Morning light slid between the blinds and landed on Aeron's half-open eyes.
He sat on the bed for a moment, letting his breath settle, feeling the dull ache across his shoulders from yesterday's workload.
The apartment was quiet, but it was the kind of quiet that came from people refusing to speak. He dressed carefully, as if neat clothes could hold together a life slowly loosening at the seams.
Starting the bike, he soon arrived at the office, which smelled of paper and old coffee. Aeron reached his desk before most, switching on his monitor and starting the usual grind.
He typed fast, moved fast, fixed mistakes fast.
Tasks stacked on him like bricks.
Every time he reduced the pile by half, two more appeared, forwarded from departments that now depended on him.
His hands were quick, but his eyes carried the weight of someone who had stopped believing efficiency would save him.
He had been here six years. When he first joined, the CEO would pass by his desk and watch him longer than necessary. Aeron thought it was because of his work.
But he never questioned the truth hidden behind polite smiles. He only tried to do well and excel, but doing well had become a trap.
Near noon, his phone buzzed. His wife again. He stared at the screen without picking up. The last time he answered, she had begun shouting before he could even say hello. Accusations he did not understand, complaints about money, complaints about his absence, complaints about everything except herself. He knew if he called back, the fight would simply reset to the beginning.
Hours blurred. Aeron finished one report, then another, then ten more. When he stood up, the office lights had shifted to the duller shade they used after sunset. He packed silently and took the crowded bus home.
The apartment door opened to the sound of his daughter laughing at something on her tablet. She did not look up. She never looked up first. His wife was in the kitchen, stirring something in a pot without really paying attention.
"You are late again," she said. Her voice was flat but carried the warning edge he now recognized better than his own heartbeat.
"There was too much work today," Aeron replied, placing his bag near the shoe rack.
"There is always too much work. If you cared about us, you would find time." She turned the flame higher, as if she needed the noise.
Aeron swallowed the bitterness rising in him. He looked at the little girl on the couch. She glanced at him once before lowering her gaze.
Aeron felt like his eyes would burst into tears, but he suppressed them.
He smiled.
And called his daughter.
"I am studying, Daddy. Don't disturb me."
Aeron's lips trembled. His wife had told her things. He felt it in the way the child avoided him, as if he had done something unforgivable.
Dinner was silent. Aeron washed the dishes afterward, trying to breathe through the heaviness in his chest. He moved his hands as he did at work, quick and precise. Function without thought.
Later, when he walked past the bedroom, he heard his wife whispering. A soft, familiar tone she never used with him.
"I will come tomorrow," she said quietly. "He will not notice anything."
Aeron paused. His body froze before his mind did. He waited until she ended the call. She stepped out and was startled when she saw him.
"What were you listening to?" she asked, her tone sharp.
"No one," Aeron answered. "Just passing by."
She brushed past him and turned off the hallway light. "Sleep early, or you'll be late for work."
He stood there in the dark for a long moment before moving toward the living room. He sat on the couch with his phone in hand, staring at the black screen. He wanted to escape everything but could not imagine where to go.
He was not happy.
His thoughts were dulled.
'What do I do…'
Exhaustion crept in, and he couldn't stay awake longer, falling asleep.
A message from a co-worker had arrived on his phone, but it had to wait until morning now.
The morning arrived soon. Same as any other.
After brushing his teeth and freshening up, Aeron saw the message with a video attached to his phone with a short note—You should see this.
Aeron hesitated, then tapped the link. A video opened, recorded secretly in the CEO's office. The camera angle was grainy but clear enough. He saw his wife sitting across from the CEO, holding his hand. Their conversation drifted through the speakers.
"He still has no idea," she said softly.
"He does not need to," the CEO replied. "As long as he keeps working for me, everything is stable."
"What about the girl?" she asked.
"She is my responsibility. He is only there to hold the family structure together. Aeron is useful."
Aeron's breath left him. He watched the two of them lean close, their smiles easy, practiced. They talked about him like he was a tool, something to be used until it broke.
The video ended. Aeron sat frozen, staring at the dark reflection of his own face in the screen. He felt neither anger nor shock. Just a hollow heaviness, as if something inside him had finally stopped pretending to stay alive.
'Why…'
In the silence, Aeron understood one thing with painful clarity.
His entire life for the past five years had been shaped by lies. His wife. His daughter. His boss. All threads of the same deception. All traces of a plan he had never been aware of.
But he didn't understand one thing. Why?
What did he do to them to deserve this?
He had back problems due to excessive work in just five days. He thought he was shaping the future for his family, his daughter.
But now, he found out that everything he held onto had never belonged to him from the start.
Aeron left the house without tasting breakfast. He did not even check if his wife was awake. The world around him seemed muted, like sound had decided to keep its distance from him. His hands on the bike grips felt colder than the morning air.
He rode to the office with thoughts that refused to form. Everything inside him felt loose, unanchored, wandering in circles. He only knew one thing. He needed to speak to the CEO.
He needed to hear with his own ears what he had seen in that video. He wanted to scream. He wanted to beat him and ask him why he did that, though he would likely not succeed in that and would end up in jail instead.
A self-deprecating smile rose at how he kept his sound mind despite this situation.
The security guard greeted him with the same polite nod, unaware of the storm quietly eating him from inside. Aeron walked through the hallway while workers trickled in. No one noticed him. No one ever really noticed him unless they needed something.
At the elevator, his coworker Aida stepped in beside him. She usually avoided eye contact, but today she stood a little too close. Aeron did not think much of it. He only nodded at her and stared at the ascending numbers.
"You look tired," she said.
"I am fine," Aeron replied, though his voice cracked slightly.
The elevator stopped at the fifteenth floor. Aida stepped out with him. She kept pace with him, her heels tapping lightly against the tiles. Something about her expression felt wrong, but Aeron did not have the energy to analyze it.
The CEO's office was at the end of the corridor. Aeron stood before the door, breath uneven.
He knocked.
No answer.
He reached for the handle when, suddenly, a hand grabbed his wrist. Aida.
Her voice trembled, loud enough for others already in the hallway to hear.
"Let go of me, Aeron."
Aeron froze.
"What are you talking about?" he whispered, confused.
Aida stepped back quickly, clutching her wrist as if she had been hurt. Her eyes filled with tears that appeared too quickly, too perfectly.
"You tried to touch me," she said, raising her voice. "Why are you doing this?"
"Last time you forcefully kissed me and touched me, but I stayed quiet because I thought you were just under stress."
Aeron felt the ground beneath his feet tilting. "I did nothing."
Her voice rose further. "Someone, call HR. Call security. I told you to stop."
Doors along the hallway cracked open. People peeked out. Whispered. Someone had already dialed a number.
Aeron shook his head, words refusing to form. "I did nothing. I was just trying to speak to the CEO."
Aida took a step back, looking frightened, as if he had cornered her. "Please stay away from me."
Security arrived within minutes. Two guards, along with a senior from HR. They approached him with careful faces, the kind of faces people used when they pretended to respect procedure.
"Aeron," the HR officer said calmly, "we need you to come with us."
"There is a mistake," Aeron replied, his voice weak. "I did not touch her. I did not do anything."
"We will handle it properly," HR said, holding up a hand. "Please cooperate."
Mira sniffled, lowering her gaze. People watched from a distance, pity in some eyes, satisfaction in others. Aeron felt several years of hard work, long hours, forced smiles, and sacrifices crumble into dust with each step he took away from the CEO's door.
He did not struggle. He followed them to the small HR meeting room. The door closed behind him.
They asked him questions, their tone polite, careful, rehearsed.
Aeron answered honestly, but every word felt drowned by something larger he could not see.
…
In the CEO's office, a black-haired man in a suit sat, looking in his mid-thirties, watching the screen that displayed Aeron being questioned by HR.
"You were very efficient, Aeron. I feel bad for the company, truly." The CEO sighed.
"Well, since you found the truth, it's time I take back my side-bitch and daughter." A devious smile hung on his lips as he watched the screen.
Thirty minutes later, uniformed police officers entered the room where Aeron was questioned.
Aeron looked at them as if they were part of a dream he had not consented to.
"Are you Aeron Enfield?" one officer asked.
"Yes."
"You are under arrest on allegations of attempted sexual assault."
Aeron's knees weakened. "I did not do anything."
"You will get a chance to prove that."
The officer placed handcuffs around his wrists. The cold metal pressed into his skin. Aeron lowered his head as they led him through the hallway. Coworkers watched. Some whispered. Some avoided looking at him altogether.
'Why?'
Near the elevator, the CEO appeared. He stood at a distance as if he had come out of his office just in time to see the scene unfold. His expression was calm. Too calm.
Their eyes met for a moment.
In that moment, Aeron understood.
The CEO knew the video was sent to him. He also didn't see the co-worker who sent him that video.
Which means the CEO had planned everything. He had turned the entire building into a cage before Aeron arrived here.
Aeron wanted to speak, but no words came to mind.
He knew it was futile to speak or do anything here.
The feeling of abandonment he expected didn't come.
Was it because he had already realized deep within that he was all alone from the very beginning?
Why did he live like this until now?
Aeron thought and thought in a daze till he found himself behind bars.
The head of this police station arrived, sat down on the chair outside the prison, and started smoking. "I was paid a good sum for this shit. Mind telling me what happened?"
Aeron looked at him.
He had anger in him, but more than that was the desire to survive.
And so, he told the police his story. The true story.
The police officer was dumbfounded.
"Motherfucker…this is crazy. So you wore a green hat for five years. Worked in the company for six years. And you got jail on a false accusation."
"Did you fuck that slut on a daily basis or not?"
"Weekends."
"Ah, she used weekends to dull you, and spent the weekdays with that motherfucker." The officer lit up another cigar. "So, where are your parents?"
"Don't know. I grew up in an orphanage, studied on scholarship, and landed a top job."
The officer stared at him. "Wait, so you have no one in your family?"
"Family..." Aeron saw the images of that bitch and the girl he believed to be his daughter. "I thought I had one. I remember being happy about the family I made in the start."
Standing up, the police officer cracked his arms. "Bring the keys and let him go."
Aeron blinked.
"But, sir, the report and FIR?"
The police head looked at the constable and snorted. "Are you dumb? Erase that stuff. This guy is half-dead already, and he's got nothing. Tsk, let him go and save yourself from some sin, you idiots."
"What about that CEO?"
"Heh, I'll handle that kid."
…
Aeron stepped outside the police station, feeling surreal, but grounded.
The rain started even though it was 11 in the morning.
"Hey, take this umbrella."
A constable arrived and gave him an umbrella before leaving.
Aeron began walking aimlessly at first, but then stopped upon seeing a garden restaurant with big umbrellas. He was hungry, and the place looked quiet and nice.
After sitting at a table, Aeron ordered coffee and two sandwiches.
As he was checking his bank balance on his mobile, a voice interrupted him.
"Hello, sir. May I sit here?"
Aeron looked up, and his heart skipped a beat.
She looked twenty-six, with an almost unreal beauty. Silver hair fell smoothly around her face, a small braid tucked behind one ear.
Her skin was pale, luminous, and her blue eyes held a calm that felt both innocent and distant.
She wore a simple black dress that just oozed elegance without effort. She seemed approachable at a glance, yet something in her gaze stayed just out of reach, giving her an aloof grace that made it hard to look away.
Aeron looked at other tables and saw that they were empty, and then looked at the girl, who was faintly smiling at him.
"Sure. Please sit."
Looking at such a beautiful face gave him a good feeling and lightened him, so he didn't see a problem in letting her sit here if she wanted to.
As she sat across from him, Aeron turned his gaze to his phone.
He could see that she was looking at him.
He also wanted to see her, but if he saw her while she was watching him, it would be awkward.
Aeron ignored her gaze and patiently looked at his phone.
Minutes passed.
'Why isn't she looking away?'
Coffee had already arrived, but the sandwich also arrived.
Not waiting any longer, Aeron looked at her, his mouth opening as he was about to speak.
And right then, she spoke, her hand stretched before him. "Hi, I am Aira."
Words he was about to speak were struck in his throat as Aeron shook his hand with hers and nodded. "I am Aeron. Nice to meet you."
She didn't let go of his hand.
Her eyes bore into his, and he didn't look away.
A couple of seconds later, she sighed, smiled sadly, and let go of his hand. "Aeron, what do you plan to do from now on?"
Aeron had a feeling this woman knew what was happening in his life.
"I don't know." Aeron grabbed the coffee and took a sip before grabbing the sandwich.
As he sat, Aira looked at him with her chin resting on her hand. "I have a job for you."
"It will pay you well."
Aeron chewed while looking at her. After finishing, he uttered. "I do need a job. What is it?"