Chapter 115: What if I say no
The next morning, Anna was jolted awake by her phone buzzing violently on the nightstand. Groaning, she reached for it blindly, half-asleep and tangled in her blanket.
Before she could even open her eyes properly, Betty’s voice practically screamed through the speaker.
"BIG SIS! CHECK YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA—RIGHT NOW!"
Anna bolted upright, heart racing, still bleary-eyed and disoriented. "Betty, it’s—what—the hell time is it?" she mumbled, rubbing her temple.
"Doesn’t matter! Just check it!"
Anna blinked, her mind still catching up as she reached for her phone. That was when she noticed the other side of the bed—empty.
’Again.’
For a second, her heart gave a faint tug. She didn’t even know why she was still expecting him to be there. Maybe because last night, for the first time, she had actually fallen asleep peacefully—with him.
She shook the thought away quickly. Focus, Anna.
Clicking open her social media handle, Anna scrolled through her notifications—and froze.
"What the..." she whispered, eyes widening at the comments flooding her feed.
It wasn’t the hate or curiosity this time. The entire tone had changed—completely flipped.
User 1: "Oh, so he only created the hype because he wanted to be famous."
User 2: "Does he even know I had sleepless nights since he broke that news about Anna’s lover? Glad he denied it—but not completely ??."
User 3: "Ah, maybe he’s one of Anna’s allies. She probably used him to snatch the spotlight from our Fiona!"
Anna’s brows furrowed, but she kept scrolling until her eyes stopped on a familiar username.
DarkKnight_07.
Her pulse quickened.
"Sorry to say, but I’m not her lover. It was just a random fluke to make you all go crazy."
Anna stared at the post for a long moment, blinking as though rereading it would change the words.
He... cleared her name.
Of all the things she expected, that wasn’t one of them.
Her lips twitched, torn between irritation and reluctant relief. "So you do have a conscience," she muttered under her breath.
"Big Sis?" Betty’s voice broke through again, loud and curious. "This DarkKnight guy seems fishy to me. First he boldly says you have a secret lover, now he’s acting like it was all a joke. Who even does that?"
Anna sighed, flopping back on her pillow. "At least he made peace with it," she said tiredly. "For a second, I thought my entire career was about to go down the drain. You know how crazy fans can be—they dig into everything, even your trash if they have to."
Betty hummed on the other end, still unconvinced. "I don’t know, Sis... he feels off. Who jokes about something like that and then suddenly clears it up?"
Anna smiled faintly, her tone teasing. "You sound more invested than I am, Betty."
"Of course I am! You’re trending everywhere!"
Anna groaned. "Exactly why I didn’t want to trend."
While Betty kept ranting about online rumors and obsessive fans, Anna’s attention drifted back to the post—back to that single message.
She couldn’t help the thought that crept in, uninvited.
’Did he really do this just to calm things down... or was this another one of his games?’
Her thumb lingered over his profile name, debating if she should click it. She wanted to—desperately—but something in her stopped her from doing it until a message popped up.
"Betty, I’ll call you later," Anna said abruptly, ending the call before Betty could respond. Her fingers trembled slightly as she switched screens and clicked open the message notification flashing at the top.
DarkKnight_07: Now that everything’s settled, how about considering my proposal?
Anna blinked, her brows furrowing in confusion. Proposal? What nonsense was he talking about? Then it hit her—like a slow, horrifying realization crawling up her spine.
Don’t tell me he took my words seriously... just to become my friend?
Her jaw slackened as she stared at the message in disbelief, the corner of her lips twitching in something between amusement and exasperation. But before she could decide whether to laugh or groan, her phone began ringing again—this time flashing a name that made her blood run cold.
Dad.
Ignoring the previous message, Anna hesitated for a moment, her thumb hovering over the screen before she finally answered.
"Hello, Dad—"
She didn’t even finish the greeting before Hugo Bennett’s voice exploded from the other end, sharp and furious.
"Anna Bennett! How dare you go against my words and pursue acting!"
The sheer venom in his tone made her freeze. For a moment, her mind went completely blank. Her breath caught in her throat as she tried to process his words. He knows.
Until yesterday, she’d been confident her secret was safe—her small victory tucked quietly away from the reach of her family’s control. But clearly, she had overestimated her luck.
Hugo Bennett had always dictated her life—the clothes she wore, the people she met, the choices she never got to make. And like a dutiful daughter, she’d obeyed, believing it was his right as her father to steer her life’s direction. She never complained, never questioned—except once, when she was young and begged him to help her after being bullied. He’d brushed her off coldly, calling her weak.
That was the moment Anna learned what silence felt like—how to swallow her pain and live in shadows.
But that girl was gone.
The world outside had changed her, and for the first time, she wasn’t afraid to stand in the light.
So when Hugo’s voice boomed again through the receiver, it didn’t ignite fear anymore—it only shocked her how little he had changed.
"I want you to withdraw from the project immediately, Anna. You know you can’t be out there in public—not now, not ever!"
Anna blinked, stunned. Then a dry, humorless laugh slipped from her lips. "Not ever?" she echoed softly, disbelief lacing her voice.
Of course. It was always the same with him. Control disguised as concern. Orders masked as protection. Even after stripping her of the Bennett name, even after marrying her off like a pawn, he still wanted to dictate her life.
Her grip on the phone tightened, knuckles whitening. For a heartbeat, she said nothing. Then, quietly but firmly, she asked, "What if I say no?"