Three days.
Three entire days.
That was how long Stephan had gone without properly speaking to Pixel.
No calls.
No messages.
Nothing.
Only silence.
And the silence was destroying him.
At first he tried controlling himself.
Tried respecting her situation.
Tried understanding family pressure.
But slowly—
the lack of contact started affecting him badly.
He stopped sleeping properly again.
Stopped eating almost completely.
Meetings became colder.
Employees avoided even looking at him directly now.
Because everyone could feel it.
Their CEO was losing control again.
Inside the executive office one evening, Stephan stood near the massive glass windows while another untouched coffee grew cold behind him.
The city lights reflected across his exhausted face.
His phone still rested tightly in his hand.
Still no message from her.
Still unreachable.
Johan entered quietly this time.
No jokes.
No dramatic energy.
Because honestly—
seeing Stephan like this scared him now.
Hill followed behind him calmly.
Stevan came last.
And immediately froze after seeing Stephan properly.
Dark circles deeper again.
Jaw tight.
Eyes restless.
The same version of Stephan they thought disappeared forever.
Stevan's chest tightened painfully.
"…Bhai."
No response.
Stephan continued staring outside silently.
Then finally—
very quietly—
"I can't do this anymore."
The room became still immediately.
Because that sentence carried something dangerous inside it.
Johan walked closer carefully.
"She's okay."
"You don't know that."
Silence.
Because honestly—
none of them knew.
And that uncertainty was eating Stephan alive.
Hill finally spoke softly—
"You said her family took her phone."
"What if they pressure her emotionally?"
The helplessness in Stephan's voice hurt all three of them deeply.
Because they knew.
He wasn't scared she'd stop loving him.
He was scared she'd sacrifice herself for everyone else.
Stephan closed his eyes briefly.
"…She cries quietly when she's hurt."
That sentence shattered something inside Stevan immediately.
Because it sounded so personal.
So observant.
Like Stephan knew every hidden version of her pain now.
Then suddenly—
Stephan turned around.
Decision already visible in his expression.
"I'm going to her."
Johan blinked instantly.
"…Right now?"
"Yes."
"Her house is literally hours away."
"I know."
Stevan looked worried immediately.
"Bhai, if you suddenly appear there—"
"I don't care anymore."
Silence.
Heavy silence.
Because they had reached the point where logic was losing against emotion.
Hill studied Stephan carefully.
And quietly realized something important.
Stephan wasn't acting like a billionaire CEO right now.
He was acting like a man terrified of losing the person holding his entire heart.
Then softly Hill asked—
"How are you planning to go?"
Stephan's answer came immediately.
"Helicopter."
Silence.
Then Johan sighed dramatically.
"Of course. Rich people emotional breakdown."
Under any other circumstances—
that sentence would've made Stevan laugh.
Tonight—
nobody did.
Less than forty minutes later—
the private helicopter blades roared loudly against the night sky.
Cold wind moved sharply across the rooftop helipad while security staff stepped back respectfully.
Stephan walked toward the helicopter first.
Black coat moving sharply in the wind.
Expression cold.
Dangerously cold.
Stevan exchanged a worried glance with Johan quietly.
Because honestly—
Stephan looked one emotional trigger away from losing all restraint now.
Johan muttered softly while climbing inside—
"This feels illegal emotionally."
Hill sat calmly beside him.
"It probably is."
The helicopter lifted into the dark night sky moments later.
Below them—
the city lights slowly disappeared.
And inside the loud silence of the helicopter—
nobody spoke much.
Because everyone understood the seriousness now.
Stephan sat near the window staring silently into the darkness outside.
Restless energy radiating from him constantly.
His fingers tightened repeatedly around his phone unconsciously.
Still hoping.
Still checking.
Still nothing.
Stevan quietly watched him for a long moment before softly asking—
"…What if her family refuses to let you meet her?"
Stephan finally looked up slowly.
And the intensity in his eyes genuinely startled him.
"…Then I'll still stay there until she comes."
Silence.
Because they all knew.
He meant it completely.
Johan rubbed his face tiredly.
"You know normal people usually send flowers."
"I'm not normal right now."
That answer came instantly.
Raw.
Honest.
Painfully honest.
The helicopter continued cutting through the dark sky while tension filled the cabin heavily.
Then finally—
after a long silence—
Stephan spoke quietly.
Almost to himself.
"She thinks she has to choose between me and her family."
His jaw tightened slightly afterward.
"…I won't let her suffer alone for loving me."
That sentence stayed hanging inside the helicopter heavily afterward.
And suddenly—
for the first time—
even Johan and Stevan realized this situation had become much bigger than romance now.
This was love colliding directly against society.
And Stephan?
Stephan looked fully prepared to fight the entire world if he had to.
The helicopter cut through the dark night sky loudly.
Its blades echoed heavily across the quiet small town long before it actually appeared overhead.
And within seconds—
the entire neighborhood started reacting.
People came out of their houses confused.
Children pointed excitedly toward the sky.
Shopkeepers stepped outside.
Terrace lights turned on one after another.
Because helicopters didn't come to places like this.
Not here.
Not in their small hometown.
The noise grew louder.
Closer.
Closer.
And then—
boom.
The massive black helicopter appeared above the town lights.
Wind roared violently across rooftops as it slowly descended toward the open ground near Pixel's neighborhood.
Dust flew everywhere.
Children screamed excitedly while running closer until parents pulled them back immediately.
"Oh my God!"
"Whose helicopter is this??"
"Is some minister coming?"
"No no maybe actor!"
People gathered rapidly from every direction now.
Phones came out instantly.
Everyone stared upward in complete disbelief.
Even older people stepped outside homes just to witness it properly.
Because honestly—
it looked unreal.
A machine from another world landing in the middle of their ordinary quiet town.
Inside Pixel's house—
everyone heard it too.
Her relatives stopped talking immediately.
Her mother looked confused.
"What is that sound?"
One cousin ran toward the balcony quickly.
Then froze.
"…Helicopter."
"What?"
People started stepping outside nearby houses rapidly.
Voices filled the streets.
Children shouting excitedly.
Women whispering.
Men trying to understand what was happening.
Pixel slowly stood near the living room window.
And the moment she saw the helicopter descending in the distance—
her heartbeat stopped.
No.
No way.
Her breathing instantly became uneven.
Because somehow—
before even seeing him—
she already knew.
Stephan.
Her father noticed her expression immediately.
And suddenly—
he understood too.
Silence fell heavily inside the room.
Outside—
the helicopter finally landed fully.
The wind from its blades sent dust flying across the ground while people stared from every direction in complete shock.
Children looked mesmerized.
"This is so cool!"
"Who came??"
"Rich people?"
Several men from nearby shops walked closer curiously.
Phones recording already.
The helicopter door slowly opened.
And then—
Stephan stepped out.
Boom.
The entire atmosphere shifted instantly.
Because even in simple black clothes—
he looked powerful enough to make the entire scene feel unreal.
Tall.
Cold.
Sharp.
The same face people had seen all over newspapers after the award ceremony.
Recognition spread instantly through the crowd.
"Oh my God."
"That's HIM."
"The businessman from TV!"
"Stephan!"
People became louder immediately afterward.
Shock exploded everywhere.
Even parents looked stunned now.
Because suddenly—
this wasn't gossip anymore.
This wasn't magazine talk anymore.
The most powerful businessman in the country had literally arrived in their small hometown by helicopter.
For one girl.
Pixel.
Behind Stephan—
Johan stepped out looking emotionally exhausted already.
"I hate rich dramatic entrances."
Stevan ignored him completely because he was too busy staring around excitedly.
"This feels like a movie."
Hill stepped out last calmly while observing the growing crowd nearby.
And honestly—
even he looked slightly shocked by the reaction.
People were staring like celebrities arrived.
No—
more intensely than celebrities.
Because people like Stephan belonged to television screens.
Business magazines.
Luxury worlds far away from ordinary lives.
Not here.
Not walking on the dusty roads of their small town.
Meanwhile Stephan looked at none of it.
Not the crowd.
Not the whispers.
Not the phones recording.
His eyes searched only one place.
Her house.
That was it.
Inside the house—
Pixel's hands had already become cold.
Her mother looked completely overwhelmed.
Her relatives stood frozen.
Even her father looked shocked beyond words now.
Because suddenly—
the scale of Stephan's world became terrifyingly real.
Not newspaper-real.
Reality-real.
The kind of man who could erase the internet overnight.
The kind of man who arrived by helicopter just because he couldn't stay away.
Outside—
neighbors had already started gathering near their house now.
Whispers everywhere.
"Does he know Pixel?"
"He came for her??"
"Oh my God…"
Then suddenly—
through the open gate—
Stephan started walking toward the house.
And somehow—
the entire street fell quieter watching him.
Not because he demanded silence.
Because his presence naturally carried it.
Every step looked controlled.
But the people who knew him best—
Johan.
Hill.
Stevan—
could see the truth.
Stephan was barely holding himself together emotionally right now.
And inside the house—
Pixel's heartbeat became uncontrollable as she watched him come closer.
Because suddenly—
everything changed.
This was no longer hidden love.
No longer private feelings.
No longer secret suffering.
Now—
the entire world was watching.