The Ace and the Four Kings
Xyrine Jean's POV
A week had passed since my accident. They brought me to the hospital at first, but Uncle Julyo did everything he could to get me out of there and take me to the BBO Headquarters.
Even with the bandages still wrapped around my head, I had made up my mind—I was going back.
I stared at my reflection in the mirror, but the moment a tear slid down my cheek, I looked away.
I was angry.
Angry because no matter how hard I tried to hold them back, my tears kept falling.
I lifted my head again, locking eyes with my reflection, taking in the change I could never undo. The long hair that once cascaded down to my waist now barely reached my shoulders.
"The moment I turn my back on you. We will no longer know each other."
The moment those words left my lips, the dam inside me broke.
Tears streamed down my face faster, spilling onto the cold surface of the sink.
"Spade... how do I do this? How?"
I could no longer see myself through the blur of my tears. Taking a deep breath, I wiped them away.
"Don't worry, Spade. I'll try. I'll keep trying..."
MONTREAL UNIVERSITY
"Xyrine?"
I lifted my head at the sound of my name.
Ella stood in front of me, her eyes wide in disbelief.
"Xyrine, your hair..." Her voice trembled. She was about to say more when, without warning, she pulled me into a tight embrace. "Xyrine, I'm sorry."
Her voice—why did she sound like that?
I gently pushed her back and looked at her. "Why are you crying?" I asked with a small smile.
Her lips quivered. "Xyrine, I know everything now," she whispered.
Ah.
Just like that, the smile I forced onto my face vanished.
"You mean... about Spade and me—"
"I love you... but this has to end."
The words never made it out. Instead, my tears did. I turned away, ashamed of my own weakness.
Ella hugged me again, but her grip was tighter this time. "It's all that woman's fault! She's disgusting! Just like Spade! I really thought he loved you, Xyrine. But look at what he did! He only proved that he truly is the leader of the Four Kings—heartless and cruel!"
Her words sent another wave of pain crashing into me.
"New hairstyle?"
Ella and I both turned around.
A smirk played on Monique's lips. "I didn't realize my actions hurt you so much that you went as far as cutting your hair that short," she mused, mockery lacing his tone.
I met her gaze—but only for a second. "Let's go, Ella," I said, gripping her arm and turning away.
"That's right! Just walk away, because there's nothing you can do anymore!" Her voice carried after me, amusement dripping from every word. "But before you leave, I've been dying to ask you something."
I stopped.
She chuckled. "Tell me, Xyrine, how does it feel? How does it feel to be replaced—again? Does it hurt?"
I clenched my fists. Slowly, I turned back around, my eyes burning into her.
"I have a question for you too, Monique," I said, my voice steady despite the storm raging inside me. "How does it feel to never be satisfied? Is it addicting?"
She smirk faltered for a moment before she scoffed. "Oh, definitely. It's so addicting, in fact, that I want to take everything that's yours until there's nothing left."
My blood boiled. But I held back.
"Enjoy it while you can, Monique," I warned, my voice laced with quiet rage. "If I were you, I'd make the most of the time I have left—while I still pity you. Because once I reach my limit, everything you think belongs to you might just disappear. And we both know exactly what I mean."
The color drained from her face. "You can't. You can't do that!" she shrieked, raising a hand to slap me.
But I caught her wrist mid-air. "I can," I said, my voice deadly calm. "Even right now, if I wanted to."
I raised my other hand, ready to return the slap, when suddenly, someone grabbed my wrist.
Before I could register who it was, He already shoved me backward causing me to hit the ground hard.
I wanted to look at him. I wanted to see the face of the man who once swore to protect me.
But I couldn't.
Because it hurt.
I didn't know what to feel, what to do. I should have been prepared for this, but nothing could have prepared me to face him again.
And I didn't know if it was the fall that hurt more—or the fact that the man who used to stand by my side was now the reason I was on the ground.
Still, I forced myself to look up at him. And just like that, my heart shattered into a million pieces all over again.
Because Spade stood there, looking at me as if he had never known me at all.
"Everyone, listen up," he said, his tone firm and unwavering. The crowd quieted, all eyes turning to him. "Monique is my fiancée. No one dare lays a hand on her. Got it?"
He didn't even spare me a second glance.
I stared at the ground, willing myself not to cry, when I noticed a pair of shoes stop in front of me.
A familiar voice followed.
"Your hair..."
I looked up.
It's Ren.
His face was unreadable, but I saw it—the way his fists clenched at his sides.
And then, without hesitation, he threw a punch. It landed square on Spade's face.
"You bastard, Spade!" Ren seethed, grabbing him by the collar. "We thought you were serious. We thought you actually loved Xyrine! You piece of shit! If this is what you were going to do to her, we should've fought you from the start! We should've killed you so she never would've ended up with you!"
He pulled his fist back, ready to strike again. Before he could, Ten appeared out of nowhere, grabbing Ren's arm.
Ten's voice was eerily calm. "My turn."
Then, without warning, he landed a punch of his own, and this time, Spade didn't have time to react.
"After what you did to Xyrine, that's still not enough. We thought Ren and I were the only ones in this group who had no respect for women. Well, looks like I was wrong—you're worse than us." His voice was sharp, his anger barely contained. He clenched his fist before delivering another punch to Spade. "But tell me, why did you do this to her? Why did you let abandoned her?!"
Hearing those words from someone else made the pain in my chest unbearable.
Spade slowly pushed himself up from the ground, wiping the blood off his lips before looking around. His eyes held no remorse. "Are you all satisfied now?" His voice was cold, almost amused. "You want to know why I let her go? It's simple." He turned to me with a smirk that sent a chill down my spine.
"Because she's nothing but trash."
It was as if a bucket of ice-cold water had been dumped over me. The words rang in my head, each syllable cutting deeper than the last. I stared at him, unsure if he had truly said those things himself. But if he did…
It hurt. It hurt so much.
"You really are a bastard!" Ren shouted.
He and Ten moved to lunge at Spade again, but before they could, Monique stepped in their way.
"Oh my God, Ren! Tennessee! Stop it!" she yelled, but they ignored her.
Seeing that nothing would stop them now, I stepped forward, placing myself between Spade and the others.
"Please, stop," I begged, tears streaming down my face. "I don't even know why I'm doing this, but please, just stop." My voice cracked, my body trembling.
Ren suddenly stepped closer, surprising me as he gently wiped the tears from my cheek. "He doesn't deserve your tears. Don't cry over someone like him," he said with a faint smile, though the anger in his eyes remained.
"He's right," Ten added. "You shouldn't waste your tears on that man."
"That man?" Monique scoffed. "Do you even know who you're talking about? That's Spade! Your leader!"
"Not anymore."
Everyone turned toward the voice.
"Louren?"
"The moment he said he no longer knew who Xyrine was, he severed his ties with us," Louren said firmly.
"What do you mean?" Monique asked, her voice uncertain.
"From this moment forward, this group is over."
I stared at him, stunned.
"Honestly, it's better this way," Ten muttered.
"I agree," Ren said without hesitation.
"What the hell are you three saying? You're dissolving your entire group over that girl?" Monique's disbelief was evident.
"You're right," Louren replied. "Spade, do you remember what I told you before I placed Xyrine's hand in yours?" Louren asked, his tone unwavering.
Spade said nothing. He only looked away.
"I told you to do everything you could, because if you didn't, you'd have nothing left to return to." He stared directly at him.
"Let me ask you again."
I froze as Louren suddenly turned his gaze to me.
"Do you still love her?"
Spade slowly stood up from the ground, his expression unreadable. He met my eyes, and with a voice void of any emotion, he answered:
"I don't know her."
The words hit me like a slap. My vision blurred as my tears fell instantly.
"Then let me hold you to that statement," Louren said, his voice unwavering. "Because I love her."
I turned to him in shock, only to find his eyes locked onto mine with absolute certainty.
"Do what you want. No one cares."
With that, Spade grabbed Monique's hand and walked away.
I stood there, watching them disappear, their hands intertwined. A sharp, piercing pain stabbed through my chest.
It hurt. It hurt so much.
I was still frozen in place when a warm hand grasped mine.
"This time, you won't be the one left behind," Louren said softly. Before I could react, he tightened his grip and pulled me forward.
My heart pounded as we drew closer to Spade and Monique. I held my breath, dreading what would happen when we passed them.
But then, we did. We walked right past them.
I was about to glance back when Louren's voice stopped me.
"You lose the moment you look back."
I felt his grip on my hand tighten once more, grounding me in the present.
MAZE
We were still holding hands as we walked toward the maze. Minutes passed, but neither of us spoke.
"I'd follow you to hell and back. You're my world, the luckiest man alive—I can't live without you," I said, forcing a smile as I stared into the distance.
"I need him to see everything he said to me back then. I want to ask him why he's doing this to me. Why? How can he not stand by the promises he made?" My voice cracked, breaking under the weight of my emotions.
"He can always take it back," I added, looking up at the sky. I couldn't hold back my tears anymore.
"There's nothing wrong with crying."
I looked at him, and despite my tears, I smiled weakly. "I'm fine," I said, even though the weight of my feelings was suffocating me.
"Don't say you're okay when your tears have already started falling."
I touched my cheek instinctively. A bitter smile crept across my face as I felt the wetness there.
"Why didn't you say it, Xyrine?"
I was taken aback by his question. "I don't know what you mean."
"Why didn't you tell me you're Mr. Xander Montreal's only daughter?"
I turned away, trying to hide the truth behind a smile that didn't quite reach my eyes. "What difference would it make?" I asked. "When you weren't around, his dad had me kidnapped to humiliate me at his birthday celebration. He succeeded. I swallowed all of that for Spade because he told me, nothing can stop us." My voice trembled as I paused.
"Xyrine, nothing's gonna stop us."
I felt my tears return as I recalled those words from that night. "I asked him if he wanted me to get rich, and he said I didn't need to because he loved me for who I was, not for what I had. I was such a fool to believe him. I loved him. But, why Louren? He said nothing's gonna stop us. He said, you and me against the world. But why am I here now, alone? Nothing's gonna stop us? Then why did he give up first?" The tears fell freely as I spoke. I covered my eyes with my arms, feeling him embrace me.
"It's my fault..." I felt his fist clench. "If only I came home earlier, I could've told you about Spade and Monique's engagement."
"You didn't need to, Louren. I already felt it before you could say it."
"What do you mean?"
I gave him a bitter smile, taking a deep breath before I spoke. "Do you know what's painful about the word 'goodbye'? It's hearing something your ears haven't caught, but your heart already feels. It hurts because I haven't heard it from him, but I can already feel it. He's making me feel like there's no hope for us anymore." I closed my eyes tightly as I looked up.
"Maybe some things are better felt than said."
I looked at him, remembering his words.
"I think you don't realize how much I love you. Maybe some things are better done than said."
"Xyrine, will you marry me?"
Tears fell relentlessly.
"Three months ago, he proposed to me..." I said, my head lowered, holding onto my skirt tightly. It felt like something was choking me, and I could hardly breathe. "If I had said yes, would everything have turned out like this? Would he have fought for me? Would he have left me, Louren?" I broke down into sobs.
I didn't know how long I had been crying until I felt him hand me a tissue.
"I'm sorry if I'm crying in front of you. I just can't take it anymore."
He smiled softly at me but kept his gaze distant. "There's nothing wrong with showing weakness to others, especially when the person you rely on is willing to offer both shoulders just so you can cry."
"Louren, why?"
He smiled at me. "Why, Xyrine? Do you need an answer to the question 'why' when you love someone? What I said earlier, I meant it. If you want, I can propose to you right now. But like I told you before, I love you. I can't take advantage of the situation when I know Spade's caught in the middle, and you're both caught in this for my own desires." He looked at me deeply. "Xyrine..."
"I know you know what the solution is to what's happening now. If you tell everyone who you are, it will stop the pain for you and Spade."
I turned away, my thoughts racing. I wish it were that simple. I wish it were that easy to face the one person who caused me so much pain 13 years ago.
"Should I introduce myself?" I asked, more to myself than to him.
"If you don't want to lose everything, do what's necessary."
He was right. I took a deep breath.
"It's time to take back what's mine."