[EXT. CAMPUS PARK – NIGHT]
The night has deepened, and the park is bathed in the dim light from the distant street lamps. Harriet remains seated on the bench, her heart a tangled mess of emotions. Her gaze remains unfocused on the ground, the storm inside her as fierce as the one that just passed.
She can still feel Rufei's words burning in her chest: It echoes in her mind, louder than anything she's said or done. Harriet knows she hasn't been fair to Rufei, to either of them. But the confusion, the weight of Fred's secrets, and the dark pull she feels whenever he's near... she doesn't know how to escape it.
She's stuck between two worlds.
"What am I doing?" She whispers to herself, staring blankly ahead.
---
[INT. FRED'S PENTHOUSE – NIGHT]
Fred stands by the window, looking out at the city below. The lights blur through the rain-slicked glass, but his mind is far from the view. He can't shake the image of Harriet, sitting in the park, distant and alone. He's been thinking about her all night, the way her eyes seemed to hold so much unsaid. She's been slipping away from him, and he knows it's his fault.
The guilt eats at him, raw and suffocating. He couldn't protect her, not from the truth, and certainly not from himself. The scars on his body—both seen and unseen—remind him every day of the price he's paid for his choices. Choices that now threaten to pull Harriet into a world she'll never be able to leave.
The phone on the table buzzes, snapping Fred from his thoughts. He glances at the screen. It's an unknown number.
He hesitates, but answers.
FRED
(voice low, almost resigned)
"Hello?"
MYSTERIOUS VOICE
(through the phone, smooth, cold)
"We've been watching. The girl... she's a risk, Fred. You know what needs to be done."
Fred's face hardens, his grip tightening on the phone.
FRED
(quiet, with forced calm)
"No. Not her. Leave her out of this."
MYSTERIOUS VOICE
(smirking)
"You can't protect her forever. You've already dragged her into this world. Now... it's time for her to learn the truth."
The line goes dead.
Fred stands frozen, the weight of the conversation settling over him like a shadow. He wants to deny it, to believe that somehow, he can protect her. But the truth is, he's already failed her.
---
[EXT. CAMPUS PARK – NIGHT]
Harriet stands up slowly, her legs stiff from sitting for so long. The cold night air hits her, but it doesn't feel as harsh as the chill in her chest. She begins to walk, her steps aimless, her thoughts clouded.
"What am I doing?" she repeats, the question lingering like a ghost.
She pulls her jacket tighter around herself as if trying to keep the world at bay. But she knows, deep down, that the world is already here.
She pulls out her phone, scrolling through the messages. She hasn't heard from Fred today, and part of her wonders if she should reach out. But then another part of her, the part that feels betrayed by his silence, wonders if she even can.
Her thumb hovers over Fred's name in the contacts. She considers it for a moment—should she text him, ask if he's okay, or try to break through the wall between them? But the fear of being pulled deeper into his world, the world she barely understands, stops her from hitting send.
---
[INT. FRED'S PENTHOUSE – SAME TIME]
Fred stares at the phone in his hand, the silence of the penthouse suffocating him. He knows he should reach out, should explain everything to her. But what if he loses her forever?
A deep, painful breath escapes him. He places the phone back down, unable to bring himself to reach out to her. Not now. Not yet.
---
[EXT. STREET OUTSIDE CAMPUS – NIGHT]
Harriet's phone buzzes in her pocket, cutting through the quiet night. She pulls it out, glancing at the screen, her heart skipping a beat. It's a text from Fred.
TEXT MESSAGE
"We need to talk."
Harriet stares at the message for a long time, the words so simple, yet heavy with meaning. She wants to text back, wants to ask him what's going on, but the fear of hearing more lies, more half-truths, holds her back. She's afraid of what the conversation will lead to.
She shoves the phone back in her pocket, unsure of what to do next.
---
[INT. FRED'S PENTHOUSE – LATER THAT NIGHT]
Fred stands at the window, still lost in thought. His phone buzzes once more. He looks at the screen, seeing the unread message from Harriet, but he doesn't open it. Not yet. He knows he should respond, but the words feel too heavy. The truth is more dangerous than he's willing to admit.
And now, someone else has noticed Harriet. Someone with darker intentions.
The world he's been trying to protect her from is closing in, and Fred knows that he can't keep her safe forever..
[EXT. STREET OUTSIDE CAMPUS – NIGHT]
The streets are wet and glistening under the streetlights.
Harriet walks slowly, hugging her arms around herself. Her mind is loud with everything — Rufei's voice, Fred's silence, her own fear.
And yet, it's Fred's message that keeps echoing inside her chest:
"We need to talk."
Her fingers tremble as she pulls out her phone again.
She hesitates.
But something stronger than fear — something that feels like gravity — pulls her forward.
She texts back only two words:
HARRIET (text)
"Where are you?"
---
[INT. FRED'S PENTHOUSE – NIGHT]
Fred stands stiffly by the window, staring down at the city, when his phone vibrates.
He sees her reply — short, hesitant — but enough.
Enough to make his chest ache in ways he doesn't understand.
Without thinking, he texts back:
FRED (text)
"Come to me."
Simple. Dangerous. Inevitable.
---
[INT. FRED'S PENTHOUSE – LATER]
The elevator doors open silently, revealing Harriet.
She steps in hesitantly, soaked from the misty rain, her hair clinging to her cheeks.
Fred watches her from across the wide living room, his heart hammering painfully in his chest.
For a long, heavy moment, neither of them speaks.
The city lights glow behind Fred, painting him in cool shadows — too beautiful, too dangerous.
Harriet swallows hard, her voice small in the charged silence.
HARRIET
(whispering)
"You said... you wanted to talk."
Fred's jaw tightens. He wants to say so much — to warn her, to push her away — but the moment he sees her trembling slightly at the doorway, all of it crumbles.
Instead, he crosses the room to her — slow, deliberate steps — like he's afraid she'll vanish if he moves too fast.
He stops just a breath away.
The air between them crackles.
FRED
(voice low, raw)
"I shouldn't have dragged you into this."
Harriet lifts her eyes to his — huge, searching.
Her heart stutters painfully at the look on his face: broken, haunted, full of something desperate and unspoken.
HARRIET
(softly)
"You didn't drag me anywhere."
Her voice trembles, not from fear, but from something else.
Something she refuses to name.
Fred looks at her — really looks — and all the walls he's built inside himself start to splinter.
Without thinking, he lifts a hand and brushes a strand of damp hair from her face.
Harriet freezes under his touch — but doesn't pull away.
Instead, she leans into it — just barely — the smallest, instinctive motion.
The world narrows to just them — the sound of the rain, the rush of blood in their ears, the unbearable closeness.
Fred's hand lingers against her cheek, his fingers gentle despite the roughness of his world.
FRED
(whispering)
"I'm dangerous, Harriet."
Harriet's breath catches.
Her eyes lock onto his — fierce, aching.
HARRIET
(whispering back)
"Then why do I feel safe with you?"
Fred curses under his breath, torn between desire and guilt.
His forehead leans against hers — a soft, aching contact — and he closes his eyes like he's praying.
For one fragile second, it feels like the world stops turning.
Neither of them moves.
Neither of them breathes.
Just the pounding of hearts too close to be ignored.
FRED
(hoarse)
"If you stay... there's no turning back."
Harriet's fingers tighten at her sides, trembling.
HARRIET
(whispering)
"I know."
She lifts her face slightly — an invitation, or maybe a surrender.
Fred's restraint snaps.
His hand cups her jaw with aching tenderness as he kisses her — slow, fierce, desperate.
Like he's pouring every broken, forbidden feeling he's buried into her.
Fred pulls back slowly from the kiss, his chest rising and falling heavily.
Harriet looks up at him, breathless, heart hammering.
For a moment, neither of them speaks.
The space between them charged, trembling.
Fred brushes his thumb lightly across her swollen bottom lip — a silent question.
Harriet answers not with words, but by stepping closer, sliding her trembling hands up his chest.
Fred exhales shakily, as if all the fight inside him has drained away.
Without another word, he lifts her effortlessly into his arms.
Harriet gasps softly, clutching at his shoulders, but she doesn't protest.
He carries her through the dim penthouse, past glittering windows and flickering shadows, until he reaches his bedroom.
To be continued...
***