"No." He said as he looked into her eyes. "I didn't love you, not even for a moment." He knew his words had crushed her, left her broken into so many pieces that couldn't be counted. Somehow, it was disturbing him, but he refused to acknowledge that feeling. Afterall, it was his own plan to make her fall in love, and then break her mercilessly.

"No?" She asked, finding it hard to believe in his words.

"No." He spat out the venomous word with great difficulty. He saw the last ray of hope leaving her face as she staggered back, as if someone had physically hit her.

Now he was expecting an outburst from her. Maybe she would cry, or perhaps she would get angry and would give him a slap like she had done before. But none of this happened. The woman surprised him like always. She took one step, then two, and finally reached him-and wrapped her arms around him. Tightly.

He felt a tug in his heart. And he realised, it was a goodbye. A voice screamed in in his mind: stop her. The voice was begging him to extinguish the fire which was probably going to burn him down. The voice of his conscience.