Chapter 52 Chapter 52
Chapter 52
Ethan opened his eyes slowly, not sure if he was still dreaming or stuck in one of those exhausting nightmares he had lived with for a whole year.
His mind was blank for a few seconds, then his sight adjusted, and something warm, soft, and strangely peaceful came into view.
His head wasn’t on a pillow.
It was on someone’s lap.
His cheek rested gently on fabric, and beside him, a hand was lying carelessly against his hair. A small palm, warm enough to calm him without even trying. His lashes lifted a little more, and he finally recognized the face in front of him.
Celine.
She was sleeping too, sitting with her back against the sofa, her head slightly tilted, her breathing slow and steady. Even her eyebrows relaxed, like she wasn’t bothered by the world. Her hand had fallen on his hair, maybe while she slept… or maybe she had been trying to wake him earlier.
Ethan didn’t know.
What he did know was this moment couldn’t be real.
Did he just sleep… like a normal person?
He stared for a long time, not blinking. She looked perfect no makeup, hair slightly scattered from sleep, her lips parted a little as though even in sleep she wanted to speak.
He had never looked at her this close. Never noticed these little details. Never imagined her face would be the first thing he would see after good rest.
Good rest?
He swallowed hard.
“I slept…” he whispered to himself, barely having a voice. It didn’t even sound like him.
His chest rose and fell again. He waited for the usual headache to blast through his skull. For the horrible buzzing in his ears. For the whispers that always dragged him awake.
Nothing.
Just silence.
The kind of silence that didn’t choke him.
His heart beat in confusion. He didn’t understand how he ended up like this, lying with his head on her lap, sleeping like a child who had found a safe place. It didn’t make sense. He never let anyone near him. He barely tolerated people in the same room. But here he was… and his body felt like it had rested for months.
He lifted his head carefully. Too carefully. He didn’t even want to disturb her by accident, though he didn’t know why he cared.
But the moment he moved, she twitched and her fingers brushed his ear. Her eyes flew open immediately.
Their eyes locked.
Shock met confusion. Neither spoke.
Her face turned instantly pink as she realized where his head had been. She jerked her hand off him so fast, as if she had touched something burning.
“Mr… Mr. Castellan, I… I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to I didn’t know how I… I just, I thought you ” she stammered, words tripping over themselves.
He sat up, rubbing the back of his neck, looking anywhere except at her. He didn’t look like the cold boss everyone feared. He looked lost. His voice stuck somewhere in his throat. Not a single word came out, even if he tried.
Celine panicked at his silence, thinking she had crossed a boundary she couldn’t fix.
“I should go, sir. I’ll just… I’m leaving now,” she said quickly, getting on her feet so fast she almost tripped over her own shoes.
He looked up, opened his mouth to say something, anything, but nothing came out. His tongue failed him, and he just sat there like someone who had forgotten how to speak.
She hurried to the door, her slippers dragging on the floor, and before another awkward second could pass, she slipped out of the penthouse.
The door shut.
Ethan blinked at the empty space she left behind.
What just happened?” he said aloud.
He sat still again, perplexed, touching his head as though confirming it
wasn’t a dream. His fingers traced his hair slowly, remembering how lightly she had touched it.
No nightmares.
No images of blood.
No screaming.
No hallucinations.
Just sleep.
A full night of sleep.
For the first time in a year.
He stood up abruptly, grabbed his phone, and without even thinking, dialed Doctor Lui. It rang only once.
“Ethan? It’s early—”
“I slept,” Ethan cut in, breath shaking a little.
Doctor Lui paused.
“What?”
“I slept,” Ethan repeated, pacing the living room now, his hand gripping the phone tightly. “I slept throughout the whole night. No voices, no flashbacks, no headaches. Nothing. Just… sleep.”
He sounded almost unsure, like he needed someone to confirm it was real.
Doctor Lui couldn’t hide his excitement. “That’s very good news. Are you calm now? Are you feeling balanced?”
Ethan nodded rapidly even though the doctor couldn’t see him. “Yes. I don’t even feel heavy. I’m not tense. I woke up normally. And—” he hesitated, his voice lowering, “—I didn’t take the pills last night.”
“That’s even better,” the doctor replied. “Your brain finally relaxed without medication. Something triggered comfort for you. Something— or someone—helped your mind rest enough to shut down panic.”
Ethan froze. His jaw tightened slightly.
Someone.
He didn’t say anything more. He didn’t even mention her name. He just stood there, staring at the exact sofa spot where she had been sitting minutes ago.
Doctor Lui continued, “Keep observing yourself today. Don’t take any pills. If you feel any slight tension, call me immediately.”
“Alright,” Ethan muttered.
“And Ethan?” the doctor added.
“Yes?”
“I’m proud of you. This is progress. Your brain is finally responding to peace.”
Ethan cut the call without replying.
Peace.
He looked at his hands again, then at the quiet room.
How could peace come from someone who didn’t even know what she was doing?
Celine didn’t hug him.
She didn’t talk to him.
She didn’t try to comfort him with words.
She didn’t do anything intentional.
She just let him sleep.
That was all.
And it worked.
He let out a slow breath, still confused, still unsure, but his body relaxed on its own.
He didn’t smile.
But his eyes softened a little without his permission.
He walked to the door she had exited through. His fingers touched the handle like he expected her to still be there.
She wasn’t.
And that quiet place inside him, the one that had finally rested, stirred faintly not painfully, not anxiously. Just curious.
For the first time, he wondered:
What exactly is she doing to me?