“Late again,” he said, voice low and teasing.
There, leaning against the rough brick wall as if he belonged to the night itself, was Daou Archen.
His inked arms caught the light, swirling with tales Lily could only guess at. His siren eyes met hers, sharp and amused. No pretenses. No judgments. Just raw, unfiltered Daou.
Lily shrugged, lifting the edges of her silk dress away from the rough pavement beneath her feet. “Stop looking at me with eyes.”
Daou smirked. “What eyes?”
“Those seductive eyes,” she said. “You'll be the end of me.
He stepped closer, the scent of cigarette smoke and something musky and wild enveloping her senses. “I don't know about you but I see my end with you.”
A shiver traced her spine, the heat of his gaze burning through the cool night. His fingers brushed her hair away from her face, the rough pads of his fingertips gentle against her skin.
Her breath hitched.
“I’m not what you think,” she whispered, barely trusting her own voice.
He laughed softly. “Good. Because I’m not what you think either.”
Their world—the one ruled by wealth, power, and expectation—and his—the one shadowed by mistakes, rebellion, and fractured dreams—had collided, igniting something neither could ignore.
Daou’s hand found hers, rough and calloused, but steady. His thumb traced slow circles over her knuckles, anchoring her.
“Why do you sneak out to me?” he asked.
Lily hesitated. “Because you see me.”
His eyes darkened with something fierce. “I see you more than you can even imagine.”
She swallowed the lump forming in her throat. “And how is that?”
Daou’s gaze softened. “You sure you wanna know?.” he asked with a flirty smirk.
She bit her lip, the words stirring a storm inside her.
A breeze swept down the street, carrying the scent of rain and possibility. Lily stepped closer, closing the space between them until their breaths mingled.
Daou’s fingers slid around her waist, pulling her gently against him. Her heart hammered—half with fear, half with longing.
“Show me,” she murmured.
Her hands found his tattooed arms, tracing the stories inked there—each line, each swirl like a secret language. He shivered under her touch.
“Not everyone gets to touch this side of me,” he confessed, voice rough.
“Then I’ll be the first,” Lily said, voice trembling.
Their lips met—slightly at first, exploring, tasting, testing the boundaries. The kiss deepened, fierce and desperate, like they were both searching for something to hold onto in the chaos surrounding them.
Daou’s hands slid into her hair, pulling her closer, and Lily melted against him, the world narrowing to the beat of their hearts.
The kiss was deep and raw. Their tongues moved from their mouths and back. Daou's hands went down to her butts and caressed them with a feeling that showed how much he wanted them.
“You down so bad huh? Hard already” Lily said, slightly releasing her lips and looking at him.
He moved down to her neck and then carried her and placed her up a fence as he went down to her breasts. “Your body is so delicate ..”
Struggling to catch her breath Lily replied “ I only feel this way with you, you know.”
He went back up and sucked her lips pulling them with a bite. “Yes I know babe.”
She smiled slightly as she looked away.
When they finally broke apart, gasping for air, Lily’s cheeks burned with a mix of exhilaration and fear.
“Why me?” she whispered.
“Because you’re different,” Daou said, brushing a stray lock of hair from her face. “Because you’re the courage I need.”
Lily laughed softly, the sound like a release after years of holding her breath. “You have no idea what I’m afraid of.”
“Try me,” he challenged.
She closed her eyes and took a breath, feeling the cool night air fill her lungs.
“I’m afraid of losing myself,” she admitted. “Of becoming the girl everyone wants, but no one really knows.”
Daou’s eyes held hers, steady and sure.
“Then don’t lose yourself to them. Lose yourself to me instead.”
The vulnerability in his voice cracked something open inside her.
Days melted into nights as their secret world blossomed amid the shadows. Lily would slip away from the suffocating embrace of her family’s expectations to meet Daou in forgotten corners of the city—abandoned warehouses, quiet rooftops, and dimly lit cafes where no one knew their names.
Each meeting was a fragile rebellion, a stolen breath of freedom.
Daou never asked about her world, and Lily never pretended to understand him. Instead, they shared fragments of their truths, the broken pieces they dared not show anyone else.
One evening, under a velvet sky freckled with stars, they found themselves on a rooftop overlooking the city lights—a glittering maze of possibilities and dangers.
Daou pulled his jacket tighter around them as the wind bit cold, but Lily hardly noticed. She was wrapped in the warmth of his presence.
“Tell me about the Archen family,” she said, breaking the comfortable silence.
He scoffed, a bitter smile twisting his lips. “You want the short version or the long one?”
“Surprise me.”
Daou leaned back on his elbows, staring up at the sky.
“My father… he’s a judge. One of those law-and-order types who thinks black and white is all there is. Nothing in between. He had high hopes for me—expected me to follow in his footsteps, but I was never cut out for it.”
He paused, running a hand through his messy hair.
“I was the screw-up, the problem child. Petty crimes, fights, missing school. My brother? He’s the golden boy. Top of his class, scholarship to the best universities. He’s everything I’m not.”
Lily reached out, her fingers brushing against his hand.
“That must have been lonely.”
“Yeah,” Daou said softly. “And when you grow up knowing you’re the disappointment, you either drown in it or fight to prove them wrong.”
He turned to her, eyes blazing.
“I drowned in it”
Lily’s heart ached for him—this reckless boy with ink and scars and a soul too big for his own good.
“I’m fighting for us,” she whispered.
Daou smiled, a genuine, rare smile.
“Then we’re fighters. Partners in crime.”
She laughed, the sound light and free.
Their fingers intertwined, a silent promise.
But love born from rebellion is never without its battles.
The next day, at the Cruz estate, Lily’s absence was noticed. Her parents’ eyes burned with a mix of anger and disappointment.
“Lily,” her mother’s voice was silk and steel. “Where have you been?”
“Out,” Lily said simply, the word tasting like defiance.
Her father’s eyes narrowed. “Out where? You have duties. Responsibilities.”
Lily stood taller. “I have dreams.”
“Dreams won’t keep this family’s name spotless,” Emilio snapped.
Celeste’s gaze was colder. “You’re risking everything for a fantasy.”
“I’m risking nothing but my chains,” Lily said, voice firm.
They exchanged a long, heavy silence.
Finally, Emilio said, “If you continue down this path, you will be disowned.”
The words hung in the air, heavy as chains.
But Lily’s resolve only hardened.
“I’d rather be disowned than imprisoned.”she said to herself.
The Cruz family was not the only one at war.
At the Archen household, tension crackled like electricity.
Daou stormed through the grand halls, slamming doors and shattering silence.
His father, Judge Archen, sat rigid in his chair, expression grave.
“You having out with powerful men’s children now?” he demanded.
Daou’s jaw clenched. “It’s not what you think father I'm ready to change”
The judge’s glare cut through him.
“You’ll always be you Daou. A mistake and I know you won't change.”
Daou’s fists clenched.
“Are you that disgusted by me Dad.”
The judge rose, towering.
“You’re a disgrace.”
Daou met his father’s fury with a fearless glare.
“Typical.”
He left .
But love isn’t enough when two worlds demand surrender.