Before he could respond, Lianna spoke first.
"No need... goodbye."
Without giving the young man another chance to speak, she started the engine and rolled up the window.
For several moments, neither of them spoke.
Finally, Zahn broke it.
"So you're accepting suitors now?" His voice was edged with frustration. "Didn't you say you only wanted to focus on piano? Is he somehow better than me or are you just blind?"
Lianna tightened her grip on the steering wheel.
She had only recently gotten her driver's licence and was still extra cautious whenever she drove.
"Why did you deny me earlier?" Zahn continued. "Are you really that eager to have nothing to do with me?"
Lianna "..."
"I saw the two of you walking to the parking lot together from outside. Did you go out with him? Since when-"
Screech!
His questioning came to an abrupt stop with Lianna slamming on the brakes as the traffic light turned red.
She turned to him, her patience finally snapping.
"Get out." Her voice was low but trembling with anger. "Get out right now. Can't you see I'm driving? Zahn Neri, I applaud you. After all these years, this might be the only time you've been willing to waste so many precious words on me."
She took a sharp breath, her eyes locked onto his.
"Then again, I no longer have any obligation to explain myself to you. So stop pestering me and get out."
Unfazed, Zahn remained seated, making no move to leave.
A sharp honk from the car behind reminded them that the traffic light had already turned green so Lianna had no choice but to continue driving.
Halfway to Sin Mille Estate, she pulled over to the side of the road and switched the car into park.
"Get out," she said coldly. "Today isn't your scheduled visitation day with Sean, so there's no reason for you to follow me back to the villa."
Instead of answering, Zahn looked straight at her.
"How long have you been seeing that guy?" he demanded. "You actually accepted his flowers? What does that even mean?"
"I accepted them because I felt like it." Lianna met his gaze without flinching. "What does that have to do with you?"
He clearly hadn't expected that answer, surprise flashed across his face before it was quickly swallowed by anger.
The two argued back and forth, neither willing to back down.
"Lianna Neri," Zahn said through gritted teeth, "are you really that easy to please? Just because someone gives you flowers? If that's all it takes, I can send you a bouquet every single day. I only never brought you anything because every time I visited, you looked as though my mere presence ruined your day."
Lianna "..."
Memories she had buried deep resurfaced.
The peonies she had lovingly planted in the garden... only to watch his mother have them ripped out one by one.
The countless times she had waited outside his office, and the look of cold indifference on his face whenever she went to the hospital to see him.
Something inside her finally snapped.
"It's Arvind to you, not Neri." She sneered, "And yes, maybe I really am that easy to please. Because flowers were one of the few things that remained beautiful to me. They were the only things that comforted me during those years I lived under the noble title of being your wife."
She looked at him in disbelief.
"Send me flowers every day? Have you gone senile? Have you forgotten the look on your face every time I came to the hospital looking for you?"
Zahn's throat tightened as regret flickered across his features.
"Aren't there mirrors all over the hospital? Why don't you tell me what expression you wore whenever you saw me? And besides..." Her eyes turned resolute. "Whether that classmate is courting me or not, whatever his intentions are, so what? We're divorced. Whether I choose to date him or not has absolutely nothing to do with you."
Only moments earlier, Zahn's anger had seemed to subside. Now it flared up all over again.
He could accept her returning to school.
He could accept her chasing the dream she had once given up.
But he couldn't accept the thought of another man standing beside her.
Before Lianna could react, Zahn grabbed the bouquet and tore the flowers apart with his bare hands before rolling down the window and throwing them onto the roadside.
Lianna stared at him in stunned silence.
Throughout all the years she had known him, Zahn Neri had always been the picture of composure.
No matter how furious he was, he never resorted to violence or lost control.
The only times she had ever seen him truly unravel were when they had caught his mother with Xavier Song at the beach, and now.
Realising there was no point provoking him further while they were alone, Lianna silently restarted the car and drove towards the villa.
For the rest of the journey, neither of them spoke.
-
Back at the villa, Sean's eyes lit up the moment he saw his father.
"Dad!"
The two happily chatted and Zahn patiently helped him with his assignments, making Sean beam with delight.
When dinner was served, he shamelessly stayed and joined them as well.
Only after Lianna tucked Sean into bed and made sure he was fast asleep did she return downstairs.
She looked at the man who was still sitting comfortably in her living room.
"Aren't you leaving?"
"There are plenty of guest rooms," Zahn replied with an indifferent shrug.
Lianna frowned, irritation returning almost instantly. "You... What exactly do you want?"
Zahn simply stood there, silently staring at her.
The intensity of his gaze made her increasingly uneasy.
"You've already gone past your scheduled visitation time. Besides, staying overnight was never part of our agree-"
Before she could finish her sentence, Zahn suddenly reached out and pulled her into his arms.
He kissed her without warning.
Caught completely off guard, Lianna's eyes flew open. She immediately pushed against his chest, but his grip only tightened.
When she tried to raise her knee to force him away, Zahn caught her off balance, and they stumbled onto the sofa.
The moment she felt his hands beginning to roam, Lianna stopped holding back and bit him hard.
Zahn hissed in pain and instinctively pulled away.
Summoning all her strength, she shoved him away, sending him stumbling off the sofa onto the floor.
Breathing heavily, she glared at him.
"Zahn Neri, have you lost your mind?" Her voice shook with fury. "When did you become such a hooligan?"
Lying on the floor, Zahn let out a humourless laugh.
"Since I realised..." he said bitterly, "...that keeping my distance and talking to you doesn't work."
Lianna immediately scrambled farther away from him.
She was so furious that, if not for Sean sleeping upstairs, she would have screamed at the top of her lungs.
"I expect you to be out of this house first thing tomorrow morning," Lianna said through gritted teeth. "Otherwise, I'll call the estate security and have them drag you out."
Without waiting for his response, she hurried upstairs, entered her room, and locked the door behind her.
The Zahn Neri standing before her now was a complete stranger and at present, she doesn't know how to deal with him.
And since he had just declared that talking to her didn't work, then there was no point in having any conversation at all.
Lianna walked straight into the bathroom and immediately turned on the shower.
She was certain she no longer had feelings for him.
His actions no longer stirred her heart but rather it only made her furious and afraid.
--
In the darkened living room, Zahn remained seated on the floor, his head resting against the edge of the sofa as he stared blankly at the ceiling.
He knew he had been wrong.
He had treated her terribly throughout their marriage, but that ship had long since sailed.
No matter how deeply he regretted it now, he couldn't change the past.
A metallic taste spread across his mouth.
Raising a hand, Zahn touched his split lower lip before absentmindedly licking the blood from the bite she had left behind.
He stayed there for a long time.
The only sound in the silent villa was the steady ticking of the wall clock as midnight came and went.
Eventually, Zahn pushed himself to his feet and headed towards one of the guest rooms.
As he passed Lianna's bedroom, he slowed to a stop.
He knocked gently. "Lianna?"
Hearing no stir inside, he tried the doorknob.
Locked.
Leaning closer, he listened through the door, still nothing.
After standing there for several silent moments, he quietly turned away and continued to the guest room.
--
Early the next morning, Lianna woke Sean so they could get ready for school.
When they arrived at the dining room, Zahn was already there.
He wore a simple apron while placing breakfast onto the table.
Sean's eyes widened in surprise. "Dad?"
Lianna, however, wasn't surprised at all.
As a surgeon, Zahn's schedule was unpredictable. He could spend an entire night at the hospital and still wake up early the next morning as though nothing had happened.
"Good morning," Zahn greeted calmly. "I made a simple breakfast."
Sean smiled brightly before instinctively looking towards his mother.
Lianna tried to looked less displeased.
So he was going back on his own promise now? Hadn't he agreed not to drag Sean into the problems between them?
After breakfast, Lianna made up an excuse and asked the family driver to take Sean to school instead.
Once the front door closed, only the two of them remained again.
Without a word, Lianna reached into her handbag and pulled out a small can of pepper spray, pointing it squarely at him.
"Didn't you hear what I said last night? Or are you that confident I won't call security to throw you out?"
Zahn had already returned to his usual expressionless self. He casually checked the time on his wristwatch.
"I have a scheduled surgery in an hour."
"So?" Lianna replied impatiently.
Zahn merely walked past her and got into a car parked in the driveway.
As the engine started, he rolled down the driver's window. "I'll be back later."
Before Lianna could respond, the car pulled away.
She stood there, staring blankly. Several seconds later her eyes widened.
What did he just say?
Moreover, that was her car!
Her mind had been so occupied with throwing him out of the villa that she hadn't even realised he had driven off in her car.