lines across the room. For a moment he stayed still, staring at the ceiling, trying to collect the fragments of last night.
Leena.
Her voice.
Her presence.
He couldn't figure out why she had come. Or what she wanted.
The memory refused to settle into anything clear.
He exhaled slowly and pushed the thought away.
Routine first.
Sami got out of bed, shirtless, running a hand through his hair as he walked toward the kitchen. The apartment was quiet—minimal, clean, almost severe.
He poured water into the coffee machine and leaned against the counter while it brewed.
Strong. Black.
The way he always drank it.
He took the first sip slowly, eyes still distant, mind working through questions that had no answers yet.
After finishing the cup, he set it down and moved to the wall in the living room.
Mounted there was a FIRE FITNESS pull-up bar.
He grabbed the bar without hesitation.
His body moved with practiced control—lifting, lowering, repeating. Muscles tightening and releasing with each motion, the quiet apartment filled only with the rhythm of breath and steel.
Ten.
Fifteen.
Twenty.
He dropped back to the floor, shaking tension from his arms before stretching briefly.
Discipline.
Structure.
Control.
Things that made sense.
Unlike people.
He headed to the bathroom next.
Steam fogged the mirror as he splashed cold water over his face. When he looked up again, the expression staring back at him was sharp, alert.
He shaved carefully, slow strokes of the razor clearing the faint shadow along his jaw.
By the time he stepped out, the day had fully begun.
In the bedroom, his suit waited.
Black. Perfectly tailored.
The uniform of a man who won arguments for a living.
Sami buttoned the shirt, adjusted the cuffs, slipped into the jacket with effortless precision. Every movement measured, deliberate.
When he finished tying the knot of his tie, he looked at himself once more in the mirror.
Calm.
Controlled.
Unreadable.
But somewhere behind that expression, one question lingered.
Why had Leena come back into his life last night?
And what did she want from him now?
Sami left his apartment.
The corridor was quiet, the morning light falling softly through the narrow windows. As he walked past the neighboring doors, his eyes paused for a moment on one of them.
Leena's door.
Closed.
Still.
He didn't stop. He kept walking.
The elevator doors slid open and swallowed him, carrying him down toward the day waiting outside.
The restaurant was already open, though still calm at that early hour.
Sami arrived first.
He chose a table near the window and sat down, placing his phone beside a glass of water. His posture was relaxed, but his attention was sharp—watching the entrance, measuring the room the way he always did.
A few minutes later, the man arrived.
Older. Controlled. The kind of presence that made other people straighten their backs without realizing it.
Sami stood immediately.
"Good morning, sir."
The man waved a hand dismissively as he sat down.
"Don't be formal," he said. "You're like a son to me."
Sami gave a polite nod.
"I'm glad you're not working with your father," the man continued. "You made the right choice."
"I'm glad to work with you, sir," Sami replied calmly.
The man leaned back in his chair.
"Alright. Let's get to the point."
He tapped the table lightly.
"How are things being handled?"
"Sam is doing better than expected," Sami said. "Everything is running smoothly."
The man watched him closely.
"Something happened a few days ago," he said. "He hit someone."
Sami's expression didn't change.
"Don't hide things from me," the man continued quietly. "If something happens here, I hear it from you first. Not from others."
Sami nodded.
"It's just a misunderstanding with the police," he said. "Nothing serious."
The man studied him for another moment.
Then he waved it away.
"Good," he said calmly. "Make sure everything gets erased."
Sami understood exactly what he meant.
"Of course," he replied.
The man leaned forward slightly.
"That's your duty first."
Sami met his eyes.
"Yes, sir."
But somewhere in the back of his mind, a different thought lingered.
Leena.
And why she had returned.
The man leaned back in his chair for a moment, then said calmly,
"I have a meeting today with your father. He's happy to know you're doing well… that you chose your own path."
Sami gave a small, unreadable smile.
"I don't think so," he replied.
The man studied him briefly, then nodded.
"We're glad you came back," Sami added.
"It was necessary," the man said. "Next month we're reopening a new project here. I'll be coming back often."
He reached into his briefcase, pulled out a file, and handed it to Sami.
"Take a look when you have time."
Then he stood up. Two men who had been waiting nearby immediately followed him.
"Good work, Sami."
And just like that, they left the restaurant.
Sami didn't open the file.
He finished his water, paid the bill, and headed to the office.
The day passed like every other day.
Meetings. Documents. Calls. Quiet control.
By evening, Sami left the office.
As he walked toward his car, his phone buzzed.
A message.
He looked at the screen for a second, then took a slow breath before unlocking the car.
He started the engine and drove.
The road led him to a large residential area.
Private streets. Tall gates. Perfect lawns.
The gate opened automatically as his car approached.
He drove into the parking area of a large house and stepped out.
Several servants greeted him as he entered.
"Good evening, sir."
Sami nodded politely and walked toward the study.
He knocked on the door.
"Come in!" a girl's voice called.
He opened the door.
The girl sitting at the desk looked up immediately.
It was the same girl who had been in the car with Sami the night he dropped Leena at his apartment.
She crossed her arms.
"Why are you always late when I call you?"
Sami smiled slightly.
"Because you always call me at the wrong time."
He sat down beside her.
"What happened?"
She leaned closer and whispered dramatically,
"Dad won't let me go on holiday with my friends."
Sami sighed.
"I'll make sure you go."
Her face brightened instantly.
"Really?"
"Yeah," he said casually. "But first… do you want to grab some ice cream?"
She jumped up and hugged him.
"You're my savior!"
Then she looked at him suspiciously.
"Why don't you just come home? It's fun there."
"I have work," Sami said.
She frowned.
"You're a lawyer. You can work from home."
Sami stood up and shrugged.
"Alright then. No ice cream for you."
"Wait!" she laughed. "I'll change."
"I'll wait outside," he said.
Sami stepped into the drawing room.
A woman entered from the hallway.
He straightened slightly.
"Good evening… aunty."
The woman gave him a look.
"Please don't call me that."
Sami nodded politely.
"I'm here to pick up Vaani."
"That's fine," she replied.
Sami hesitated for a moment, then asked,
"Why won't dad let her go on holiday with her friends?"
The woman gave a faint smile.
"You know your father better than I do."
Then she said quietly,
"You should come home more often. He misses you. We could all have dinner together."
Sami shook his head gently.
"It's your house now. You take care of him… and everything else."
At that moment, Vaani ran into the room.
"I'm ready!"
Sami smiled at her.
"Nice timing."
She grabbed her bag and looked at him excitedly.
"Let's go!"
Sami nodded toward the woman.
"Good night."
Then he turned and walked out with Vaani.