CHAPTER 53: MAIN REASON

"Aish, shit..." Liam muttered under his breath as the situation spiraled further. "Stop it, Lia... You know that was all in the past. You’re the one who rejected him and chose..." He paused, gulping slightly, the rest of his sentence sticking in his throat. "Anyway... you know that everything now is just a memory."

But Camellia shook her head, refusing to back down.

"No! I want to continue... I still want him." She glanced at Elias and pointed. "I mean... him."

Elias snorted in disbelief. "What the hell is this crazy woman talking about? I thought Theo was the one who messed up his brain... but her? She’s worse."

Daisy, once again caught in the middle, looked like her mental storage had hit full capacity. Her brain was overheating.

"What the fuck are you guys even talking about?!" she finally screamed, hands clutching her head as if trying to keep it from exploding. "Engagements? Not Related? Rejected? I swear, if someone tells me next that I’m part of a cult, I’m jumping out the window!"

"Hmm..." Elias took a deep breath and glanced at Liam. "Since I don’t really know the whole story, wouldn’t it be best if you explained it to her?"

Liam let out a loud exhale. "Ah... seriously, can we not do this now? I’m exhausted. And you—Lia..." He shot Camellia with a sharp side glance. "Whatever possessed you today, please let it go. Let’s just stop here, alright?"

But she stood frozen, refusing to move.

"I said now!"

His shout echoed through the room and just like that, he grabbed Camellia by the arm and dragged her out. Before leaving, he turned back and looked at Daisy, his expression colder than she’d ever seen. "Close the door. Or better—lock it."

Daisy didn’t say a word, stunned by how much Liam suddenly resembled—

"Woah... for the first time, he looked almost the same as Theo, right?" Elias muttered, breaking the silence.

He walked toward the door, but Daisy stepped past him and locked it herself.

The room fell quiet. Only the pale light from the window remained.

"Don’t you feel scared... staying this close to me in the same room?" Elias asked, his voice unusually soft as he closed the distance.

Click.

Daisy flipped the light switch on, casting a bright glow over the room. She looked at him, clearly unimpressed.

"No. Should I?"

Elias blinked. "I mean... a little fear would be flattering."

She rolled her eyes. "Grow up."

"In which part... specifically?" he smirked, but Daisy ignored him, turning toward the bed.

Her gaze drifted around the room. It didn’t quite match the Theo Kingsley she knew now. The walls were painted in soft tones, the decorations light and playful—like someone had once tried to trap sunlight and laughter within these four walls. It felt... warm. Unlike the man Theo had become.

"This room doesn’t suit him anymore," she muttered under her breath.

Elias heard her. "Yeah? I guess it fits me then, right?" He strolled toward the bed and threw himself onto it with a thud. "That’s why I should stay."

Daisy looked at him, her gaze lingering silently.

’Based on everyone’s words... maybe he was playful like you once’, she thought, watching Elias stretch comfortably across the mattress.

But she didn’t say it aloud. Instead, she walked to the window, eyes lost in the view outside, trying to piece together who Theo used to be and why that version of him never reached her.

She began pacing slowly, eyes scanning the room again, searching for any fragment of his past hidden in the cheerful colors and warm decor.

A sudden knock on the door made her pause.

She turned sharply to Elias. "Stay there. Don’t move."

Elias raised his hands in mock surrender, grinning as if enjoying the drama.

When she opened the door, a maid stood there, holding a tray with some basic necessities.

"Please call me if you need anything else, madam," the maid, who looked about Daisy’s age, said with a polite smile.

"Actually... Could you bring me some painkillers? I’ve had a bit of a headache," Daisy asked, lips pressing into a tight, weary smile.

"I’ll return with them shortly," the maid replied, and walked off the moment Daisy accepted the tray.

She turned back into the room, glancing around as if searching for something. Her eyes paused, scanning the corners.

"Looking for the bathroom?" Elias asked, lounging lazily on the bed.

She didn’t respond, but her gaze lingered on the far side of the room.

"You can find it behind that wall," he said, casually pointing toward a sleek wooden panel near the corner. "Secret door. Rich people love that kind of thing."

Without thanking him, she walked over and pushed it open, revealing the bathroom inside. Clean, minimal, and far too untouched.

Elias called after her, "Want me to accompany you? Since this room’s been left alone for a while, who knows... there might be a gho—"

SLAM.

The bathroom door shut with a loud thud, cutting him off mid-sentence.

He stared at the door, eyebrows raised. "Well. That’s a no," he muttered, smirking to himself before rolling over and mumbling into the pillow, "Feisty."

Meanwhile, inside the bathroom, Daisy leaned against the door for a second, letting out a long breath. Finally, some silence.

She walked to the bathtub, turned the pipe open and stared at it for a few seconds. Sighed.

Steam began to rise as warm water filled the tub. Daisy stood still, eyes locked on the swirling surface as if it could answer all the questions in her head.

She crouched down beside the tub, dipping her fingers into the water, then sat on the floor with her back against the cool tiled wall. Pulling her knees to her chest, she rested her chin on them.

From the second she met Theo, her life had flipped itself inside out. Not just the offer, not just the kiss, or the sudden marriage proposal but everything about him, the people around him, and even herself.

Nothing made sense anymore.

And yet... here she was. Still staying for one main reason.