Lu Zeyan's lips touched Aneli's. The contact was brief and gentle, leaving them both silent as if time itself had held its breath.
Aneli flinched. She immediately shoved at his chest and took several steps back.
"Don't!"
Lu Zeyan stopped at once. His hand lifted, then slowly fell. His jaw tightened—not because he was angry at Aneli, but because he was angry at himself.
"I'm sorry," he said hoarsely. "I got carried away."
Silence returned to the room. The only sound was rain tapping against the suite's windows. The city lights filtering through the curtains made Aneli's face look even paler.
Lu Zeyan walked away and stopped beside the bar. He poured a glass of water, not liquor, then set it in front of Aneli.
"Drink."
Aneli didn't touch it right away. Both hands were clasped tightly in her lap.
"I can take you home," Lu Zeyan continued. "You can still call everything off."
Aneli lifted her face. Her eyes were swollen.
"If I go home, my mother can't have her surgery."
Lu Zeyan fell silent.
"Then I'll pay the surgery costs," he said.
Aneli stared at him as if she'd just heard something impossible.
"With no conditions?"
"No conditions."
"Then what about my father's debt?"
"I'll take care of that too."
Aneli stood. Her knees were still weak, but her voice sounded firmer.
"Why?"
Lu Zeyan turned his face away.
"Because I don't want to watch you make a decision while you're cornered."
"Weren't you the one who forced me to choose in the first place?"
The question struck harder than a shout.
Lu Zeyan lowered his head and stared at his own fingers. Tonight, he'd done the thing he hated most: used money to buy someone else's weakness. He could call it an agreement, a transaction, or help. But whatever he called it, the truth remained the same.
"I was wrong," he said at last.
Aneli fell silent.
Lu Zeyan looked at her again. "I'm used to getting whatever I want. When Bai Chenxuan brought up that bet, I thought it was all just a game. But after I saw you..."
He stopped, as if he didn't know how to finish the sentence.
"After you saw me?"
"I don't know." Lu Zeyan rubbed his face. "Maybe you reminded me of someone. Or maybe I was just sick of watching you be forced to pay for someone else's mistakes."
Aneli let out a soft laugh, but it was bitter.
"I'm sick of it too."
"Sick of whom?"
"My father. The hospital. Everyone who only shows up when they need money." She swallowed. "Especially myself, because I can't save my mother."
Lu Zeyan didn't answer immediately.
Aneli finally picked up the glass from the table, but her hand was shaking too badly. The water sloshed and nearly spilled. Lu Zeyan started to help, then stopped himself.
Aneli noticed the movement.
"Are you afraid I'll refuse?"
"I'm learning to hold myself back."
That answer made Aneli look at him for a long moment.
Lu Zeyan sighed.
"Listen. You don't owe your body to anyone. Not me, not the debt collectors, not even your father."
Aneli's eyes burned again.
"Then why do I still feel like property being passed from hand to hand?"
Lu Zeyan was silent for a long time.
"Because I made you feel that way."
His honesty cracked Aneli's defenses. Tears fell one by one.
"I just want my mother to survive," she whispered. "I don't care what I have to lose."
"Don't say that."
"Why? I have nothing left."
"You still have yourself."
Aneli shook her head.
"Myself isn't enough to pay for surgery."
"Then let my money pay for it. Don't pay with yourself."
Aneli stared at him in confusion. Just minutes ago, Lu Zeyan had still been cold, as if feelings had never had a place in his life. Now he stood there with a tired face, like someone trying to fix a mistake without even knowing how.
"If you pay for everything, what am I supposed to give you in return?"
"You don't have to give me anything."
"I can't accept charity."
"I'm not pitying you."
"Then what is it?"
Lu Zeyan looked at the rain beyond the glass.
"Let's say I'm buying myself the chance to sleep without feeling like the worst person in this city."
Aneli wiped her cheeks.
"Do you always talk like that?"
"Only when I don't know what to say."
For the first time that night, the corner of Aneli's lips lifted slightly. Her smile was faint, but it was enough to leave Lu Zeyan speechless.
That smile shouldn't have made his chest feel so tight.
"I'll call the hospital," he said, trying to change the subject. "Someone from my office will handle the payment and make sure your mother gets an operating room tonight."
Aneli's eyes widened.
"Tonight?"
"If it's still possible."
"Really?"
"I don't promise things I can't deliver."
Aneli lowered her head. Her shoulders trembled.
Lu Zeyan picked up his phone, but before he could call his assistant, Aneli said,
"Mr. Lu."
"Hm?"
"If I stay here... I don't want you to touch me without permission."
Lu Zeyan nodded immediately.
"All right."
"I might change my mind at any time."
"The door will stay open."
"And you won't chase after me?"
"No."
Aneli looked at the suite door. It was only a few steps away, yet it felt like a world away. She could leave now. She could run to the hospital and wait for bad news. She could go back to facing the debt collectors empty-handed.
But for the first time since morning, she had a choice.
It wasn't an easy choice, but it was truly hers.
Aneli slowly sat down on the edge of the bed.
"I'm staying," she said.
Lu Zeyan gave her a sharp look.
"Because of your mother?"
"Because of my mother." Aneli drew a deep breath. "But not because I've given up."
"Then why?"
"Because I want to know whether you're really different from the people who've treated me like property all this time."
Lu Zeyan let out a short, humorless laugh.
"You really have the nerve to test me."
"I have nothing left to hold on to except my own judgment."
That made Lu Zeyan look at her differently. Aneli was afraid, but she wasn't weak. Beneath her trembling body and tear-filled eyes was someone still struggling to stand.
Lu Zeyan walked closer, then stopped at a safe distance.
"Then let's start over."
Aneli frowned.
"Start over?"
"I'm Lu Zeyan."
Aneli was silent for a moment before answering,
"I'm Aneli."
"I know."
"Don't call me anything that makes me feel inferior."
"All right, Aneli."
Her name sounded different coming from Lu Zeyan's mouth. It wasn't the way someone addressed a person in a transaction. It sounded more like an acknowledgment that Aneli was a human being standing before him.
Lu Zeyan's phone rang. He answered his assistant's call and gave brief instructions about the hospital, the surgery costs, and the debt that needed to be settled. Aneli listened, holding her breath.
A few minutes later, Lu Zeyan ended the call.
"The hospital will prepare the operating room."
Aneli covered her mouth with both hands. She broke down crying, but this time it wasn't from fear.
"My mother... she can have the surgery?"
"Yes."
"Thank you."
She stood up too quickly and swayed. Lu Zeyan reflexively reached out, but stopped before touching her.
Aneli saw it. Then she was the one who reached for the sleeve of Lu Zeyan's suit to steady herself.
"May I?" she asked softly.
Lu Zeyan nodded.
"Yes."
Aneli gripped his arm and cried silently. Lu Zeyan let her. He didn't hug her, stroke her, or ask for anything. He simply stood there until Aneli's sobs gradually subsided.
Outside, the rain continued to fall without pause.
The night had begun with a bet, but it turned into something neither of them had ever planned. No contract was signed. No promises were made about their feelings.
Only two wounded strangers learning that saving someone didn't always mean possessing them.
And when Aneli finally fell asleep from exhaustion, Lu Zeyan remained seated in the chair near the window. He stared at her in silence, then sent a message to his assistant.
"Find out who made Aneli's father run away. And make sure no one ever lays a hand on her again."
After sending the message, Lu Zeyan leaned his head back against the chair.
He'd come to the hotel looking for an escape.
But that night, without realizing it, he'd found a new problem he couldn't simply walk away from.
Her name was Aneli.