light of day seemed unforgiving, illuminating every shattered piece of the illusion she'd held onto for months. The me

apologies or explanations. That silence w

k felt meaningless, each conversation a distraction from the storm raging

pear more frequently-not just in her thoughts but in her everyday life

ease let m

t to hurt you.

unannounced, holding a bouquet

her pain, Liana found herself softening, torn between the lov

ess intensity that unsettled her. He began to call incessantly, demanding to know wher

you answer

man you were tal

u avoid

felt was now tangled w

's growing presence. Her closest friends noticed the change.

t the Ryan I knew,"

ng you. You're

ana admitted,

e him. I want to be

d. "Love shouldn't

w distracted and withdrawn. She missed deadlines, forgot meetings, and strug

ly. Is everything alright?" h

"Just some personal s

yan cast over her life was deepen

returned home to find Ryan waiting outside her apartm

doing here?" she ask

ou," he said, s

thick with tension. Ryan's eyes searched hers, pleading for understandin

felt trapped by the inconsiste

erratic. He demanded passwords to her phone and email, questioned her abou

suffocating sense of being watched. The man who once in

ain was overwhelming. She reached for her phone, tempted to call Maya but st

isolated, even as p

hispering, sensing something was wrong but unsure what. Her once ste

ressful meeting, Liana sat in the break

is, Liana," Maya said firm

illing over. "I'm scared

oking for work documents on Ryan's laptop-something she shouldn't have done-she stumbled across em

efore. This wasn't a mistake or

hardest moment yet. He was d

me like this?" he de

" Liana said, her voic

" he said bitterly. "I love

The man she loved was gone, replaced

g Liana alone with the wreckage of their relationship

s. She changed her phone number, blocked Ryan on social med

wed up uninvited, and left threatening messages. But Liana stood

flicker, Liana reflected on how love had turned into a cage. The ma

, a spark of resilienc

adow define her. She would reb

na whispered to herself, "This is