take from me, demand more of.
I had loved Silas because I thought he loved me back. But I was wrong. He didn’t love me. He never had. Love was meant to be given to someone who valued it, not wasted on someone who took it for granted.
Silas looked at me, his expression confused. “What are you talking about?”
and worse,
I let out a bitter laugh, unwilling to waste another word. “Go home, Silas. I have nothing to say to you. And if you keep this up, I’ll call the police.”
His face paled, but I didn’t care. Without another glance, I turned and got into the car with Lila, leaving him behind.
03
Silas either didn’t understand my words or chose not to Ever
Silas either didn’t understand my words or chose not to. Ever since that day, he began showing up at my office every single day, always holding a bouquet of flowers.
People around us, oblivious to what had happened, would urge me to cherish him, saying things like, “Men like this don’t come around often. Don’t let your stubbornness cost you someone who loves you most.”
They had no idea how misplaced their advice was. Those words should have been directed at Silas.
I threw every bouquet he brought straight into the trash, hoping it would extinguish whatever delusions he had about us.
But instead, it seemed to fuel him. The more I pushed him away, the harder he tried. He alternated between giving me flowers and asking me out on
dates, all of which I refused without hesitation.
Somehow, Elyse found out about his attempts to win me back. She showed up unannounced, confronting us directly.
“Nina,” she began, her eyes already brimming with tears, “Silas and I love each other. Can’t you stop clinging to him? Because of you, he won’t even talk to me anymore.”
Her voice trembled as if she were the victim of some great injustice.
Before I could respond, her son, Jude, picked up a rock and hurled it at me. Thankfully, I dodged in time and avoided being hurt.
Silas‘ expression darkened instantly. He shoved Jude to the ground, yelling, “Stop it, you little brat! If you hurt Nina, I won’t let you or your mother off the hook!”
Elyse panicked, pushing Silas away and shouting angrily, “Silas, you told me you’d love me forever! You said you were only with Nina out of convenience and that you’d break up with her as soon as you had the chance!”
Silas‘ face turned deathly pale. He glanced at me instinctively before slapping Elyse across the face.
“Shut your mouth!” he snapped. “You ran off with someone else for money, and now you’re crawling back because I’m rich. Do you think I don’t see through you? Let me make one thing clear! Nina is the only woman I’ll ever marry. As for you and your son? I couldn’t care less about either of you!”
Elyse stood frozen, stunned by his words. Tears spilled down her cheeks as she stammered, “You heartless bast**d!” *
She lunged at him in anger, hitting him repeatedly, but Silas simply pushed her to the ground, leaving her in a heap of humiliation.
I watched the drama unfold with detached indifference. This mess was theirs to deal with, not mine. Without a word, I turned and walked away.
Not long after, I heard through the grapevine that Elyse, desperate to marry Silas, drugged him and leaked intimate photos of the two of them online, demanding he take responsibility.
Silas, who despised being manipulated, reached his breaking point. Whatever lingering affection he’d had for her vanished completely.
He illegally detained Elyse, subjecting her to endless torment until she died under his hand.
Jude, having witnessed his mother’s brutal demise, was traumatized into madness and eventually institutionalized in a psychiatric hospital by Silas.
To me, this was little more than gossip, something to idly discuss over dinner. I didn’t care enough to think about it further.
But Silas wasn’t done. After dealing with Elyse, he turned his attention back to me, persisting in his efforts to win me over despite my repeated rejections.
feet.
