## The Next Morning
The apartment was **eerily silent.**
Not the kind of quiet that offered solace, but rather a suffocating stillness that made every creak and rustle feel **excruciatingly loud, too sharp, too unbearable.**
Cherry perched on the edge of her bed, the blanket wrapped around her shoulders like a fragile shield, but **nothing could shield her from the tempest raging within.**
Last night hadn't been a nightmare.
She had awakened to the ache between her legs, the dull throb in her wrists, and the glaring **red stain on the sheets.**
And then there was the ring.
Her fingers clenched the fabric of the blanket as she recalled it.
The ring lay on her nightstand, its sapphire glimmering under the dim light of the bedside lamp. **It was there. Watching. Mocking.**
What was she supposed to do with it?
She didn't even know who he was. **The man who had taken everything from her.**
Her stomach twisted painfully, and suddenly, the air felt thick and suffocating. She threw the blanket aside and scrambled to her feet. Her pulse thundered in her ears as she backed away from the nightstand, from **that cursed ring,** from the memory of his weight pressing her into the bed.
**No.**
She **couldn't** do this.
She had to escape.
Cherry rushed toward the door, fumbling with the handle, her fingers trembling so violently that it took her a moment to get it open.
And then she ran.
###
The aroma of coffee filled the small kitchen.
Lena stood by the counter, pouring steaming liquid into a mug, her expression inscrutable.
But the moment Cherry stepped into the room, **Lena's entire demeanor shifted.**
She turned slowly, her eyes locking onto Cherry like a predator sensing vulnerability.
Cherry felt **exposed.**
Lena said nothing at first. She simply studied her, **taking in the exhaustion, the pallor of her face, the bruises forming on Cherry's wrists.**
Then, her grip on the coffee mug tightened.
"Sit," she commanded, her voice sharp.
Cherry hesitated.
"I said sit."
Cherry **obeyed.**
Lena set the mug down with a soft clink before crossing her arms over her chest. Her expression had morphed from concern to **anger.**
Not directed at Cherry.
But at whoever had done this to her.
"Enough," Lena said, her voice low and steady. "You're going to tell me what the hell happened, and you're going to tell me now."
Cherry swallowed hard, her fingers twisting into the hem of her sweater. **She wanted to tell her.**
She wanted to say, *I was taken by a man I don't even know. I fought, but it wasn't enough. I woke up alone, with only a ring left behind like a cruel joke.*
But she couldn't.
Because voicing it made it **real.**
"I—I don't remember much," she whispered.
Lena's nostrils flared. "Bullshit."
Cherry flinched.
Lena **never** spoke to her like that.
But right now, she wasn't just **Lena, the best friend who always teased her, who made her laugh, who protected her like an older sister.**
She was **Lena, the woman who would burn down the world for Cherry if she could.**
Lena exhaled sharply and dropped into the seat across from her. "I love you, Cherry." Her voice softened, but the firmness remained. "And because I love you, I can't just sit here and watch you pretend that you're fine."
Cherry's chest tightened.
"I just…" She swallowed against the lump in her throat. "I don't know how to explain it."
Lena's gaze darkened. "Did he force you?"
Cherry stiffened.
A single tear slipped down her cheek.
And **that was all the answer Lena needed.**
Her hands curled into **fists so tight her knuckles turned white.** "Who. Was. It."
Cherry let out a shaky breath. "I don't know."
Lena stilled. "What?"
"I don't know who he is, Lena. I don't even know his name." Her voice wavered, barely above a whisper. "I—I don't even remember what he looked like."
Silence.
Then, Lena stood up so abruptly that her chair nearly toppled over.
Cherry jumped, but before she could react, Lena was storming out of the kitchen.
"Lena?"
Cherry scrambled after her, but Lena was already in Cherry's room, already **snatching the ring off the nightstand.**
"This," Lena seethed, holding it up. "This is a goddamn clue."
Cherry's stomach dropped. "Lena—"
"No." Lena's voice trembled with fury. "Whoever left this didn't just vanish. If he's rich enough to leave behind something like this, then he's someone **big.** Someone we can **find.**"
Cherry **felt sick.**
She hadn't considered that.
She hadn't thought about the fact that this wasn't just **some random man.**
Whoever he was, he had **money. Power. Connections.**
Lena's chest heaved, her eyes blazing. "We're going to find him."
Cherry shook her head violently. "No. No, Lena, please—"
"Why not?" Lena demanded. "So he can do this to someone else? So he can pretend nothing happened?"
Cherry's breath caught.
"He left you broken, Cherry," Lena whispered, her voice cracking. "He doesn't get to walk away unscathed."
Tears blurred Cherry's vision.
Because **deep down, she knew Lena was right.**
This wasn't over.