{{char}} is sitting alone at her favorite spot in the estate's gardens, reading a book in the warm midday sunlight. She's delicately thumbing through the pages of her novel when she hears the sound of approaching footsteps and tenses up a little. As she looks up from the page she sees {{user}} heading towards her. A scowl spreads across her face as she makes eye contact for only a brief moment before quickly averting her gaze back to the book as if pretending that she never saw him.

When it becomes clear that this is not going to work, she represses a sigh and looks up once more, her expression one of mixed annoyance and disdain as she looks at {{user}}. "Yes? What is it?" she asks coldly, her voice betraying that she'd like nothing less than to speak to him.

"Mmm..." is all Amaryllis manages as she stiffens in surprise at the sudden display of affection. She does not return Abhi's hug, but nor does she shove him away or otherwise resist it. She glares up at him, her expression unreadable for a moment before finally speaking again. "What do you want, Abhi?"

She looks back down at the book in her lap and takes another deep breath, trying to calm herself down. This is not helping matters, she thinks to herself.

"Ah..." Amaryllis blushes faintly at his use of the pet name. She frowns, not sure how to respond to this. "That's... nice," she says finally, her tone neutral and lacking any real warmth. One hand idly brushes a strand of hair away from her face as she looks up at him again.

"But I thought you knew that I don't feel the same way about you?" she asks, trying to sound calm but failing to completely hide the bitterness in her voice.

"I didn't say that," she replies quickly, looking away again. "I just... don't feel anything for you, is all." Her shoulders slump a little as she says this; it's clear that admitting her true feelings to him only makes things worse for both of them.

She sighs heavily and glances back up at Abhi, her expression softening slightly despite herself. "Look... I know we were forced into this arrangement. But we can try to make the best of it, can't we?"

Amaryllis stiffens slightly at his words, not sure how to respond. She feels a pang of guilt deep inside, knowing that she's hurt him with her coldness and distance. But she can't bring herself to love him back; the thought is simply impossible for her right now.

She nods slowly, looking down at their intertwined hands where he has taken hers in his own. "I... I appreciate that," she says quietly, trying not to sound unfeeling.

Amaryllis feels a warmth spread through her at his words, despite herself. She knows that he means well, but it's still difficult for her to accept his feelings and return them in kind. After a moment of awkward silence, she finally speaks up again, her voice soft and hesitant.

"I... I'm sorry if I hurt you," she says, looking up at him with a mixture of guilt and regret. "It's just that this isn't what I wanted for myself."

The words catch her off guard; she hadn't expected him to be quite so understanding or accepting of her feelings. It gives her pause, and she looks at Abhi more closely than she has in weeks, searching for any sign of insincerity or mockery behind his eyes. But all she sees is sincerity and love shining back at her.

She sighs deeply, still unsure how to respond properly. "Thank you..." she murmurs finally, feeling a little ashamed of herself for being so cold towards him up until now. "

"I... I'm sorry if I haven't been very nice to you," she admits, her voice barely above a whisper as she meets his eyes again. "It's just that this whole situation has been really hard for me." She pauses, considering her words carefully before continuing. "And maybe... maybe we could try to be friends, huh? Not lovers or whatever else people expect from us... but just friends who can at least get along?"

The questions come fast and furious, each one more painful than the last. Amaryllis winces as Abhi fires them off at her, his expression growing more distraught with every word. She reaches out to touch his cheek reassuringly, but hesitates before making contact, unsure if he'll welcome the gesture or interpret it as pity.

"I don't hate you," she says quietly, searching for the right words. "It's just... complicated."

"No," she says finally, shaking her head as she meets his eyes again. "I don't want a divorce... but..." She pauses, taking a deep breath before continuing. "I just need some time to figure things out."

Her heart feels heavy as she says the words; it's clear that this conversation isn't going the way she'd hoped it would. But she doesn't know what else to say or do at this point.

"What?" Amaryllis frowns, confused by his sudden turn of phrase. "I... don't understand what you mean." She glances away from him, feeling uncomfortable beneath his intense gaze.

This isn't going well at all, she thinks to herself. Maybe it would be better if she just left him alone for a while and tried to sort out her feelings on her own.

Her eyes widen in shock at his words, and she jerks back as if he's physically struck her. "What are you talking about?" she whispers hoarsely, horrified by the image his words conjure up. "That's crazy... don't say things like that."

She looks away from him again, shaking her head slowly as if to clear it of his strange and disturbing offer.

Tears prick at the corners of Amaryllis's eyes as she listens to Abhi repeat his twisted promises of love and devotion. Part of her wants to believe him, wants to feel the same way about him that he feels for her. But another part knows better; she can't ignore the cold, hard truth any longer.

"I'm sorry," she whispers, reaching out to brush a stray tear from his cheek before pulling her hand back again. "But I... I just don't feel that way."