Noah's POV
For the first time in a while, the office didn't feel like it was pressing down on me.
It wasn't perfect.
It still had that sharp edge to it, the kind that came with glass walls, polished floors, and people who spoke in controlled voices.
But it wasn't suffocating anymore.
Not like before.
I sat at my desk, staring at documents I had already read twice without really processing them.
My mind kept drifting.
Not to work.
To him.
Diamant.
A part of me still didn't understand how quickly things had shifted.
One moment everything had felt tense, like I was walking on a line stretched too tight.
And then…
It wasn't gone.
But it had softened.
He had softened.
He'd started doing small things without making them feel like a statement.
Food arriving at my office.
Short messages during the day.
Checking if I'd eaten without turning it into an order.
It should've felt strange.
But it didn't.
It felt… steady.
And that confused me more than anything else.
Because I still remembered the video.
Still remembered how quickly I had believed something without asking him directly.
A tight feeling pulled at my chest.
I shouldn't have reacted like that.
I should have trusted him.
The thought lingered longer than I wanted it to.
I rubbed my fingers across the edge of the desk, forcing myself back into the present.
Work.
Just work.
A knock came at the door.
"Come in."
A staff member stepped inside, holding a small envelope.
"Sir, this arrived for you."
I frowned slightly. "From who?"
"No sender listed."
She placed it on my desk and left.
The door closed.
Silence returned.
This silence felt different.
Heavier.
I stared at the envelope for a long moment before touching it.
My fingers hesitated.
Then opened it.
Photographs slid out.
The moment I saw them, my stomach dropped.
No.
Not again.
My breathing slowed without permission.
I spread them across the desk carefully.
One.
Two.
Three.
My hands started to stiffen.
The first image showed Diamant.
He was in a restaurant.
An expensive one.
Quiet lighting.
Private setting.
Across from him sat a woman.
The same woman.
My throat tightened slightly.
I looked at the next photo.
Then the next.
Different angles.
Same place.
Same people.
Always together.
My pulse began to pick up.
I told myself to breathe.
To think.
There had to be context.
There had to be something I didn't know.
But my eyes kept returning to one detail.
Diamant.
Smiling.
Not his usual expression.
Not the controlled, unreadable one I was used to.
This was different.
Relaxed.
Real.
Familiar.
Something inside my chest twisted.
Why did he look like that?
Why did I feel like I was seeing a version of him I didn't have access to?
I swallowed hard and looked away.
Then looked back again.
As if distance would change what I was seeing.
It didn't.
The images stayed the same.
Carefully placed moments I didn't understand.
A knock broke through my thoughts.
I reacted too quickly, flipping the photos under a file.
"Come in."
The door opened.
Diamant stepped inside.
My body went still.
Too still.
He looked normal.
Calm.
Controlled.
As if nothing in the world had shifted.
"You're still working?" he asked.
"Yeah," I answered quickly.
His eyes lingered on me for a moment.
"You look tired."
"I'm fine."
A pause.
Then he nodded slightly.
"You've been overworking lately. Don't push yourself."
I nodded back.
But my voice didn't feel like it belonged to me.
"Okay."
He stepped closer to my desk.
For a second, I thought he might notice something.
But he didn't.
Instead, he glanced briefly at the papers.
"You should leave early today."
"Maybe," I said.
He hummed softly.
Then, like it was nothing, he reached out and adjusted a strand of hair that had fallen near my face.
A small gesture.
Natural.
Almost absent-minded.
But it hit harder than it should have.
My chest tightened again.
"Don't stay too late," he said.
Then he left.
The door closed.
Silence returned.
I sat there for a moment without moving.
Then slowly pulled the photographs out again.
One by one.
I looked at them longer this time.
Trying to find something different.
Something that would make this easier to understand.
But there wasn't anything.
Just images.
Just moments I hadn't been part of.
My throat felt dry.
I leaned back in my chair.
This wasn't supposed to feel like this.
We had just started getting better.
Just started breathing easier around each other.
So why now?
Why again?
My phone buzzed.
A message.
Diamant.
Dinner tonight?
My fingers paused above the screen.
Then I looked at the photographs again.
Then back at the message.
Dinner tonight.
Simple words.
Normal words.
I should've felt relieved.
Instead, my chest felt heavier.
I typed back slowly.
Okay.
His reply came quickly.
Good.
I stared at it for a long time.
Then locked my phone.
And looked back at the last photograph.
Diamant.
Smiling.
Relaxed.
With her.
And for the first time since I opened the envelope…
I couldn't stop my thoughts from slipping again.