RENT A HEART

EVE's POV

My mum had been calling me non-stop, so I finally decided to head home to our family house.

I was in my room, scrolling through the trending news when I saw it: the coverage of Atlantis' press conference, where Chris had been announced as the general director.

Excitement bubbling, I dialed his number, but he didn't pick up. 'Probably swamped with work, given everything that's going on,' I reasoned, deciding to try again later that night.

I was still browsing the internet when I heard a knock on the door.

"Come on in," I said, surprised to see my mum walk in.

"Hi, Mum," I greeted her.

"Hi, honey... Uhmm, you have a guest," she said, her lack of enthusiasm noticeable.

"Who?" I asked, sitting up. 'Surely, it isn't Chris, right?' I thought to myself, my heart giving a little jump.

"Frederick," my mum said simply, and my mood instantly plummeted.

"Why is he here?" I asked, my tone sharper. My mum just shrugged.

"He's here with his parents. Maybe he's here to apologize," my mum suggested, her voice hopeful.

"Aunt Clarissa and Uncle Ed are here too?" I asked, a flicker of genuine happiness breaking through the tension. Aunt Clarissa, especially, was one of the kindest people I knew, and I loved her dearly.

I weighed my mum's suggestion for a moment, concluding that even if he was here to apologize, I still wouldn't forgive him. Not yet, anyway. But I was definitely looking forward to seeing Aunt Clarissa.

"Alright, let's go," I said, standing up and following my mum out of the room.

My dad, Frederick, his parents, and Cole were deep in conversation when we arrived in the living room.

"Eve, sweetheart!" Aunt Clarissa purred as soon as she saw me, her face lighting up.

"Aunt Clarissa!" I called out excitedly, rushing to embrace her.

"It's been so long, honey! How are you?" she asked warmly, her hug comforting.

"I'm fine, Aunt," I answered, pulling back slightly. I exchanged pleasantries with her and Uncle Ed for a few minutes, pointedly ignoring Frederick, before going to sit beside my mum. I settled in, waiting to find out the real reason for their visit.

"I'll get straight to the point," Frederick's father announced, smiling at his son, who returned a cocky grin. "My boy here... he wants to officially seek your family's permission to marry Eve." He beamed, clearly proud.

I was so shocked and taken aback that I was speechless. Numb. I might even say deaf, because at some point, I stopped hearing and understanding any words coming from anyone.

"Eve, are you okay?" I finally heard my mum whisper to me, her voice barely cutting through the fog in my brain. I had stared at her lips for several seconds before I registered what she'd said.

"To be honest, I was surprised when Fred told us. I, and everyone in the country, are aware of your relationship. Since you made it public. With Chris." Aunt Clarissa frowned slightly. "So, did you two break up? Because I was really rooting for you and Chris."

I felt a warmth spread through me at her words, momentarily eclipsing the ridiculousness of what I'd just heard.

I shot daggers at Frederick before forcing a warm smile for Aunt Clarissa. "You thought right, Aunt. Chris is my boyfriend, and we haven't broken up. And honestly, I don't know why Frederick thought it right to ask such a question when we haven't even had such a conversation before." I said, trying to keep the annoyance from leaking into my voice.

Pin-drop silence descended on the room as soon as I finished speaking.

Uncle Ed looked at Frederick, confusion etched on his face, clearly expecting him to say something. The situation was rapidly becoming mortifying.

"Frederick, what is going on?" Uncle Ed asked, his tone a little sharper. "I remember asking you if Eve was aware of your feelings, whether she felt the same, and your plans. You said yes?"

"Well, she is aware of my feelings," Frederick said, staring at me, along with everyone else. "And felt the same...the latter not so much. I just couldn't wait on the sidelines any longer."

I felt a wave of revulsion wash over me as I listened to him speak.

"That was when I was younger and naive," I retorted, my teeth gritted. "I certainly do not have feelings for you anymore. And besides, I'm already in a relationship, which you clearly don't respect."

I'd tried not to make it obvious that Frederick and I weren't on good terms, but I couldn't stand his blatant narcissism. The urge to set the record straight overwhelmed any pretense of politeness.

"Not when the relationship is fake, Eve," Frederick sneered, reaching inside his suit. He produced a white paper, a document of some kind, and handed it to my father.

A sinking feeling churned in my stomach. I had a terrible premonition about what that paper was. I held my breath, praying it wasn't what I thought it was.

'Surely he doesn't know about the contract,' I thought desperately.

"What is this, Evelyn?" my father asked, his voice laced with anger. Hearing him call me by my full name, something he hadn't done since I was five and he knew I hated, sent a shiver down my spine.

"What is what?" my mum asked, rising to see for herself. She took the paper from my dad and handed it to me before taking a seat beside me.

I was absolutely stunned and appalled that he would go so far as snooping in my office to get this.

"I can't believe you broke into my office to get this," I stated, beyond anger now, completely livid.

"No, I didn't... I did not break into your office, Eve," he denied, his eyes shifting.

"Just like you didn't set up that reporter in the VIP area during my show to take a secret footage of me?" I asked, my voice dripping with fury.

I didn't miss the look of shock that flashed across his face when he heard my words. He hadn't expected me to know.

"What is going on, Eve? What secret footage?" my mum asked, staring anxiously at me.

"It's a long story, Mum. But regarding the paper," I said, turning to my father and then the others in the room.

"Yes, in the beginning, I approached Chris and asked him to act as my fake boyfriend for six months. The relationship started off as a lie, but it's the best thing that has ever happened to me," I stated simply, meeting their gazes.

"I will never approve of your relationship with that murderer's son," my father spat, his face contorted with disgust.

"Well, you'll have to, Father, because I'd rather die than be with someone else. And more importantly, his father, Mr. Lionel Luther, isn't a murderer. For someone who was your best friend back in the day, how could you so easily believe he did it and not think he was set up?" I asked, my voice laced with disappointment.

"What do you mean? Why are you defending that murderer... Lionel Luther murdered your uncle, for God's sake!" my father bellowed, his face reddening.

"Maybe because I try to see the best in everyone, especially if that person is my best friend," I retorted, my voice shaking with suppressed emotion. "Or maybe because I just watched a footage of him being set up as the prime suspect. The wrong person was locked up for no reason, and the murderer is still out there... free."

I hadn't planned to reveal anything about the footage, but I couldn't help it when he kept referring to Chris as a murderer's son, which he wasn't.

"What footage are you talking about, Eve?" Cole asked, his brow furrowed.

"I'm not supposed to say anything specific about the footage; it isn't my place to reveal the details. Just wait a few days. The truth about what happened to Uncle Jaime will be revealed soon," I said, hedging.

"Aunt Clarissa, Uncle Ed, I'm truly sorry this meeting turned out like this, but I'm not going to accept Frederick's proposal. I already have someone I love very much," I said simply, directly addressing them. Aunt Clarissa just nodded and offered me a small, understanding smile.

A few seconds later, it dawned on me that I had just used those four little words, "I love him," to describe what I felt for Chris. As the realization settled, a warmth spread through my chest.

"He will never make you as happy as I would," Frederick said loudly, his voice laced with anger and agitation. Just as I was about to retort, my phone rang.

"Sophia, what's up?" I asked as soon as I saw her name flash across the screen.

"Eve, I'm so sorry," she said, her voice shaky and strained on the other end of the line.

"What's wrong, Sophie? Are you okay?" I asked anxiously, my senses on high alert.

"I'm fine, but it's Chris..." she said, and just like that, a wave of chilling fear washed over me, leaving me breathless with dread.

"What... what happened to Chris?" I asked, my heart pounding erratically against my ribs, struggling to maintain composure.

"He was involved in an accident," she said, her voice trembling.

It took me a few agonizing seconds to process her words, but when the full weight of their meaning finally crashed over me, I was already scrambling towards the exit door, completely oblivious to the concerned voices calling my name.

"Which hospital?" I asked quietly, forcing myself to take a deep breath and focus as I floored the accelerator and sped off.

'Please be okay, please be okay, Chris... I can't do life with someone else,' I pleaded silently, tears streaming down my face unchecked. I wasn't actively sobbing, but my heart was weeping, desperately fearing the unknown.