As the silence settled, Star took a steady breath, his gaze softening as he looked at Aliana. They stood a little apart from the others, the echoes of the chaotic scene still lingering in the air.
"I've... changed a lot since you left," Star began softly, his voice steady yet carrying the weight of five long years.
"After you helped me, I learned how to interact with people not just my friends, but... strangers too. It wasn't easy, but I-I kept going. I found a way... to use my magic to help others, and now... people in town know me... for who I am."
Aliana listened, her eyes wide with a mixture of awe and sadness.
"My friends...they stayed with me. They taught me about life... about emotions... and about betrayal too." Star's voice wavered slightly, a flicker of pain flashing through his usually calm demeanor. "Not everyone stayed... but I kept moving forward."
Aliana gave a small nod, her voice cracking. "I'm glad... truly glad you've grown so much."
Then, her hands clenched at her sides. "But Star... I can't stay here anymore. My parents — they don't see me as their daughter. I'm just... a piece in their business deals. They're already planning my marriage like I'm some bargaining chip."
Tears welled up in her eyes again. "I want to run away — with you."
The words hit Star like a wave. His heart thudded painfully.
"No," Star said firmly, his voice quiet but unyielding.
Aliana blinked. "W-What?"
His friends, standing a little distance away, exchanged worried looks.
Eric stepped forward. "Star... maybe—"
"No," Star interrupted, his voice still calm but resolute. He looked back at Aliana, his expression both gentle and intense.
"I can't let you run away," Star said softly. "I... I never had parents. I don't know what it feels like to have a family... but you do." His gaze was distant for a moment, lost in thoughts of his own painful past. "No matter how much they've hurt you, they're still your parents. I've never had the chance to cherish something like that."
Aliana's lips trembled. "But they don't love me the way parents should. They only care about money, about power about control."
Star's hand gently rested on her shoulder. "Then... give them a second chance."
Tears slipped down Aliana's cheeks. "Why are you telling me to go back to them? Don't you care?"
"Of course I care," Star said, his voice breaking slightly. "That's why I want you to try one more time."
His friends looked conflicted, and Kade muttered under his breath, "Is this really the right call?"
But Star didn't waver.
He spoke again, softly but firmly. "If you run away now, you'll carry that anger and pain forever. I know what that feels like... and I don't want that for you."
Aliana broke down, sobbing into her hands.
Her father, still standing awkwardly nearby, looked utterly stunned. He hadn't expected Star to say any of this he had assumed the boy would seize the opportunity to take Aliana away from him.
Instead, Star was urging her to reconcile, to heal — something he himself had never had the chance to do.
Finally, Star stepped back. "I'll be going now," he said gently. "But I hope... when I see you again, you'll have found a way to make peace with yourself and with them."
Aliana wanted to say something, anything but the words caught in her throat.
With one last glance at her, Star turned and walked away, his friends trailing behind him, some still clearly unsure about his choice.
As they left, Aliana's father remained rooted in place, his mind swirling with Star's unexpected words.
And Aliana? She stood there, tears still falling.
_ _ _
The walk back to the bus stop was silent. The air was thick with unspoken thoughts, and Star's friends exchanged quiet glances, clearly wrestling with what had just happened.
Even Kade, usually the one to crack a joke, said nothing.
Finally, as they waited for the bus, Luna broke the silence. "Star... are you sure about this?"
Star kept his gaze on the ground, his hands loosely hanging by his sides. "I am."
Eric adjusted his glasses. "But... she's suffering. You saw it. She's trapped in a situation she doesn't want to be in. Wouldn't running away with you have been better?"
Star shook his head slowly. "Maybe it would've made her feel free for a while... but that wouldn't have solved anything. Running doesn't fix the past, it just leaves wounds open."
Henry crossed his arms, frowning. "But what if her parents never change?"
Star looked up, his expression calm yet heavy. "Then that's her battle to fight... not mine. I want her to face it, not escape it."
May sighed softly. "You're a lot braver than you were five years ago... but you're also carrying too much weight on your shoulders, Star."
Star didn't respond.
The bus finally arrived, and they all boarded in silence. The city lights flickered past the windows, but Star barely noticed. His mind was still at Aliana's doorstep, hearing her desperate plea to run away — and his own quiet refusal.
He wasn't just thinking about her.
He was thinking about himself — about how, for years, he'd lived under his master's control, never running but never truly fighting either. When he finally broke free, it wasn't because he ran away — it was because he faced his fear head-on.
And that's what he wanted for Aliana too.
By the time they got back to Star's house, the atmosphere had lightened just a little. They all sat in his living room, Luna quietly strumming her guitar, the soft music filling the silence.
Finally, Kade leaned back against the wall. "You know... you might've just lit a fire in her."
Star blinked. "What do you mean?"
Kade smirked faintly. "You told her to fight back, not to run. If I know anything about people, it's that telling someone they can overcome something makes them actually want to do it."
Eric nodded. "Maybe this was the push she needed."
Star remained silent, but for the first time since leaving Aliana's house, a flicker of hope sparked within him.
He didn't know if Aliana would stand up to her parents.
He didn't know if she would ever truly be free.
_ _ _
Back at Aliana's home, the silence was suffocating. She sat alone in her room, the walls feeling more like a prison than ever before. The conversation with Star echoed in her mind — his calm yet firm words telling her not to run away but to face her parents head-on.
Her heart ached.
She wanted to leave with him. She wanted to escape this life of suffocating expectations and be with someone who truly saw her for who she was, not as a tool for a business deal. But... Star's words cut deep.
"Running doesn't fix the past — it just leaves wounds open."
Tears welled up in her eyes again, but this time, they weren't just from sadness — they were from frustration. At her parents. At herself. At this whole situation.
Her father, still shaken from the earlier incident with the spoiled boy, stood outside her room, his hand hovering just above the door handle. Finally, he knocked lightly and entered without waiting for permission.
Aliana didn't bother to look at him.
Her father's voice was softer than usual — not as cold or commanding. "That boy... Star. He really cares about you."
Aliana didn't respond.
He shifted awkwardly, clearly out of his element. "He told me about the time you spent with him... how you helped him."
Her grip tightened around the blanket on her lap. "And yet, you didn't believe me back then. You thought I was just running around with some orphan."
There was a long pause. Her father exhaled slowly. "I thought I was protecting you... from a life I didn't think was good enough for you."
She scoffed bitterly. "By treating me like a pawn in your business deals?"
Her father didn't answer right away. "I wanted to secure your future... make sure you lived comfortably."
"Comfortably?" Aliana's voice cracked. "By marrying me off to that psycho? You heard what he said, didn't you? I was just a tool to him — a way to get what he wanted!"
Her father clenched his jaw but said nothing.
Aliana's eyes burned with fresh tears. "You never cared about what I wanted. You only cared about how I could benefit you and your company."
There was silence again, but this time, her father seemed... conflicted.
After a moment, he muttered, "That boy... he told you not to run away."
Aliana looked at him sharply.
"He could've taken you," her father said, his voice unusually soft. "But he didn't."
Aliana's chest tightened. "Because he actually cares about me... not about what I can offer him."
Her father seemed to shrink under the weight of those words.
For the first time in years, a crack appeared in the cold, business-like facade he had worn.
He didn't have a retort, nor did he have a plan just a realization that perhaps, he had been wrong all along.
Aliana's mother entered quietly, having listened from the hallway. "Aliana..." she whispered. "We.."
Her father and mother stood there frozen, unsure of what to say...
_ _ _
The room was tense, the silence only broken by the faint ticking of a clock. Aliana's parents stood there awkward, unsure, a sight she never thought she'd witness.
They had always been so firm, so absolute in their decisions. But now... they looked almost human.
Aliana took a deep breath. "I'm not going to run away," she said, her voice steady. "But I'm also not going to let you control my life anymore."
Her father flinched slightly, but her mother's eyes softened. "Aliana, we... we just want what's best for you."
"Then listen to me," she replied firmly. "I want to make my own choices about my future, my relationships... everything."
Her father opened his mouth to speak, but for once, he didn't argue. He simply nodded, though his expression remained stern.
Aliana continued, "I'm not marrying that boy. I don't care how good the business deal looks, I refuse to be treated like a bargaining chip."
Her mother bit her lip, while her father rubbed his temple in frustration. "It's not that simple, Aliana. The company—"
"I don't care about the company right now!" Aliana's voice cracked. "This is about me not business, not profits, but me."
Her father fell silent again, and the weight of her words seemed to finally sink in.
After what felt like an eternity, her mother whispered, "We didn't realize how much we were hurting you."
Aliana's heart clenched. Part of her wanted to scream, to yell at them for the years they had stolen from her. But another part of her, the part that still longed for a real family, held her back.
"Then show me you mean it," Aliana said softly. "Let me live my life."
Her father met her gaze, and for the first time, there was a flicker of something genuine in his eyes — regret, perhaps. "We... we'll talk about the engagement," he muttered, his voice strained. "I'll see what can be done."
It wasn't a perfect promise, but it was something.
She nodded slowly. "Good."
Her mother reached for her hand, hesitating for a moment before gently squeezing it. "We'll try, Aliana," she whispered. "We really will."
Aliana didn't pull away but she didn't lean in either.
And as she sat there, surrounded by the parents she barely recognized anymore, her thoughts drifted back to Star, the boy who had given her the strength to stand her ground.
She wondered if he was okay... if he was still thinking about her...
And deep down, she knew — this wasn't the end of their story.