CHAPTER 5: A Step into the Abyss

"Be mine, Semiel."

Time seemed to freeze at those words. "Be mine, Semiel." It wasn't a suggestion. It wasn't a plea. It was an order, disguised as a choice. Antonella smiled, radiating a confidence that chilled him to the core. She knew she had control—and she was enjoying every second of it.

A tight pressure formed in Semiel's chest, like invisible hands squeezing the air from his lungs. He wanted to move, to break free, but he couldn't. His legs were rooted to the ground, his hands trembled, and his mouth had gone dry.

"I DON'T WANT TO.""I WON'T GIVE IN—NOT TO HER.""BUT IF SAVAL FINDS OUT THE TRUTH..."

The image hit him like a knife to the gut—Saval looking at him in disgust, turning his back, walking away. If that happened, he wouldn't be able to bear it.

But if he refused Antonella now, she would destroy him. She already had him cornered.

—"Cat got your tongue?" she teased, tilting her head with a smirk.

—"This is insane," he muttered, tearing his gaze away.

—"Maybe," she admitted. "But it's your only choice."

Semiel took a deep breath.

—"What exactly does that mean?" he asked, voice tense.

Antonella stepped closer, narrowing the space between them.

—"It means you'll be with me. You'll do what I want, when I want. You'll stop worrying about Saval... and start worrying about me."

—"You can't force me to love you."

—"I'm not asking for love," she said, her voice almost tender. "Just obedience."

A shiver ran down Semiel's spine. His pride screamed at him to resist, to fight back, to find a way out. But logic whispered a bitter truth—there was no escape. The alternative was losing everything.

—"I can't do this," he whispered, staring at the ground.

Antonella raised an eyebrow, letting out a small sigh—like she was dealing with a stubborn child.

—"Of course, you can, Semiel. It's just a matter of accepting reality. And reality is... you have no other choice."

She reached out and placed a hand gently on his cheek. He flinched but didn't pull away. He couldn't. Her fingers were cold, featherlight, but the weight of her power over him was suffocating.

—"Look at me," she commanded.

Slowly, unwillingly, Semiel obeyed. He was trapped in the depths of her gaze—dark, endless, consuming. There was cruelty in her smile, yes, but there was something else too. Something that reminded him of a past he had ignored for too long. Antonella hadn't always been like this. Once, long ago, she had genuinely wanted to be with him.

—"Why are you doing this?" he murmured.

—"Because I want to win," she said without hesitation. "Because you ignored me, rejected me like it was nothing. And now... I want you to know what it feels like to have no choice."

Guilt twisted in Semiel's stomach. To him, rejecting her had been nothing more than turning down another confession. She wasn't the first girl to confess to him, and she wouldn't have been the last. He never realized how much his indifference had hurt her.

But this... this wasn't just revenge.

This was a game. And he was nothing more than her plaything.

Antonella took another step forward until her lips were just inches from his.

—"Show me you can do it, Semiel," she whispered. "Kiss me."

Panic flooded his veins. Every instinct screamed at him to pull away, to run, to escape. But logic, cold and merciless, reminded him—he couldn't.

His hands trembled as he lifted one, hesitating before placing it on Antonella's waist. Her smirk deepened.

—"That's better," she whispered.

Semiel shut his eyes. If he had to do this, at least he wouldn't have to see the triumph in her expression. He inhaled sharply, forcing himself to believe that it was just a kiss.

Nothing more than a kiss.

Then, he did it.

His lips brushed against Antonella's awkwardly—without passion, without feeling. But she wasn't satisfied with that. She tangled a hand in his hair and pulled him in, deepening the kiss, devouring him with a reckless intensity.

This wasn't just a display of power.

It was possession.

A shiver ran down Semiel's spine. Every fiber of his being screamed that this was wrong. That he didn't want her. That he didn't love her. But the image of Saval—his friendship crumbling, shattering—forced him to go on.

When Antonella finally pulled away, her eyes gleamed with triumph.

—"See? That wasn't so hard. Now you're mine, Semiel. And you better remember that," she whispered, running a finger across his lips.

He didn't respond. He only felt the weight of her words sinking him deeper and deeper into an abyss he wasn't sure he could ever escape.

Because now, more than ever, he was trapped.

Antonella looked at him with satisfaction, as if she had just won a battle. The taste of her kiss still lingered on his lips, but all Semiel felt was something breaking inside him. He had surrendered. He had crossed a line he never thought he would.

He had betrayed his best friend.

And she knew it.

—"What's wrong?" she asked, her voice dripping with mockery. "Did you think you'd enjoy it? That suddenly, everything would make sense?"

—"Shut up."

—"Oh no, not after all this," she said, her tone turning almost playful. "I want you to understand, Semiel. From now on, we play by my rules."

She raised a hand, cupping his face, forcing him to look at her.

Her grip was firm, but not harsh. A reminder that even if she wasn't physically restraining him, he was still trapped. There was no escape.

—"And what am I supposed to do now?" he asked, his voice hollow.

Antonella tilted her head, as if considering the question. Then, she smiled.

—"For starters, you're going to be the perfect boyfriend. You're going to take care of me, stay by my side. And you're going to stop thinking about Saval—because you belong to me now."

—"I can't just shut off what I feel," Semiel growled, his frustration mounting.

—"Oh, you will," she said smoothly. "Because if you don't… well, you know what will happen."

She didn't need to finish the sentence.

Semiel felt the threat tighten around his throat like an invisible noose. Antonella had reduced him to this—a puppet to her will, a prisoner of her blackmail.

—"I don't know how long I can take this," he whispered.

Antonella leaned in again, her lips brushing his ear as she spoke.

—"You don't have to endure it," she murmured. "You just have to accept that now… I'm all you have left."

Semiel closed his eyes, feeling the full weight of her words.

Because deep down, he knew she was right.

In the end, she had made sure he had no other choice.

He had fallen into the abyss.