-Levi POV-
The candles on the table had burnt lower. The wine is still untouched. The background music faded into static silence.
We were still seated across from each other, but something had shifted between us. The bitterness wasn't gone, but underneath it, there was something else now.
Understanding.
I leaned forward, elbows on the table, voice low but firm.
"I'll help you." I said. "But you have to help me too."
Amelie narrowed her eyes slightly. "Help me how?"
"I'll make sure you end up with Louis. I'll deal with both your father and mine. I'll take the blame for calling this whole thing off. I'll clear the way."
Her brows furrowed. "And what do you want in return?"
"I want freedom."
She blinked.
I didn't stop.
"I'm ready to throw everything away." I said, steady as a stone. "The chairman title. The shares I have in Ackerman Group. The legacy. All of it. If it means I can be with him… I'm prepared for that."
Her eyes widened. "So, it's him. The person you're in love with is a man?"
I looked her dead in the eyes. "Yes."
She exhaled slowly. "And this man… who is he?"
"Haruka Charles Auclair. He is."
Her eyes widened again. "Haruka… Charles Auclair. From the Auclair Family?"
The way she said it, like she couldn't believe the pieces she was holding, made my jaw tighten.
"The one and only," I said. "My secretary. The man I love."
She leaned back, clearly shaken. "You've been... with him?"
"I have."
"And you'd be willing to walk away from the entire Ackerman name… just for him?"
I nodded once. "Without hesitation."
She sat back, stunned. "That's insane."
"No." I said quietly. "That's love. I love him. I really do."
There was a pause between us, weighted, full of questions, but she didn't ask out loud.
Then after a moment, her voice turned softer. "Are you serious about this?"
"Deadly." I replied shortly.
She looked down at her hand. Thoughtful. Then still unsure, she muttered. "Even if I wanted to help… I don't know how."
I looked at her carefully. And then I played my final card.
"You're drawn to art." I said. "Not architecture. You said it yourself. You never wanted this world. But you always admired the artists who lived outside of it."
She looked up. Confused. "So?"
I reached into my coat pocket and pulled out a slim envelope. Inside it was a folded photo. A high-resolution image of a painting. One of mine.
Not signed Levi Ackerman.
Signed, L. Schatz.
She took the photo. Examining it closely. Brows drew together.
"No way."
"Believe it."
"You're telling me you're L. Schatz?" Her voice pitched low, disbelief flickering in her tone. "The anonymous artist that shook the entire US 10 years ago and is still famous even now? The one no one's ever seen? Only selling pieces through private auctions under layers of false registration?"
I nodded. "And only Haruka and his mother knew it."
Amelie stared at me. "You're lying."
"I'm not."
She held the photo closer. "Why are you telling me this now?"
A small smirk touched my lips.
"Well, since I'm going to walk away from everything tied to the Ackerman Group, I'll need a new stream of income." I said that calmly. "I want you to buy some of my paintings. You can showcase them in your upcoming gallery, which you will open soon, right? And when it's ready, I'm open to collaborating too."
She blinked at me. "How much?"
"What?" I asked.
"How much do you want me to buy your painting for?"
I shrugged. "Well, not that much. 1 billion for 5 paintings."
Her eyes widened. "Are you insane?"
"Hah. You knew my paintings were worth up to 5 billion each. 1 billion for 5 paintings is nothing for you, I guess. Just like me, you're a billionaire at a young age."
"Seriously, did you do a background check on me?" She said with a sharp glare.
"Of course, I did. I'm suddenly getting engaged to someone I don't even know. So, I have to do that." I replied with a calm voice.
She let out a soft scoff of disbelief, leaning back in her chair. "You really are shameless."
I gave her a look. "I'm being generous, I would say."
She tilted her head, fingers tapping the edge of the photo. "And if I say yes… this whole thing collapses in a wave of headlines. You get your freedom. I got my gallery's debut backed by a mystery master. And our fathers get blindsided."
"That's the idea."
Her gaze locked onto mine. "You realise this will burn everything down."
"I already lit the match."
She stared at me. Completely stunned. "You're insane."
"Maybe."
"And manipulative."
"Absolutely."
"But…" She looked down at the photo again. "That painting is beautiful."
"I painted it for Haruka."
Her eyes lifted.
"I was never meant to live the life my father carved out for me," I said quietly. "But if I have to break it all apart, I'd rather do that with a plan."
There was a long silence.
Then Amelie leaned back in her chair. A smirk tugged at her lips.
"Alright." She said, "I'll buy your painting. I'll help you burn your perfect little world to the ground. And you'll help me get together with Louis and expand my gallery."
I nodded, letting a breath I didn't know I was holding slip out slowly.
"Then, we have a deal."
//SKIP//
-Haruka POV- (Monday Morning in Paris)
The office lights buzzed faintly overhead as I flipped through the morning schedule. Levi's calendar was still loaded on my screen. Even in New York, he was fully booked, as usual. Art discussions, investor briefings, press approvals.
He was supposed to return soon.
Maybe today. Or tomorrow.
He hadn't said anything specific.
Just the usual.
"I'll be back soon."
"I'm fine."
"Take care."
He said it like he meant it.
But the calls had grown shorter. That pauses longer. And his voice… Something about it felt forced. Like he was holding something back. I could hear it in the silence between his sentences.
Still, I told myself it was just stress.
Until today.
I left my desk around 10:30 a.m. and headed to the cafe in the lobby. I needed something warm to push the chill off my shoulders. A quiet reset before the second half of the morning.
I was standing in line when I heard it.
"Did you hear? Our vice chairman, Levi Ackerman, is getting engaged?"
I didn't react at first. Just stood there, hands in my pockets, waiting. But then the second voice replied.
"Yeah, to the Forma Atelier's CEO's only daughter. Big merger move."
Another laugh. "Bet the chairman arranged it. Sounds like a power play."
And then one of them said something that knocked the breath out of me.
"They look good together in the press photo. Kind of iconic, honestly."
I turned. Slowly.
The two interns didn't notice me. They kept scrolling through whatever business article they were looking at, laughing quietly, sipping their overpriced coffee.
The barista called for the next order. My name. I didn't move.
Levi's getting engaged?
To someone else?
I turned and walked out of the line. Left the café without the coffee. Without saying a word.
The elevator ride back up felt too fast and too slow at the same time. My chest was tight. My thoughts are louder than the sound of the moving floors.
I stepped into my office. Numb.
I sat at my desk, barely breathing.
The words I'd overheard at the cafe were still echoing in my head.
Levi Ackerman
Getting engaged
CEO's daughter
They look good together.
It sounded like noise. Loud, distant, unreal.
I opened my computer. My fingers are moving on their own.
I didn't even need to search for it. The headline is already trending.
"Ackerman Group Confirms the Engagement Between Levi Ackerman and Amelie Grace Fontaine - Merger Between Art and Architecture Sealed With Rings"
There was a photo attached.
They were standing side by side. Levi and that woman. Amelie. Smiling for the press. Her hand gently resting on his arm. His expression... unreadable. But calm. Like he belonged there.
And just like that, something inside me cracked.
I couldn't breathe.
Couldn't blink.
And I couldn't stop it.
The tears slipped down before I even realised it. Silent. Uncontrollable. Like they'd been waiting for days, building behind every smile I forced, every "It'll be fine" I told myself.
I reached up and wiped them away quickly, but it was no use. They kept falling. Hot against my skin. Cold in my chest.
My heart was pounding. Not from panic. But from the pain.
He promised he'd come back. He said he'd tell me if something happened. He looked me in the eyes and said nothing was wrong.
And yet… there it was.
Everything.
A knock came, quick and frantic. Then the door burst open.
"Oni-chan!"
It was Hanabi.
Her eyes were wide, voice high with panic. Lauren was right behind her, eyes locked onto mine. The kind of quiet guilt that said everything without needing words.
"Hana-chan." I said softly, my voice barely audible.
She stopped in the doorway. Her shoulders dropped at the moment she saw my face.
I didn't need to ask. She already knew.
She didn't need to explain. She already knew that I knew.
"No," Hanabi said, stepping inside quickly. "You weren't supposed to find out like this. You… you didn't deserve all this, onii-chan." She said, her voice shaky, trying her best to hold back her tears.
I tried to smile for her sake. But it fell apart halfway.
"It's alright." I whispered.
She shook her head, eyes already glassy. "No, it's not."
Lauren stepped forward, placing a hand gently on Hanabi's shoulder. She looked at me, apologetic and hesitant, but said nothing.
Hanabi moved closer, as if to hug me.
But I shifted back a little.
"Hana-chan", I said quietly. "Please… I want to be alone right now."
Her expression crumbled.
"But…"
"Please." I looked at her with my glassy eyes.
She stood there, frozen between her need to protect me and her respect for my space.
Then finally, reluctantly, she nodded. "Okay…"
She took a step back, biting her lips hard.
Lauren gently guided her out of the office, closing the door behind them.
And just like that, I was alone again.
But this time, the silence wasn't peaceful.
It was hollow.
And all I could think was…
Why didn't you tell me, Levi?
TO BE CONTINUED!!!