Page 169 of The Bittersweet Bond

He had Sergej by the collar, his face dangerously close. “You will never come near her again. Never.” And then he hit him. Again and again.

But even with his bloodied face and weakened stance, Sergej chuckled quietly. "You're just a desperate little boy who thinks he can make a difference."

Sergej ripped himself from Bas’s grip, stumbling before grabbing a broken bottle lying near the chocolate fountain. His eyes were wild, his movements unpredictable. He lunged at Bas again.

Bas instinctively stepped back, but not fast enough. The sharpedge of the bottle sliced across his arm, leaving a burning sting and tearing through the fabric of his shirt. Blood seeped from the wound, but he barely felt it. His focus remained on Sergej.

Bas swung, but Sergej was quicker. With a brutal strike to Bas’s shoulder, he forced him down. Bas’s vision blurred as he struggled to get up, but before he could react, Sergej loomed over him, bottle raised high, ready to strike again.

"Somebody do something!" a woman cried in terror.

Before Sergej could land another blow, a sudden punch from the side sent him reeling. A fist crashed against his jaw with full force. Dominic.

Sergej stumbled, dropping the bottle, and before he could recover, Dominic hit him again—this time right at the temple, making him collapse onto the floor.

“That’s enough,” Dominic hissed, his gaze ice-cold, his chest rising and falling heavily.

“Damn, Bas. I expected more from you,” Dominic scoffed, reaching out a hand to help Bas up.

At that moment, several security guards pushed through the crowd, followed closely by Bas’s parents, their faces a mixture of shock and fury.

"Sebastian! What the hell is going on?" his father bellowed, forcing his way through the stunned guests.

One security guard pinned Sergej down as he weakly tried to get up, while another reached for Bas.

"Get off me!" Sergej snapped, but his protests were weak, and the guards held him firm.

Bas stood, leaning slightly on Dominic, his breathing ragged and uneven. Blood trickled from his arm, but he ignored the pain. His gaze remained locked on Sergej, his eyes burning with rage.

"Don’t worry," one of the security men assured him. "We’ve already called the police."

The guests, who had kept their distance, now murmured among themselves, the scene of broken glass, spilled chocolate, and blood speaking for itself.

Bas gave Sergejone last look, his breath heavy, his hands still shaking. But as Dominic grabbed his shoulder, he finally tore himself away from his rage.

"Let them handle it," Dominic said quietly but firmly.

Bas nodded, though reluctantly, and let Dominic guide him away from the chaos.

Out of breath, Bas reached for a nearby chair when, out of the corner of his eye, he saw her.

Evin.

Standing in the doorway.

__________

Evin

Evin stood frozen in the entrance.

The chaos before her unfolded like a torn curtain: Sergej, his face smeared with blood, being dragged out by security, and Bas, just a few meters away, standing with slumped shoulders, his hands clenched into fists. His shirt was torn, dark blood seeping from a wound on his arm. But that wasn’t what knocked the breath from her lungs. It was his eyes, locking onto hers—an expression so raw, so intense that she felt even smaller than she already did.

He knows.

He knows everything now.

The thought drove into her chest like a searing thorn.

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