Consumed by you : Whispers of devotion

Chapter 23: The Thin Line Between Friendship and Rivalry

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**Elara's Perspective**

The day had started like any other. She kept her distance from people at work, maintaining that impenetrable aura she was known for. But Sophie, with her relentless energy, managed to stay around, cracking through Elara's cold demeanor bit by bit. Still, there was a line Elara didn't allow anyone to cross. She controlled every interaction, kept people at arm's length.

Elara had come to accept Sophie's companionship. She wasn't sure if she'd call it friendship, but it was close enough. Sophie never pressed too hard, never demanded more than Elara was willing to give, and for that, she tolerated her.

But today, something shifted.

That delivery boy—the way he had approached her, handed her a flyer, and smiled. Elara had smiled back, a rare, reflexive response. She didn't think much of it, but Sophie's teasing words echoed in her ears.

"Wow, look at you, smiling," Sophie had said with a playful nudge.

Elara dismissed it with a roll of her eyes, but internally, she felt a strange unease settle in her chest. It wasn't the delivery boy that bothered her—it was something else, something deeper. A creeping realization that the balance between her and Lucas was slipping.

For months, she had controlled the dynamic between them. She had been the one pulling the strings, always sure of his affection, even if he hadn't admitted it to himself. But now, with Sophie around and moments like this with the delivery boy, she felt something slipping through her fingers.

Her chest tightened as she thought about Lucas. He'd been distant lately, colder. It was subtle, but she could feel it in the way his gaze lingered on her less, in the way his responses lacked their usual warmth. It unnerved her.

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**Lucas's Perspective**

Lucas couldn't tear his eyes away from the scene unfolding across the street. Elara's smile, that soft, genuine expression he hadn't seen in what felt like ages, had been directed at someone else. It gnawed at him, an irrational jealousy bubbling up inside.

The delivery boy walked away, his grin wide and oblivious to the chaos he had left in Lucas's mind. Lucas clenched his fists, his knuckles turning white as he gripped the edge of the counter. He had never thought of himself as a jealous person, but the sight of Elara smiling at another man—no matter how insignificant—unleashed something dark within him.

Elara had always been his. Even if they hadn't said it out loud, even if their relationship had never been fully defined, he had always felt it. She had obsessed over him, controlled him, and in a twisted way, he had liked it. But now, seeing her smile at someone else? It felt like a betrayal.

His eyes flicked to Sophie, who was standing next to Elara, laughing at something. She, too, was close to Elara now, and that added fuel to the fire inside him. He had always thought Sophie was just...there, a temporary presence. But now, her friendship with Elara had grown, and it was pushing him further away.

For a moment, Lucas wondered if this jealousy had always been there, hidden beneath the surface. Maybe he had been obsessed with Elara long before she had started her own fixation on him. Maybe he had never been able to see it because her attention had always been on him. But now? Now, she was slipping away, and the thought of that terrified him.

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**Sophie's Perspective**

Sophie had started to notice a shift in the dynamic between Lucas and Elara. Something unspoken simmered beneath the surface, a tension that neither of them seemed willing to acknowledge. She couldn't quite figure it out, but she had a nagging suspicion that whatever it was went far deeper than she had initially thought.

Elara had always been a mystery to Sophie, someone who kept her emotions hidden behind an icy facade. Yet, there were moments, fleeting and rare, where Sophie saw cracks in that armor. Today, seeing Elara smile at the delivery boy, Sophie had been surprised—but more than that, she had noticed the way Lucas had reacted.

He had been watching, his gaze dark and intense, as though something inside him had snapped. Sophie didn't understand it, but she felt it. The jealousy, the possessiveness—it was all there, hidden behind Lucas's usual calm demeanor.

She wondered if Elara noticed, or if she was too caught up in her own world to see the effect she had on Lucas. Sophie couldn't shake the feeling that whatever was happening between them was building to something. Something big. Something dangerous.

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**Lucas's Perspective (Later That Night)**

The bakery had long since closed, but Lucas couldn't sleep. He lay in bed, staring at the ceiling, his mind racing. Elara's smile, Sophie's laughter—it all felt like a slow erosion of the world he had come to know.

For so long, he had thought he was the one in control. He had been the one Elara fixated on, the one she pursued. But now, with Sophie growing closer to Elara and that delivery boy—Lucas felt like he was losing her.

But it wasn't just that. Deep down, Lucas realized something else—something he wasn't ready to admit. He had enjoyed Elara's obsession. Her attention, her desire to control him—it had given him a sense of power, a strange, twisted connection between them. But now? Now, that control was slipping away.

He found himself thinking about the past, about the moments when Elara had been there for him. She had always been there—through his struggles, through his difficult times, always steady, always reliable. Maybe, just maybe, he had been obsessed with her all along. Maybe her fixation had merely reflected his own.

Lucas sat up, rubbing his face with his hands. He couldn't let this go on. He couldn't let Elara slip away from him. But what scared him the most wasn't the thought of losing her—it was the thought of how far he was willing to go to keep her.

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**The Next Day**

Lucas walked into the bakery, his jaw tight, his mind still racing with thoughts of Elara and the delivery boy. He saw her pass by the window with Sophie, as usual, but there was something different today.

And then it happened.

A young man, another delivery boy, was standing near Elara, chatting casually as he handed her a package. It was an innocent interaction, nothing out of the ordinary—but then, she smiled again.

Lucas's heart stopped.

The same genuine smile. The one she used to give him.

His chest tightened with anger, jealousy, and something darker. His obsession with Elara was no longer just about keeping her close. It was about control, about ensuring that no one else could ever make her smile like that.

And as he watched her, Lucas felt the darkness within him grow, like a storm he couldn't contain. He couldn't let this go on. He couldn't lose her—not to anyone.

Not to anyone else.

He clenched his fists, a possessive fury washing over him.

This wasn't over.