The lights from the studio still burned in her eyes. Her cheeks ached from all the polite smiles she had to give. The interview was over, the cameras off, the makeup wiped clean — but the nerves lingered.
Her words had been honest.
Too honest.
Now she sat on her apartment balcony, legs curled beneath her, a cup of untouched tea in her hands. The wind was cool, but her heart was racing.
She hadn't expected her interview to explode across the internet.
And she definitely hadn't expected him to respond.
"Ava," Chloe's voice called from inside, urgency clipped at the edges. "You need to see this."
Ava frowned and stood, padding inside.
Chloe had her phone in one hand and the TV remote in the other. She clicked the volume up.
A news anchor spoke over B-roll footage of Damien Blackwell storming out of a luxury hotel, jaw clenched, eyes unreadable, his father several paces behind him.
> "In a shocking turn of events, Damien Blackwell was seen confronting his father, Harold Blackwell, over recent public statements about Ava Canter. Sources close to the situation say the former CEO has officially stepped away from Blackwell Enterprises, rejecting his family's influence."
Ava froze.
He… what?
Chloe turned to her, lips parted. "He walked away, Ava. From all of it. The company. The name. Everything."
The screen switched to a clip of Damien's brief post-interview.
His voice echoed through the room:
> "I made a mistake. Not because I fell in love with Ava — but because I let her go."
> "My name, my past, my legacy... none of it matters if I lose her forever."
Ava's knees nearly gave out.
She sank into the couch, heart thudding in her ears. Her fingers shook as she reached for the remote and paused the screen on his face.
That face she knew so well.
But this version of him? He was stripped bare. Real. Raw.
Not the cold CEO.
Not the boy burdened by a billionaire's name.
Just Damien.
Chloe sat beside her, quiet for a while. Then, "What are you feeling?"
Ava didn't answer right away.
Because how could she explain the ache in her chest? The twist of anger and longing? The tears that burned her eyes even when she told herself not to care?
"I don't know," she whispered. "He left when I needed him most. But now… now he's fighting."
Chloe touched her shoulder gently. "You don't have to forgive him right away. But maybe… he's finally becoming the man you always saw in him."
Ava looked back at the screen.
Damien's eyes were cast down, like he wasn't proud of who he'd been, but was finally trying to be better.
Her phone buzzed.
A text from an unknown number.
> "I don't expect anything from you. I just wanted you to know — I'm done running."
Ava read it once.
Twice.
And suddenly, her tears spilled freely.
Because for the first time in a long time…
She didn't feel quite so alone.
---