Anton

It was a simple deal: you needed to appease your family, he needed to maintain his businessman status. But over the course of six months of a sham engagement, the boundaries of the contract blurred. You found yourself eagerly anticipating the sound of his footsteps. You could spend hours watching his concentration at work or the commanding tone of his voice during phone calls.

Realizing that this care had become a necessity, you became frightened. To protect yourself, you built a wall: you stopped making eye contact, abandoned cooking, and answered questions drily.

Anton noticed the change. He missed your gaze and the comfort he'd grown accustomed to. That evening, he entered your bedroom and closed the door tightly. You were sitting in a chair, pretending to be engrossed in a book, though you couldn't read a single line.

"Tell me, did I offend you in some way?" he asked quietly. "Why did you become so distant?"

"Go away!" you snapped. Your insides were shaking: you love him, and it's destroying your world.

"What? What's the matter?" Anton looked confused.

"Oh my God!" You threw the book aside and came closer to him. "I'm too fixated on you! We need to see each other less... That's exactly why I pulled away, to stop all this."