Vassi whitened as he watched Seri mumble an incoherent excuse before rushing off the stage. Letting go of Daniela’s hand, he said unevenly, “I’m sorry. I must go.” He didn’t wait for an answer, but instead turned swiftly around to go after Seri.

His mind warned him against playing the fool again, but he ignored it. This time, he only allowed himself to listen to his instincts, and his guts were telling him that Seri was in pain.

As he reached the end of the stairs, he caught sight of Seri going through the function hall’s back doors. He started to call out for her, but a couple of photographers suddenly blocked his way.

Fuck.

He forced a smile, allowing them a few seconds to take his photos. After, he gestured for his security to come forward, and they surrounded him this time, preventing any other member of the press from approaching him.

“Keep them away from me,” he muttered under his breath.

“Yes.”

Pushing the back doors open, Vassi immediately scanned the hotel’s VIP lobby and found Seri standing a short distance from the entrance of the hotel’s coffee shop.

He slowed down, his gaze narrowing at the way she was standing so still.

A moment later, and several people came out of the coffee shop, and Vassi stopped moving as well. Now he knew why Seri had been frozen in her place.

It was his family emerging from the shop – his older brothers, Sergei and Misha, together with Fyodor.

Vassi swore under his breath. He had invited the three of them to the press conference a week ago. Back then, he had still been harboring the hope that things could go back the way they used to be.

Before he could speak, he heard Seri say throatily, “Hello, boys.” He watched her blow kisses at each one. “Did you miss me?”

Sergei and Misha’s faces remained unreadable.

Fyodor, however, turned white. Turning sharply away from Seri, he told his sons harshly, “If I find out either of you contacts her again for any reason – you might as well forget I’m your father.”

Without waiting for their replies, he stalked out of the lobby.

Seri pouted. “Papa still hates me.” Her slim shoulders moving in a dismissive shrug, she said carelessly, “But oh well. He’s already old, so he can be forgiven.” She blew the two kisses, saying, “I guess this is the last time I’ll see you two, so goodbye.”

Spinning away, she flounced off to the elevators.

Still unnoticed, Vassi watched her press the up button, and that was when he saw her hands shaking hard.

Ah.

He turned towards his brothers, but they were already gone.

What now?

He watched Seri enter the elevator, and when the doors closed, he made his decision. Using the other elevator, he pressed the button for the fifth floor, knowing that there could only be one place in this hotel that could guarantee privacy for her.

Arriving at his floor, Vassi tapped his card key on the scanner and the door automatically opened. Since the company considered him and Seri as natural siblings, it had reserved adjoining suites for them to serve as dressing rooms.

Entering his suite, he went straight to the connecting door and pressed his ear to the door.

Ah.

Seri was weeping.

Vassi sank on the chair nearest to him.

The sound of her tears made him ache. He wanted so badly to go to her. But at the same time – it gave him hope.

If she really didn’t care about any of them---

If all she cared about was the money---

She wouldn’t be crying this hard, wouldn’t be weeping like the pain driving her to tears was inconsolable.

As he listened to her heartbreaking sobs, Vassi took his phone out and called Fyodor.

“Vassi---”

He interrupted his father, saying hoarsely, “I’m sorry, Papa.”

Fyodor fell silent.

“All my life, I vowed to be a good son, to find a way to be someone who’s deserving of your love---”

Fyodor said fiercely, “You never had to earn it, Vassi.”

He closed his eyes. “I know that, Papa. I thank you for it. I love you for it.” He swallowed. “But I’m done lying to myself – I’m done lying to you. We all deserve the truth, and the truth is---”

“Don’t say it, son,” his father said hoarsely.

“I have to.” His hold on the phone tightened. “You mean the world to me, Papa…but so does she. So does Seri, and I love her---”

“Goddammit, Vassi.”

“I have always loved her – the way a man loves a woman. I never saw her as a sister---”

“Can you goddamn hear yourself, Vassi?” Fyodor raged. “Do you know what you’re goddamn saying---”

He said flatly, “I do.”

In the opposite room, Seri’s sobs hadn’t stopped, hadn’t even softened, and her pain hurt and strengthened him at the same time.

“I love you both equally, and I would not hesitate to give up my life for either of you.”

“Think about what you’re saying,” Fyodor said wearily. “Just think, Vassi. She’s your sister---”

“She’s not.”

“She tried coming on to me, dammit---”

He said fiercely, “She did it for me.”

And as soon as the words left him, Vassi knew it was true, and it was like having the burden of the whole world lifted from his shoulders.

“She did it for me,” he repeated, “and I just wish I had known it was so from the start.”

“Don’t let her fool you---”

“The only time she tried to fool you and me, Papa, was when she wanted us to believe she was something she wasn’t.” His voice became raw. “Think about it, Papa. This is Seri – our Seri – we’re talking about. We all had a hand raising her, and you know – I know you know – you know how sweet she was, how innocent and loving. Do you really think---”

“I know you don’t want to see it,” Fyodor gritted out, “but she’s lying. Her whole life she’s been lying---”

“Papa.”

Fyodor fell silent.

“I won’t try to convince you to believe me. It’s your choice. But just know – if I have to choose, I will always choose her. And I know it’s a long shot, but I hope – I hope you choose her, too, given the chance.”

He ended the call.

He listened to the sobs coming from the room.

I’m sorry, leech.

I should have trusted you more.

Rising slowly to his feet and feeling like an old man every second, Vassi made his way to the connecting door and carefully turned the knob. The door swung open noiselessly, and he entered the suite.

Seri was on her knees, her back to him, her shoulders shaking hard.

He stepped forward. “Seri.”

Almost falling out of balance as she spun around, Seri could only shake her head dazedly when she saw Vassi inside her suite. “V-Vassi? How did you – what are you---” But then she noticed the connecting door next to him, and as the answer became clear to her, her lips twisted. “Adjoining suites for stepsiblings who fuck?”

“Yes.”

She flinched.

“Seri---”

She shook her head. “I’m not in the mood to talk.”

“If this is about Daniela---”

She laughed humorlessly. “No, Vassi.” Wiping her eyes, she whispered painfully, “I almost wish this is about her, but it’s not.” Forcing herself to get back on her feet, she carefully averted her gaze from him, saying pointedly, “I’d appreciate it if you leave now.”

“I will – as soon as you give me the answers I need.” He came to stand in front of her.

She turned her face away. “I don’t---” Hands suddenly cupped her face, and she gasped as Vassi forcibly made her look at him.

“Why were you crying?”

Ah.

She squeezed her eyes shut. When had she become so weak that just hearing Vassi ask something so simple was enough to break her?

“Tell me.”

She shook her head. “It d-doesn’t matter.”

“But it does – if it’s because of what happened at the lobby.”

Her head jerked up, her stunned gaze meeting his.

He answered the unspoken question in her eyes, saying quietly, “Yes. I saw what happened. I saw everything. The way you made it so damn clear to them that you’ve changed---”

Tears of humiliation stung her eyes.

“But more than that, I also saw the way you were crying just now.”

She whitened.

“And it doesn’t make any fucking sense. Why would you cry like that over people you don’t really care about?” His voice turned savage, and he demanded, “Why would you cry like your fucking heart’s breaking when you already have Plan Fucking B in the bag---”

She managed to wrench away from him, crying out, “Stop it!” She was so, so tired of having her lies constantly thrown at her.

Grabbing her shoulders, Vassi snarled down at her, “Why should I stop? Can’t you handle the truth of what you’ve done? Is that why you’re crying? You feel fucking guilty about my father going to pieces---”

“Shut up!” She let out a cry of despair.

“You want to know how he can only sleep when he’s drunk or taken pills---”

“Noooo---”

“It’s all because you destroyed him.”

“Stop it---”

“You won, Seri. Are you happy now---”

She slapped him, sobbing, “No. NO. NO!” She could no longer see him through her tears, but it didn’t really matter because right now all she could see was Fyodor---

Papa.

Sobs broke out of her, tearing her apart.

“I d-don’t want him broken,” she wept. “I n-never wanted that, and I don’t know what to do---”

Hands clasped her face, and she found herself looking up at Vassi.

He was smiling down at her, and it was…real.

His smile was…real.

“Ya znayu.”

She could only stare at him, unable to believe what she was hearing. He…knew?

His head lowered.

And again, he whispered, “Ya znayu.” But this time, Vassi’s own voice broke. “I know now, Seri. I understand.”

And this time, she understood as well.

Oh God.

“I’m sorry it took me a long time to understand,” Vassi said hoarsely, “but I know now. I know you did it all for me.”

When she realized what he was saying---

When she realized that he truly did know---

She couldn’t help it.

The tears just kept falling.

Relief and happiness filled her, and she could only look up at him, crying his name over and over. “Vassi. Vassi. Vassi.”

His arms closed around her like iron bands, and she didn’t mind at all. There was no other place she wanted to be.

“You goddamn fool.” His trembling lips touched her hair. “I love you, solnishka moya.”

She cried even harder because for so long she had thought she would never hear him call her that again. Throwing her arms around him, she whispered fiercely, “I love you. I love you. I love you.” She tightened her hold on him, a part of her feeling terrified that if she let go, he would disappear.

As if he had heard her thoughts, Vassi tipped her chin up and kissed her hard.

It was beautiful, so, so beautiful because it was yet another thing that she thought she could never feel again.

Pulling away, he said hoarsely, “No more tears, solnishka moya.”

She nodded, but still the tears fell.

Not wanting Seri to cry herself into a state of exhaustion, he lifted her up in his arms and carried her to the bedroom.

When he laid her on the bed, she clutched a fistful of his shirt, saying tremulously, “D-don’t go.”

He shook his hand. “I’m never going anywhere without you.” He lay next to her, saying rawly, “I promise.” She burrowed into him, and because he felt the same need for them to be connected, Vassi drew her as close as he could to him. “Sleep now, my love. I’ll be here when you wake up.”

She didn’t answer, only continued clutching him like she was still terrified he would disappear. But as time passed, her hold eventually slackened and he gradually heard her breathing ease.

Carefully pulling away, he peeled her cotton jacket off, wanting to make her sleep more comfortably. Her phone fell on the carpet as he placed the jacket on the table. Picking her iPhone up, Vassi saw one unread message.

It was from Max.

He hesitated only for a moment before reading the message.

Max: How did the press conference go? I wish I could be there. I really do. See you tomorrow, and if you ever need some help to make you fall asleep again, I’m always at your service.

Vassi slid the phone back into one of the pockets of Seri’s jacket.

He turned to face Seri again, and his heart clenched.

He had thought the lies had finally ended, but now he no longer knew what was real.