There was no security at the entrance.

Yahzaan noticed it immediately, and he didn’t like it one bit.

His eyes swept across the dim lobby as they walked in, instinctively scanning the corners, the empty desk, the quiet hallways. A building this open, this unguarded, it irritated him.

Layla, however, didn’t seem surprised.

They reached the elevator and Yahzaan pressed the button for the fourth floor without much thought. He stood there waiting, arms loosely at his sides.

Ten seconds passed.

Then thirty.

Then a whole minute.

The elevator didn’t move.

Layla’s eyes wandered and finally landed on a small note stuck beside the elevator panel.

Under Maintenance.

She sighed softly.

Without saying anything, she turned and walked toward the stairwell.

Yahzaan frowned in confusion.

“Where are you going?” he asked. “And why is the elevator slow as a snail here?”

“It’s not slow,” Layla replied over her shoulder. “It’s under maintenance.”

She pushed the stairwell door open.

“We have to take the stairs.”

And just like that she started climbing.

Yahzaan followed behind her, his expression darkening with every step. He didn’t say anything, but his face clearly communicated his thoughts about this entire situation.

Four floors.

In a building without security.

Using stairs.

It was not something a man like him was used to.

Finally they reached the fourth floor.

Each floor had only two apartments facing each other.

Layla walked toward her door and then suddenly realized something.

Her keys.

She hadn’t brought them.

She opened her mouth to say it.

But before she could, Yahzaan casually took a set of keys from his pocket and placed them into her palm.

Layla blinked.

She didn’t ask how he got them.

Or when.

Right now she doesn’t have the energy for questions.

She simply inserted the key into the lock.

Just as she was about to open the door, the apartment across from hers creaked open.

A woman in her fifties peeked out into the dim hallway.

“Layla? Is that you?” the woman asked, squinting slightly because of the low light.

Layla turned quickly.

“Yes, Aunty Hajira. It’s me,” she said politely. “How are you?”

Recognizing her voice, the woman opened the door wider. The bright light from inside spilled into the hallway, chasing away the shadows.

“Where did you go, Layla?” Aunty Hajira asked immediately. “You disappeared. It’s been a whole week!”

Layla hesitated.

“Yeah… I… I’m staying with my mother’s side uncle,” she said quickly. “I’ll be there for quite some time.”

“Oh.”

The woman nodded slowly.

Then her eyes shifted.

They landed on Yahzaan.

“And who is this man?” she asked, narrowing her eyes suspiciously.

Layla’s eyes widened for a second but she quickly composed herself.

“Oh...he’s… he’s my cousin brother.”

Yahzaan’s head turned toward her instantly. "Cousin brother? Who?"

But Layla didn’t look at him, didn't answer.

Her entire focus was on Aunty Hajira.

The woman nodded thoughtfully.

Then her eyes squinted again.

“But why is he wearing sunglasses at night?”

Layla didn’t miss a beat.

“Oh, Aunty Hajira… it’s not sunglasses.”

Her voice lowered slightly, becoming softer, more solemn.

“He’s blind.”

Aunty Hajira’s suspicious expression melted instantly into sympathy.

“Oh… poor thing,” she said, her tone full of pity as she looked at Yahzaan again this time with completely different eyes and shook her head sadly.

“Come for tea anytime,” she told Layla warmly. Then she gestured toward Yahzaan. “And tell your cousin to be careful on the stairs.”

Layla nodded quickly. "Yes Aunty.”

Aunty Hajira gave them one last sympathetic look before slowly closing her door.

The hallway went quiet again, Yahzaan's jaw had tightened but he was completely still behind the sunglasses.

Layla finally unlocked her door and pushed it open.

She stepped inside quickly.

Yahzaan followed a second later.

And the moment the door clicked shut behind them.

He slowly removed his sunglasses.

Very slowly.

Then he turned his head toward her.

“Blind?” he said flatly.

His voice was dangerously calm.

“I’m blind?”

“Cousin brother?”

The words left his mouth slowly.

Dangerously.

Before Layla could react, he moved.

In the next second her back hit the door and he was suddenly everywhere, his arm braced beside her head, his body towering over hers, trapping her between the door and his chest.

“I dare you to say that word again, Layla.”

His voice was low, tight with disbelief and irritation.

“Cousin brother? Cousin. Fucking. Brother?”

“So what should I have said?”

The question was simple.

Honest.

Yahzaan glared at her, his frustration deepening.

But then something unexpected happened.

For the first time since he had known her, he saw something different in her eyes.

Not fear. Not tears.

Rebellion.

Something sharp.

Something stubborn.

And when she spoke again, that same defiance slipped into her voice reminding him of the way she had argued with him on the phone earlier.

For a moment, Yahzaan said nothing.

Her words lingered in the air between them.

Because he knew she was right.

What exactly was she supposed to say?

This is my husband? The Crown Prince?

Impossible.

Still…

The fact that she had introduced him as her cousin irritated him in a way that made no logical sense.

The absurdity of it burned under his skin.

He suddenly punched the door beside her head, the loud thud echoed through the small apartment.

Then he stepped back a few paces, running a hand through his hair in visible frustration.

Across from him, Layla remained still for a moment.

Then slowly.

Quietly.

She released the breath she had been holding.

A small sigh of relief escaped her lips.

Because despite the brave face she had shown him…

She had been terrified the entire time.

He began pacing across the small living room like a wounded tiger, restless and agitated.

“Don’t you ever call me your cousin brother ever again,” he muttered sharply, more to himself than to her.

Layla, however, had already turned toward her bedroom.

As she walked away, she murmured quietly under her breath, just loud enough for herself.

“Yeah… next time I’ll introduce you as my grandfather.”

But the words didn’t quite reach his ears.

He was too busy replaying the insult in his head.

Cousin brother.

The absurdity of it still burned in his chest.

Meanwhile, Layla entered her bedroom.

The room looked exactly the same as she had left it a week ago. The familiar scent of her home lingered in the air, soft and comforting in a way the penthouse never felt.

She walked to her closet and pulled out her laptop first.

Then she paused.

After a moment of thought, she opened one of the drawers and pulled out a small travel bag. Quietly, she packed a few comfortable clothes inside.

And her cotton underwear.

Things she knew she would never find in Yahzaan’s carefully curated wardrobe.

When the bag was finally zipped, she stood there for a moment and slowly looked around the room.

These walls had witnessed everything.

Her laughter.

Her lonely nights studying.

Her prayers.

Her tears.

Every good memory.

Every bad one.

This small apartment had always been her sanctuary.

Her home.

And now…

She wasn’t allowed to live here anymore.

Her chest tightened painfully.

A few tears gathered in her eyes, blurring her vision.

But she quickly wiped them away before they could fall.

Then she picked up her laptop and bag and walked back into the living room.

Yahzaan was still pacing, his anger not fully cooled yet.

He looked up the moment she appeared.

Before she could say anything, he walked over and took the small bag from her hand.

“What’s in this?”

“Nothing,” she replied simply. “Just a few things I need.”

He studied her face for a second but didn’t ask further questions.

Instead, he slipped the sunglasses back onto his face again.

Layla’s lips twitched slightly at the sight, but she quickly looked away before a laugh could escape her.

He grabbed the baseball cap and pulled it down over his head.

Then, without another word, he caught her hand in his and started dragging her t

oward the door.

Within seconds they were out of the apartment and walking down the hallway, heading back toward the Car waiting outside the building.

____________________

End of the chapter🤍

Thank you for reading ✨

Let me know your thoughts.❤️

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