Lea emerged from her room, a fresh shower and change of clothes doing little to ease the unease that had settled over her.

Lucian's door was closed, but she doubted it was locked. A strange mix of concern and curiosity bubbled within her. Should she knock? He hadn't seemed particularly friendly earlier, but she couldn't shake the feeling that she needed to check on him.

As if guided by an invisible force, her feet carried her towards his door. She knocked twice, but there was no answer. He couldn't have fallen asleep already, could he? They had only just finished their conversation downstairs.

"Lucian? Are you there?" she called, her voice soft. Silence. She knocked again, her heart starting to race.

"Hey, Lucian? Are you done eating? If not, let's eat downstairs." This time, her voice was a little louder, laced with a hint of urgency.

The door remained closed, but then, through the thin wood, she heard a voice that made her gasp.

"Fuck it! Go eat yourself! I’m masturbating here!"

Lea's jaw dropped. Her eyes widened in shock and embarrassment. Lucian!  He was being incredibly rude. And for a moment, she couldn't help but feel a twinge of amusement. He was such a confusing mix of arrogance and vulnerability.

"But I thought it was only boys who do that, not men?" she asked, her voice laced with playful disbelief.

She heard him curse again.

“Damn innocent and too fucking slow!”  he muttered, followed by the sound of something being knocked over inside the room.

Lea laughed, her face flushing with a mixture of embarrassment and amusement. She had never encountered someone like Lucian before. He was a whirlwind of contradictions, a challenge she couldn’t resist. She retreated downstairs, her laughter echoing through the hallway.

She was starting to understand that while she couldn’t control him, she could definitely have fun teasing him.

"Best day ever," she whispered to herself, a smile curving her lips.

But her moment of elation was short-lived. She caught Lucian's eye, his gaze intense and full of a simmering anger. He looked like a storm cloud on the horizon, ready to unleash his fury.

He was annoyed, but it was his own words that had come back to bite him.  She had used his own logic against him, pointing out the hypocrisy of his actions.

“Lea...” he said, his voice laced with a warning.

Lea instinctively averted her gaze, unwilling to meet the intensity of his stare.

"Look at me when I'm talking to you," he said, his tone firm and commanding.

Lea reluctantly lifted her chin, forcing herself to meet his gaze. And as their eyes met, a familiar jolt of energy shot through her. It was a strange sensation, a mix of excitement and fear. Was she imagining things, or was there something truly captivating in the way his eyes held hers?

“You know how to use my own words against me, huh?” He chuckled, a mischievous glint in his eyes.

Lea’s heart hammered in her chest.  His gaze was electrifying, drawing her in like a moth to a flame. She couldn't help but feel a rush of adrenaline, a combination of fear and excitement that left her breathless.

"I-I didn't mean that way," Lea stammered, her cheeks flushing as she averted her gaze. She couldn't bear the intensity of his stare, the way it seemed to penetrate her soul, a wildfire burning through her defenses.

It was an unfamiliar feeling, this intense gaze, this palpable heat that emanated from him. She had never encountered a man who could hold her captive with just a look.

"Let's talk about my rules being a babysitter of yours," Lucian said, a hint of a smirk playing on his lips.

"And what is it, Lucian? I thought it was done already?" Lea asked, a sense of unease settling in her stomach.  Her mother's words,  a stern warning to obey her cousin, echoed in her mind.

“Nope, princess. Do as what I’ve said, right?” he said, his tone leaving no room for argument.

Lea nodded, her heart sinking. She had always been the dutiful daughter, a puppet dancing to the strings of her mother's expectations. She longed for freedom, for a life where she could make her own choices, but it seemed that every attempt to break free was met with another set of rules, another layer of control.

“You must obey me. No questions asked. And don’t be stubborn. I don’t tolerate that,” Lucian added, his voice a firm declaration.

Lea sighed, a heavy sigh that expressed her mounting frustration.  She felt trapped, a cog in a machine controlled by others. Her parents,  and now her cousin, held the reins of her life, their words dictating every move she made.

"Why is everyone so determined to control me?" she thought, her voice a whisper in her own head. "Why do other people get to steer the wheel of my life, while I'm left to navigate their whims?"

It was a question she had asked herself countless times before. She was tired of feeling powerless, tired of living a life dictated by others. But what could she do? She was just Lea, a girl living in the shadow of her parents' ambition, a girl with dreams that seemed to always be out of reach.

"News flash, Lucian. You grasped my neck just like how my parents do," Lea said, her voice rising with a quiet intensity.

A flicker of shock registered in Lucian's eyes, his confidence momentarily shaken.

Standing tall, Lea met his gaze, tears welling up in her eyes. "You just ripped out the small freedom I have. I thought you were different, but I guess I was wrong. You're just like them, caging me as if I'm a pet that needs a leash."

She turned away, leaving Lucian standing there, his words echoing in the silence.

Lea's heart ached. She had been so hopeful, so desperate for a connection, a connection that didn’t feel like another form of control. But Lucian, just like her parents, had asserted his dominance, making her feel like a prisoner in her own life.

She felt a wave of despair wash over her. She had made a mistake, yes, by intervening in the situation with the children. But she couldn’t just stand by and allow injustice to happen. She couldn’t pretend to be someone she wasn’t.

She had been raised in a world of expectations, a world where her every move was dictated by her parents' ambitions. She didn't know what true freedom felt like.

All she had ever known was obedience, compliance, and the constant weight of their expectations. She had never been allowed to make her own choices, to forge her own path.

"I have no freedom," she thought, a heavy weight settling in her heart.

"I haven’t done anything in my entire life that I wanted to do, that I believed in. Everything has been dictated by them, by their expectations. I don't even know what freedom feels like.  And I wonder, can I ever break free?"

She felt an overwhelming sense of despair. She was a girl trapped in a cage, a girl who had never known the taste of true independence.  The world seemed so vast and unknown,  and she was just a tiny speck,  constantly being manipulated, being controlled.

Lea’s mind raced, filled with a whirlwind of what-ifs. What if she could break free? What if she could finally carve out a life of her own?  What if she could find someone who wouldn't try to control her, someone who would see her for who she truly was?

As she wandered through the house, a sense of desolation settled upon her.  It was a familiar feeling, a feeling she had carried with her for as long as she could remember. It was the feeling of being trapped, of being powerless, of being a prisoner in her own life.

She heard a familiar voice, a comforting presence in her midst.

“I’m not like them, Lea.”

Lucian stood beside her, his voice soft and reassuring. But how could she believe him?  He had just proven himself to be just as controlling as her parents.

"You are, Lucian," Lea said, her voice laced with a bitterness that surprised her. "If you’re not one of them, then why are you ordering me to obey you?”

“It’s your mother’s command, Lea.  I’m also following her orders.”

"So do I, Lucian. We're in the same boat, just different roles. You have your freedom while I don't."

“I’m just watching over you, Lea. I’m not going to do anything.”

“But I have to obey you, Lucian.  There's still a difference.”

Lea turned away, a deep sigh escaping her lips. She was tired of being the object of their control, tired of feeling like a puppet.

She stopped,  a thought occurring to her. “And please, don’t say sorry to me again.  I’m not going to buy it this time.”

She walked away,  her words echoing in the silence.

She knew she needed to find a way to break free, to claim her own life. But how?

She was caught in a labyrinth of expectations and control, and she didn’t know where to turn.

His sorry felt like a flimsy word,  a hollow echo in the face of the pain she had endured.  Lea's heart ached with a heavy, unyielding sorrow. Fate, it seemed, was playing a cruel game,  testing her resilience, stretching her pain to its limit.

She felt trapped in a relentless cycle of disappointment and frustration. Her desire for freedom burned with a fierce intensity, but fear, a cold,  paralyzing force, held her captive.

She couldn’t disobey her mother. It would be an insult, a betrayal of the bond they shared. The thought of her mother’s wrath filled her with a terror she couldn’t shake.

Lea yearned for the courage to fight for her own life, to break free from the shackles of her parents’ expectations. But she was a coward, a girl trapped in a cage of her own making.

"I am so weak," she whispered,  a heavy sigh escaping her lips.

She sank into the living room, her gaze fixed on the distant horizon, her thoughts a tangled mess of sorrow and confusion.

Suddenly, a shadow fell upon her, a familiar presence that made her heart skip a beat. Lucian crouched beside her, his eyes fixed on hers, his expression earnest and sincere.

“Obey me, Lea,” he said, his voice low and reassuring. “If ever, after all your soul searching, you’ll find that. You can count on me to gracefully give way. I’ll guarantee you your freedom.”

His words, delivered with conviction,  felt like a promise, a lifeline in a sea of despair. His eyes held a depth of sincerity that resonated with her, a promise that resonated deep within her soul.

“Why are you doing this, Lucian?” she asked, a flicker of hope lighting her eyes.

“Because I want to.”

It was a simple answer,  but it carried a weight that resonated with Lea. She knew that anything worth having was worth fighting for, and she felt a glimmer of courage, a spark of defiance that had been dormant for so long.

She knew that taking this path,  embracing Lucian's offer, would come with risks. But she was tired of being a prisoner, tired of living under the control of her parents. She was ready for a change, a chance to forge her own path.

“Okay,” Lea whispered, a determination hardening her voice.

She was stepping into the unknown,  but she was ready to fight for her freedom. And she hoped, with every fiber of her being, that she wouldn’t be the one to suffer the greatest loss.