Page 81 of Ruthless Kings of Obsession

The room goes very still as we all turn to stare at him. He cringes visibly, realizing what he's just admitted.

"Yeah, okay, it was with Eva," he confesses quickly, raising his hands defensively. "We were a bit wild back then. But that's ancient history! No relationship, remember? Just... forest adventures."

"He'll be the first one to try fucking her again," Zander comments to Ares and me, his voice carrying deadly certainty despite its casual tone.

Ares tilts his head thoughtfully. "Maybe we should test his resolve with some sewer time? See how long before he breaks?"

"The man is right there," Marcus pinches the bridge of his nose in exasperation. "Just threaten him to his face if you're going to do it."

Ren's eyes dart between us nervously. "Come on, guys. Have mercy?"

"Why did you break up anyway?" I ask, genuinely curious about their past dynamic.

"We never actually broke up," Ren admits, shifting uncomfortably under our collective stare. "Can't break up if you were never really together. I knew my Moonflower was wild, needed someone who could match her appetite for chaos."

"What do you mean by that?" Marcus asks sharply.

Ren gestures broadly at our current situation. "This. All of this. The madness, the chaos, the havoc, the endless obsession – she needs it like breathing." His expression grows more serious. "She won't stop until she's ready to claim her own revenge on everyone who scarred and ruined her."

The rain continues its steady pattern against the windows as we process his words. Even Eva seems to grow more still in her sleep, as if sensing the weight of the conversation.

"You think she'll never forgive Domino," I observe, studying Ren's unusually grave expression.

"Would you?" He shakes his head slowly. "She's too cunning, too deceptive to truly forgive the villain in her story. She might play along, might even convince herself she's moved past it, but..." He trails off meaningfully.

"Then what do you think happens to him in the end?" I ask, curious about his perspective as someone who knew Eva in a different context.

Ren slides his hands into his pockets, considering the question carefully. When he speaks, his voice drops to barely above a whisper: "Maybe it's time for him to feel what it's like to be taken down by a villain bigger than himself."

The implications of that statement hang heavy in the air. We all look at Eva's sleeping form, wondering just what kind of vengeance she's planning behind those innocent pigtails and sweet smiles.

"You really did know her well," Zander observes, something dangerous flickering in his eyes.

"Well enough to know I couldn't give her what she needed," Ren admits with a sad smile. "She requires this kind of intensity – this dance of power and obsession and carefully planned revenge. I was just..." He shrugs. "A pleasant distraction while she figured that out."

"And now?" Ares asks, his model's perfection not quite hiding his predatory interest.

"Now I'm happy to play my part in whatever grand scheme she's orchestrating," Ren says simply. "Even if that part is just temporary Kings of Obsession."

The room falls quiet again, each of us lost in thoughts about what comes next. About how our Queen will move her pieces on this elaborate chessboard she's created.

About what happens when obsession finally meets vengeance.

I catch Hannah's eye across the room, seeing my own certainty reflected there. Let them wonder about Eva's ultimate plans. We've already set everything in motion.

The real question is: when the dust settles, will any of us survive what we've helped create?

The Queen's Return

~GEMINI~

"They were quite amusing when they finally realized," Hannah muses as she helps me adjust the black silk undershirt of my Leighton University uniform. Her nimble fingers work with practiced efficiency, smoothing invisible wrinkles. "Particularly Mr. Leighton's expression when he discovered I've been taking orders from you this entire time."

A smile tugs at my lips as I study my reflection in the full-length mirror. The uniform is a masterpiece of design – gold, orange, and red accents woven through black fabric like captured flames. The Leighton University crescent embroidered on the blazer catches morning light, making the threads shimmer with subtle menace.

"Matteo wasn't even mad," I say softly, remembering that particular revelation. The memory unfolds like a flower opening its petals:

Two nights ago, tangled in silk sheets at the private medical facility where we'd been recovering. Matteo's arm still in a sling, though he insists it'll be healed before classes start – "Can't have anyone thinking it's a weakness," he'd growled. Themoonlight painted everything in silver and shadows, making his eyes look almost black as he studied me.

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