Suddenly, torrential rainfall descended on the surface of an empty inn. Roaring and rumbling set the night sky alight with thundering booms and shook Zoey's fragile spirit. Hooking herself into the corner of this much smaller room, she takes a blank stare out towards the window as the water streaks on the glass surface outside. Memories went haywire in her brain-Lily's nasty words, Alex's face was written all over it pleading, her hopeful family's gazes.
"Why am I here?" the words trembled as she whispered, her voice almost submerged in the thunderous sound outside. "Did I make the right choice?" It turned on its stomachs, and the gut began growling in protest. Nothing-no food, no plan, no person to which she might turn. Head buried in knees as tears rolled silently down her cheeks.
Sound raised. The first faint sound was almost drowned in the rain and was making its way aggressively louder. Knock.
Zoey sucked in breath.
"Who...who could that be?" she whispered, staring at the door. Instincts screamed quiet, but the knocking came again and again. Not hard or violent, just steady and persistent.
Slowly she stood up, bare feet brushing against cold wood. Tiptoeing to the door, trembling hands reached for the knob. "Zoey?" That voice on the other side made her heart stop. "Alex?"
The Most Unlikely Visitor
Zoey threw open the door and, lo and behold, Alex stood there-this time soaked through and through with dark hair plastered to his forehead. For each heavy-ranging breath he took from his mouth, water dripped off his coat, as if he had run all that way. But there was something else in his eyes as well-something more that she could not quite put her finger on, an odd mix of worry along with relief or even anguish.
"You..." Zoey choked out, her speech trapped in her throat. "How did you find me?"
Alex stepped right into the room without waiting or being asked. He shook coat-fulls of water off. "It doesn't matter," he said with a voice strained but calm. "Zoey, you shouldn't be here. Alone. Like this."
"I told you--" she began.
"I know what you told me," he interrupted, voice softened. "But you were wrong. You don't have to do this alone."
She turned her back on him in the middle of the storm raging outside. "Why are you here, Alex? Don't you get it? I'm not worth it. I don't fit into your world."
He stepped closer, his footsteps echoing softly in the small room. "That's not true, Zoey," Alex said with his gentle voice. "Lily can't tell your worth. Neither filth nor any other thing can do so. You are strong. You are brave. You are..." There was a moment of hesitation, as though he were seeking words. "More than this."
She shook her head; the past threat of spilling over again. "You just don't understand, Alex. I left because I had to. It's better for everyone-"
"No, it's better for her," Alex said sharply, his once-joint clenching at the thought of Lily. "You let her win by leaving: you let her chase you away. Zoey, you don't have to run."
And for what seemed like a long, long time, neither of them said a word. The only sound breaking the silence was rain on glass and rumble far away.
Finally, Zoey drew him into her. There was a bright, determined red glow in her eyes. "So what will Alex do? Go back and pretend everything is alright when it's not? She is never going to stop trying to break me."
Alex moved closer to her. "Then fight for you."
Her breath froze in her throat.
"What?"
"I'm gonna talk to Lily, talk to my father if I have to," he told fiercely. "You deserve more than this, zoey. And I'm not gonna let you disappear from me like that."
She looked at him, wishing and afraid at the same time. "Why? Why do you care for her so much?"
Alex just stared at her, his eyes hard and unblinking. "Because you're not a servant to me. You never were."
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A Moment of Truth
Between them hung heavy, unspoken words. There was a flutter in Zoey's heart, a warm glow blooming somewhere deep inside her chest, despite the cold, icy chill of the room. But she was not ready to believe this-not just yet.
"You don't know what you're saying," she whispered and turned her back on him. "It's not that simple, Alex."
"Maybe it isn't," admitted Alex. "But I don't care. I'm not leaving this place without you."
Zoey turned her gaze back to him again-much friendlier this time. Finally, after a long time, someone was fighting for her-for who she was and not how she did it.
But was he, really? Could she even trust him? Trust herself?
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Back at Sinclair Mansion
Meanwhile, back at the Sinclair mansion, the restlessness grew in Lily. She paced the hallways, narrowed her eyes as thoughts of Zoey's sudden disappearance came to her head. "Where is she?" she muttered venomously. "She will come crawling back again. And when she does…" She stopped in front of Alex's room and curled her lips, forming a smug smile, "She won't remember him for too long." Some pretty good silence settled over the house at that point. Yet, something nagged at her. A little seed of doubt slipped through. Was Alex here or had he followed her?
Lily's jaw tightened. If Alex was with Zoey, then she had much more to lose than she had thought. The Choice
Zoey sat at the edge of the bed in the small inn with her hands clutching the fabric of her skirt while Alex awaited her answer. "Zoey," he said softly, kneeling in front of her so their faces were nearly level. "Trust me." She looked into his eyes and saw the truth residing there. Alex was not like Lily. He wasn't pretending. Hesitatingly, Zoey nodded. "Alright." "Okay?" repeated Alex as if Deni wasn't so sure he heard the words. "Okay," she said again, her voice stronger this time. "I'll go back." Alex's face flooded with relief in a smile completely transformed by hope. "You're not going to regret this, Zoey. I promise." In fact, for the first time in quite some time, Zoey felt something other than fear; she might even feel there was a way from the dark. They had left the little inn, the storm started to quiet down, and the rain was getting gentle. As if the world itself was changing and waiting for whatever came next. But neither knew that, back at Sinclair mansion, Lily was already busy on her next plan.