"You... what?"
Leonid's response was much calmer than Charlotte had expected.
His eyes stared deeply into hers, as if trying to understand what had just happened… or anticipating what she was about to say.
Just minutes earlier, he had quietly turned off his car engine, closed the door behind him, and walked confidently toward the elevator.
He was in a good mood, for no clear reason, and he never expected everything to change so suddenly.
The moment he put the key in his apartment door, Kaiser's apartment door swung open violently, crashing against the wall with a loud bang that stopped him in his tracks... and Charlotte came out.
Utterly shattered, in every sense of the word.
And now here she was, in his arms, trembling uncontrollably, biting into her lower lip with her upper teeth. Unable to even meet his gaze.
She was stirring his doubts.
Especially that scent… like wine. Heavy, intoxicating, muddling his thoughts, just like her tears and the clothes she hadn't changed yet.
Didn't she tell him yesterday that she needed some time alone?
It seemed she spent it drinking… with Kaiser.
Leonid narrowed his eyes and looked toward Kaiser.
Unlike Charlotte, Kaiser stood there indifferently, as if the chaos didn't concern him at all.
His perpetually displeased expression was now void of any emotion… like a statue placed there just to stare. Or maybe to hide something behind that cold mask.
Leonid noticed the faint scratches on his bare chest red, fresh, and random… angry-looking.
Was it self-defense? Did something almost happen between them? Or did they just fight?
The question stung his heart before it reached his mind.
No.
He tightened his grip slightly on Charlotte's arms, gathering his thoughts, then set aside his suspicions.
He knew Charlotte well… and he trusted her.
Yes, maybe he doubted Kaiser but he chose not to open that door now.
"Say it slowly…"
He leaned toward her, his voice soft, as if whispering to her heart:
"Or don't say it at all… it's okay."
His eyes were fixed on hers, though she kept avoiding them.
He sighed, but didn't scold her.
"Did you two argue? Well… that's nothing new."
Leonid gently placed his hand on Charlotte's back, wiped her tears with his fingers, and lightly dabbed the small spot of blood on her lower lip with his thumb.
"Make up later… right now, let's go to your apartment before the neighbors wake up and get the wrong idea."
He took her hand in his and turned toward her door. Charlotte kept her gaze down, her heartbeat aching with every thump.
"That's not true…"
She whispered with difficulty, but her quiet voice didn't reach his ears.
His warmth surrounded her. Every touch, every murmur, pulled her toward safety… but she didn't deserve it.
She couldn't confess. Silence was her only refuge.
Should she apologize? Or look for words to justify the unjustifiable?
Impossible.
How could she lie to someone who loved her this way? To someone who saw her chaos… and embraced it?
She hated herself. Hated how terrible she had become… more than she ever imagined.
Leonid extended his free hand and touched the door handle. He was about to turn it, his mind still lingering on what had happened between Charlotte and Kaiser... But no matter how much he tried to convince himself, the scene before him seemed a bit strange.
Still, he pushed all those doubts away with a heavy sigh.
"Wait a moment…"
He had expected Kaiser to intervene sooner or later. Logically, he always got involved in things that weren't his concern, even without a need.
But this time was different, especially after Kaiser reached out and raised Charlotte's phone toward Leonid.
"Take it."
His voice was calm... and arrogant.
He pointed at Charlotte without paying any attention to her silent crying.
"She left it behind, and I don't think she'll take it from me, so... take it."
Leonid raised an eyebrow for a moment, then let go of the door handle and took the phone.
"And by the way, don't worry about us. She's just overreacting."
Kaiser continued speaking, which was unusual for him. He wasn't the type to justify himself, especially not in front of Leonid, the person whose presence had always bothered him.
His tone was arrogant as usual, but his eyes... didn't express anything.
He glanced quickly at Charlotte, for the last time, then sighed.
"She came last night to return my shirt and was crying. We argued. Then she started repeating words like: guilty, bad, horrible... I don't remember exactly. But she was talking about you. About your relationship. She felt bad about herself."
He lazily ran his hand through his hair, as if it didn't matter much to him.
"After that, we drank wine together. We've always done that when we're at our lowest, glass after glass, until the bottle's finished."
He paused for a moment, then continued:
"But when we woke up this morning on my bed, she started screaming and getting angry with me."
Leonid raised an eyebrow:
"You got drunk together and woke up in the same bed?"
"Yes."
Kaiser replied, waving his hand carelessly, as if it no longer mattered.
"Is there a problem? For your information, this isn't strange... we're friends, after all, right, Charlotte?"
As soon as he spoke her name, a heavy silence fell over the place.
Kaiser's words were not just a passing remark… they were unjustifiable to Leonid, while they were a bomb that exploded in Charlotte's mind, wounding her heart with a new depth.
Was he trying to help her? Had he finally felt guilty?
No. She knew him better than anyone.
Kaiser only lies when the truth doesn't serve him. He's using her now... and maybe later he'll threaten to expose everything to Leonid.
She shatters.
Then she shatters again, with no chance to recover.
Had she really been his friend? Or was she now wronging him?
She could no longer tell.
"Charlotte."
Kaiser interrupted her as he placed his hand on her shoulder.
"You're embarrassing me. I asked you earlier and you didn't answer. This bastard—"
"Don't touch me!"
She suddenly screamed, slapping his hand away.
The tears that had barely dried began to pour down again, across her shattered face.
"I don't need your justification! Or your explanation! Or anything from you!"
"That's enough."
Leonid suddenly intervened, pulling Charlotte towards him, then opened the apartment door and carefully pushed her inside.
His movement was calm but decisive; he wanted to get her away from the scene and calm her down without increasing her collapse.
"Wait—! I'm not done yet!"
He closed the door in her face, ignoring her expressions and screams, but his eyes didn't hide the concern... concern that had turned into certainty.
The suspicion he had felt earlier was no longer just a feeling... it had become a heavy truth.
He glanced quickly at Kaiser, then commented coldly:
"You two never get tired of playing the role of children, do you?"
But deep down, he wished it were that simple.
He turned toward Kaiser and continued:
"Go back to your apartment, and be respectful next time... don't show up like this again."
He was referring to Kaiser's naked form, but his words carried a double meaning.
It was as if he was hinting at something beyond the clothes. As if he was hinting at what couldn't be said.
Then he opened the door and entered, leaving Kaiser standing alone in the hallway.
Kaiser was calm, but his amber eyes grew darker over time… as if something had just extinguished within him.
At that moment, the door of another apartment opened, and Natalia stepped out.
She seemed like the first day of her spring, bright and elegant with a carefully planned softness.
She glanced quickly at the hallway, then smiled immediately when she saw Kaiser.
She hadn't expected to meet him this morning, especially after he had ignored her repeated knocks on his door last night.
"Good morning~!"
she said cheerfully as she walked lightly toward him.
"Hmm."
His response was lukewarm, barely giving her a quick glance before turning toward his door.
"Wait, where are you going?!"
She followed him immediately, furrowing her brows in clear annoyance.
"By the way, why do you look like this? And why were you standing in front of Charlotte's apartment? Don't tell me... did you sleep at her place last night?! Is that why you ignored the doorbell?"
Natalia shook her head with muffled frustration, her eyes betraying jealousy she didn't try to hide.
"How can you stay so close to her when she's now with another man?"
She sighed, then muttered as if punishing him with her words:
"You're the worst."
Hearing that word, Kaiser stopped next to the threshold of his apartment.
It was as if something froze him in place. He seemed still... and calm, but the anger simmered inside him like a silent volcano.
"Not only that!"
Natalia continued with a jealous tone:
"You're also involved with me, how can you leave me like this? Alright, I understand we're friends, but please... take our relationship into consideration!"
She scolded him passionately, her words mixed between reproach and pleading, while Kaiser showed no notable reaction.
Then suddenly... he turned toward her, speaking in a low voice, but as sharp and cold as the bitterness that spilled in it:
"You and I... there is no relationship between us."
Then, without giving her a chance to respond, he closed the door in her face.
Time froze for Natalia.
She stood there, staring at the closed door, her heart full of love… shattering into tiny, soundless pieces.
"You're not serious…"
Natalia whispered to herself, laughing a shaky laugh, the tears flowing endlessly down her cheeks.
She knew, deep inside, that the two of them together... meant the end of everything she had built with effort and patience.
"Please, come out… just say it's a joke. That you were angry, so you said what you said."
She begged with a broken voice, trying to hold onto a shaky smile that crumbled under the weight of her tears.
But silence was harsher than any response.
When no reply came... she gathered the remains of her pride, turned with steady steps toward the elevator, heading to her work, carrying a heart pierced by silence.