Mother, in a loud voice from the kitchen:
"Sera! Sera, wake up!"
Sera, in a muffled voice from under the covers:
"Mom... it's Sunday. Why all this hurry? It's still early..."
Elin, opening the curtains sharply:
"This is our way of life from the start, what's new about it?"
Sera opened her eyes reluctantly, frowning at the light.
Rina, from across the room, staring at her worriedly:
"Sera, the wound on your neck... what caused it?"
Mother, pouring coffee and smiling subtly:
"She said it was because of a cat in the street."
Elin, disapprovingly:
"Are you crazy? Petting any stray cat?
Then she turned to Rina with a mischievous look,
"And you, why don't you put your phone on silent? Doesn't your boyfriend ever sleep?"
Rina, sighing as she held her phone:
"He hasn't woken up yet... And my phone is on silent, really!"
At that moment, Sera's phone screen lit up on the table. She quickly picked it up and read it with her eyes only:
Aiden:
"Good morning. Let's meet in half an hour. There's something I want to show you."
Her heart pounded for a moment, then she quickly replied with a short message without her mother noticing.
Mother, with scrutinizing eyes:
"Who's the sender?"
Rina, drinking her juice calmly:
"Just a notification... right?"
Sera, with a forced smile:
"Exactly. By the way, I'm going out for a bit this morning... a tour around."
Elin, getting up enthusiastically:
"I'll go with you!"
Mother, in a decisive voice as she sipped her coffee:
"No, you're staying here. You have to study, next semester is the final graduation semester."
Elin froze in place and took a deep breath:
"Life is never fair..."
Rina laughed.
Sera, holding her bag near the door:
"Are you going out too, Rina? Do you have an appointment today?"
Rina, pressing the elevator button with a slight smile:
"Yes... Haval is coming. Or rather, I think he's already arrived, but he wants to greet my mom first."
Sera, with warm enthusiasm:
"It's been a long time since I last saw him. I want to say hello."
Rina, raising an eyebrow with a mischievous smile:
"The message... from Aiden, right?"
Sera, pretending indifference while looking at her phone:
"Yes, we're going out together."
They walked out of the building together, Sera's eyes darting between the parked cars, searching for a familiar face.
Rina, observing her then asking:
"Isn't he here yet?"
Sera, shaking her head slightly:
"I don't know... he hasn't replied to my message yet."
At that moment, an elegant white car stopped. Haval emerged from it with his usual calm, and as soon as he saw Rina, he smiled at her, and she moved towards him for a warm hug.
Haval, extending his hand gently towards Sera:
"Hello Sera, how are you?"
Sera, with a slight smile:
"Actually... I'm fine. And you?"
Before he could answer, a Lamborghini Huracán Evo stopped in front of them, its engine purring powerfully. The door opened and Aiden stepped out with confident strides. He looked at Sera and smiled.
Aiden, approaching her gently:
"Sera, sorry for the delay."
Then he gently pulled her by the hand, leaned in to kiss her cheek, and whispered in her ear:
"About what happened... I apologize."
Sera's face flushed intensely, she looked down, then turned to introduce them:
Sera, quickly to ease the tension:
"Aiden, I'd like to introduce you... This is my sister Rina's fiancé, Haval. And you know Rina already."
Aiden, with a warm smile and extending his hand:
"Pleased to meet you, I'm Aiden."
Haval, shaking his hand with a friendly smile:
"And I'm Haval. Nice to meet you."
Sera, trying to hide her nervousness:
"Didn't you say there was something? Let's go quickly, come on Aiden!"
They walked together, while Rina's eyes watched them for a moment.
Sera, sitting beside him in the car, looked out the window as trees began to thicken around the narrow, winding road. The sound of the car tires on the wet dirt increased her anxiety.
Sera, in a worried tone and a nervous whisper:
"Aiden... this road leads to the forest... what are you planning to do? You... you won't hurt me, will you?"
Aiden, keeping his eyes on the road, gripping the steering wheel tightly as if something inside him didn't want to be revealed:
"This is... a surprise, just wait."
A heavy silence fell, broken only by the sound of the engine and Sera's trembling breaths.
He suddenly stopped in front of an abandoned building, an old factory covered in thorns and dust, its rusty door partially open as if someone had broken in long ago.
The faint fog creeping between the trees gave the place an atmosphere of silent horror.
Sera, clutching her bag, looking around nervously and trying to swallow:
"Aiden... please, this doesn't look like a place for a surprise... I... I'm starting to get scared, you won't... you won't hurt me, will you?"
Aiden, in heavy silence, suddenly pulled out his gun from his pocket and raised it towards her.
His gaze became strange, fixed, giving no clear explanation.
Aiden, in a low voice, not without seriousness:
"You don't trust me, do you?"