The coffee shop was neutral territory—a quiet place off campus where they used to meet. Aiden arrived first, his heart hammering. He hadn't seen Sophia in a week, the longest they'd gone without contact since they met.
She walked in exactly on time, looking tired but beautiful. Dark circles under her eyes suggested she'd slept as poorly as he had.
"Hi," she said quietly, sliding into the booth across from him.
"Hi."
The silence stretched between them, heavy with unspoken words. Finally, Sophia spoke.
"I saw the video. Everyone has."
"I know. I'm sorry if that made things worse for you."
"Made things worse?" She laughed bitterly. "Aiden, I spent this week trying to hate you. Trying to convince myself you were just another selfish guy who wanted everything without consequences."
"Sophia—"
"Let me finish." Her voice trembled. "I wanted to hate you. But I can't. Because every time I tried, I remembered how honest you were. How you could have lied, could have strung me along, but you told me the truth even though it hurt."
Aiden reached across the table. She didn't pull away.
"I've been thinking," she continued. "About what you said. About feeling connections with multiple people. And I realized something—I'm not mad that you have feelings for others. I'm mad because I want to be enough."
"You are enough. More than enough."
"But not your only one." It wasn't a question.
"No," he admitted. "And I understand if that means you can't be with me. I won't blame you."
Sophia was quiet, stirring her untouched coffee. "My parents had an arranged marriage. They were faithful, dutiful, proper. And they were miserable. I've always told myself I wanted something different—something real, even if it was messy."
"This is definitely messy."
"Yeah." She finally met his eyes. "Here's the thing. I can't do traditional relationship with you. I can't be your girlfriend in the conventional sense, wondering when you're with someone else, feeling inadequate."
Aiden's heart sank. "I understand."
"But," she continued, "I also can't seem to stay away from you. So I have a proposal."
He waited, afraid to hope.
"No strings," Sophia said. "We see each other when we want to. No expectations, no promises. You live your complicated life, and I live mine. But when we're together, it's just us."
"Sophia, I don't want—"
"It's what I can handle right now," she interrupted. "Maybe eventually I'll want more, or maybe I'll meet someone who can give me traditional. But right now, this is what I'm offering. Take it or leave it."
Every instinct told Aiden this was wrong, that she deserved better. But the thought of losing her completely was unbearable.
"Are you sure?"
"No," she admitted. "But I'm willing to try. Are you?"
He took her hand. "Yes."
They sat in the coffee shop for hours, talking about everything except the complexity between them. When she finally left, she kissed him—soft and sad and full of longing.
Walking back to his car, Aiden felt the weight of it all. Isabella accepting his polyamorous reality. Sophia proposing a halfway arrangement that protected her heart while keeping her in his life. Victoria crossing professional lines. And women he hadn't even met yet who might complicate things further.
The system had given him wealth, intelligence, and ability. But it hadn't made relationships any simpler.
His phone showed a message from Isabella: "Dante transferred the marriage contract officially. I'm free. Thank you."
Then one from Victoria: "Thinking about you. Friday dinner?"
And finally, one from Maya: "Heads up—we've got a tail. Black SUV. Might be nothing, but my instincts say otherwise."
Nothing was ever simple anymore.