After four years...
The evening air was heavy with tension, though none of them sensed it yet. The warmth of the sunset filtered through the tall windows of the shared office where Rivan, Keal, and Liora had built not just a business but a bond that felt like family. But bonds are delicate things, especially when trust begins to crack from within.
Rivan sat alone at his desk, papers stacked in a neat pile before him. His fingers hesitated over the pen one last time. His heart pounded. The doubts had been clawing at him for weeks now. Whispers, photos, emails—none of them confirmed anything, but the seed was planted. And instead of confronting Keal or Liora, he let that seed grow.
They're closer than they let on. Maybe I've been the third wheel all along.
The voice inside him was cruel, but it had become louder since the rumors began. A few board members had slyly commented that Keal and Liora were often together when Rivan was away. And wasn't it odd that the twins looked more like Keal?
It had eaten at him like rust.
So here he was, transferring all assets—shares, ownership papers, trademarks—to his name alone. Technically, it wasn't theft. They had all signed the power of attorney forms, trusting him. Trust. That very thing he no longer felt.
Rivan clicked the pen, signed the last line, and leaned back in his chair. It was done.
The next morning, Keal arrived at the office with his usual bright energy. He tossed his satchel onto the couch and walked over to Rivan, who was standing stiffly by the coffee machine.
"Morning," Keal said, handing him his usual espresso cup.
Rivan took it, nodding, but didn't speak.
Keal frowned. "Everything okay?"
"Yeah," Rivan said curtly.
Before Keal could probe further, Liora entered, her face lighting up as always when she saw both of them.
"You guys ready for the investor meet today?" she asked.
Keal nodded. "You bet. Rivan finalized the documents, I assume?"
There was a pause.
"Yeah," Rivan said. "It's all done."
They went through the meeting like professionals. Polite. Smiling. But something unspoken hung between them—especially Rivan and Keal.
That night, Liora found the file.
She had gone to retrieve a presentation from the shared drive when she stumbled upon an email exchange Rivan had with their legal advisor. As she read through the thread, her heart sank.
The company was now entirely under Rivan's name.
Everything.
She stared at the screen, numb. Her breath caught in her throat. Without thinking, she printed the documents and ran to find Keal.
The confrontation happened in the living room of their shared apartment, a space that had once echoed with laughter and late-night brainstorming sessions. Now, it was quiet. Explosively so.
"You transferred everything to your name?" Keal said, holding the documents in shaking hands.
Rivan stood near the window, arms folded, his face unreadable.
"It's still the same business," he said. "Nothing has changed in practice."
"Everything has changed!" Liora cried. "You did this behind our backs. We trusted you!"
Keal's voice dropped, more dangerous now. "Why, Rivan? Why would you do this?"
Rivan met his gaze, the pain in his eyes masked by cold anger. "Because I built this. I carried it when both of you wanted to quit. I took the risks."
"We all did!" Liora shouted. "You know that's not true."
"So this is it?" Keal said. "You're cutting us out?"
Rivan looked away. "I'm not cutting you out. I'm protecting what's mine."
Keal stepped forward, fire in his eyes. "What's yours? What about us? What about the twins? We built this for them too!"
"Don't bring them into this," Rivan snapped.
Liora's voice trembled. "You don't even see what you're doing, do you?"
"I see exactly what I'm doing," Rivan said, voice low. "I'm keeping what I earned."
The silence that followed was suffocating.
Keal threw the papers on the floor. "I can't believe you."
Rivan didn't respond.
That night, Keal slept on the couch. Liora locked herself in the bedroom. Rivan sat in his office, alone with his choices.
The next morning, the apartment was silent. Liora had packed a small bag and was feeding the twins breakfast. Keal helped them get dressed, his smile forced.
Rivan stood in the doorway, watching. A knot formed in his chest.
"I'll be leaving for the overseas deal tonight," he said.
No one responded.
He cleared his throat. "I left papers on the table. You can keep the apartment. It's yours now."
Keal looked at him like a stranger. "How generous of you."
Rivan's jaw tightened. "Don't act like you didn't know this would happen eventually."
Liora stood, trembling. "What is that supposed to mean?"
"You and Keal," Rivan said flatly. "I see the way you two look at each other."
There was a beat of silence before Keal lunged forward. "You bastard!"
Liora stepped between them. "Stop it!"
"The twins are mine too!" Keal shouted. "Even if you don't think so!"
"I don't know if they are," Rivan snapped, immediately regretting it.
Liora gasped. "How—how could you do this, Rivan?"
Her voice trembled, not with fear, but with disbelief—like a part of her had broken from the inside out.
Keal stepped in front of her, voice low and dangerous. "Tell me this is a mistake. Tell me you didn't just sign away our lives behind our backs."
Rivan's eyes flicked between them, cold but unreadable. "I didn't sign away your lives. I secured our future."
"Our future?" Liora repeated, nearly laughing in pain. "You call this betrayal a future?"
"It's protection," Rivan snapped, slamming his hand on the desk. "Everything was falling apart. People were whispering, manipulating—don't act like you didn't see the distance growing between us."
"We saw it," Keal said through gritted teeth. "But we thought we'd fight it together. We didn't expect you to become the enemy."
Rivan looked at them, jaw clenched. "I gave you both a house. Comfort. Status. I took on the risks. I took on everything. You had your dreams, your talents—I gave you platforms. And now you act like I'm the villain for trying to protect what's mine?"
"You mean what used to be ours," Keal shot back.
"Used to be," Rivan said bitterly. "Exactly."
Liora stepped forward, shaking. "Why didn't you talk to us? Why didn't you ask for help instead of hiding in your pride?"
"I did it because I loved you," Rivan barked. "Because I was scared. I thought—if I kept it all, then maybe you wouldn't leave. Maybe... maybe I wouldn't lose everything."
Silence. It echoed through the room louder than any shout.
Keal's expression twisted, pain spreading across his features. "So you expected us to leave? After everything?"
"I was already losing you," Rivan murmured, voice raw now. "I felt it every day. The way you talked more to each other than to me. The way you laughed... without me. I felt like an outsider in my own home."
"That's not true," Liora whispered, tears slipping down her cheeks. "We never stopped loving you."
"Then why did it feel like I was invisible?" he asked. "Every night, I came home to silence. Every morning, I woke up alone—even when you were both beside me."
Keal rubbed his temples. "Rivan, we all felt that distance. But instead of talking to us, you signed over the company, froze our accounts, and made us look like fools."
"I kept the company alive," Rivan said stubbornly. "I kept our name strong. Without that, what would we even have?"
"Each other!" Liora shouted, finally cracking. "We would have had each other! But you stole that too."
Rivan opened his mouth, but the sound that came out was not strong—it was small. "I didn't mean to. I was scared."
Keal's voice was tired now. "Fear doesn't excuse betrayal. You didn't just break our trust. You shattered it."
They stood in silence. The trio that had once shared late-night dreams and morning kisses, now separated by grief, pride, and paper contracts.
Finally, Rivan said quietly, "You can keep the house. That's all I'll leave you with."
"Leave?" Liora echoed.
"I'm flying out for a business tour," he said flatly. "You'll have everything you need here. But the company, the rights... they're mine now."
"And the children?" Keal asked suddenly, eyes burning.
Rivan froze. "What about them?"
"You don't get to sign away your responsibilities," Keal growled. "They're your kids too."
Rivan's lips thinned. "Do you even know that for sure?"
It was a dagger through both their hearts.
Liora stepped back, hand on her chest as if she'd been slapped.
Keal lunged before he could think, grabbing Rivan by the collar. "Take it back. Take it back!"
Rivan didn't fight him. He didn't even flinch. He simply looked at Keal with empty eyes. "You want me to lie?"
Keal shoved him away with a growl, chest heaving.
Liora had collapsed to the couch, sobbing quietly now. "How could you say that? After everything?"
Rivan looked at them both—his world, unraveling before him. "You'll be fine," he said, more to himself than to them. "You always had each other."
Keal moved to Liora, wrapping his arms around her protectively. His eyes met Rivan's one final time. "Get out."
Rivan didn't argue. He straightened his jacket, took one last look around the room that once held warmth, laughter, and love—and walked out.
The door closed behind him with a soft click, but the silence it left was deafening.
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