They called him Weak, He Became Untouchable

Manipulation

Sofia Georgiou stepped through the front door of her villa, exhaustion weighing heavily on her shoulders. The day's events had drained her more than she cared to admit, and all she wanted was to collapse into her usual routine of being waited on.

"Andrea!" she called out automatically, her voice echoing through the empty foyer. "Bring me some water! And make sure it's ice cold!"

She kicked off her heels and moved toward the living room, expecting to hear the familiar sound of hurried footsteps responding to her command. Instead, silence greeted her.

Where is he? she wondered irritably, glancing around the pristine but empty space.

"Andrea!" she called again, louder this time. "I said bring me water! Don't make me wait!"

Still nothing. No apologetic voice, no rushed movement from the kitchen or upstairs. The villa felt strangely hollow without his presence.

Nikolas limped in behind her, still favoring his bandaged hand. "Sofia, maybe he's still upset about earlier. He might be hiding somewhere, sulking."

Right, the divorce papers, Sofia remembered with a dismissive mental wave. Another one of his dramatic gestures. He's probably locked himself in the guest room, waiting for me to come apologize.

"He's being childish," she said aloud, settling onto the Italian leather sofa. "But we're still legally married. He'll come back when he gets hungry enough."

Nikolas settled beside her, his voice carefully sympathetic. "Sofia, I hope I didn't cause problems between you two. The way he looked at me in the kitchen... it was almost like he hated me."

Nikolas is so considerate, Sofia thought, comparing his gentle concern to what she saw as Andrea's selfish jealousy. He's genuinely worried about my marriage, even after Andrea hurt him.

"He's always been possessive," Sofia said, waving her hand dismissively. "Can't stand it when I show kindness to anyone else. It's exhausting, honestly."

"Maybe..." Nikolas hesitated, as if wrestling with whether to voice his thoughts. "Maybe there's more to it than jealousy. I mean, when I saw him earlier, he had luggage. And now he's disappeared with that woman who rescued him..."

Sofia's head snapped toward him, her eyes narrowing. "What are you implying?"

"I don't want to say anything bad about your husband," Nikolas said carefully, his voice trembling with apparent reluctance. "But it looked like... well, like he might have been planning to leave with her all along. The timing is very suspicious."

Cheating? The word hit Sofia like a slap. Andrea, cheating on me? After everything I've given him?

Rage began building in her chest, hot and vindictive. "That ungrateful bastard. After three years of supporting him, housing him, giving him a comfortable life—he repays me by running off with some random woman?"

"I could be wrong," Nikolas added quickly, though his eyes gleamed with satisfaction at her reaction. "Maybe there's an innocent explanation."

Sofia stood abruptly, her hands clenched into fists. "No, you're right. The signs were all there. His strange behavior today, the calmness when I brought you home, the way he didn't fight about the blood donation."

He was planning this, she realized, her anger turning cold and calculating. He was going to abandon me, just like that. After everything I've done for him.

"I want to check the security footage," she declared, moving toward her home office. "I want to see exactly what happened in that kitchen, and I want to know who that woman really is."

Nikolas' face went pale beneath his carefully maintained expression of concern. If she sees the footage, she'll know I cut myself. She'll see that Andrea never touched me.

"Sofia, wait," he said quickly, struggling to his feet. "Let me help you with that. It's the least I can do after all the trouble I've caused today."

Sofia paused, looking back at him with surprise. "You want to help investigate your own assault?"

"I feel terrible about causing problems in your marriage," Nikolas said, his voice sincere and self-sacrificing. "If reviewing the footage will help clear the air and bring you and Andrea back together, then I want to do whatever I can."

He's so noble, Sofia thought, her heart warming at his selflessness. Even after being hurt, he's trying to help save my marriage. If only Andrea had half of Nikolas' maturity and understanding.

"That's incredibly generous of you, Nikolas," she said, her voice becoming gentle again. "But are you sure you're feeling well enough? Your hand—"

"I'm fine," Nikolas insisted, though he made sure to wince slightly as he moved his bandaged palm. "Besides, I know how the security system works. I can help navigate the footage more efficiently."

Perfect, Nikolas thought with internal satisfaction. As long as I'm the one controlling what she sees, I can edit out the parts that expose my lies. I just need to distract her long enough to delete the relevant footage.

Sofia smiled at him with genuine affection. "You're amazing, Nikolas. Truly. If Andrea had even a fraction of your consideration and loyalty, our marriage would be so much stronger."

As they made their way to the office, Nikolas fought to hide his smirk. Keep praising me, Sofia. The more you compare me favorably to Andrea, the easier this becomes.

He pulled out his phone while Sofia wasn't looking, quickly navigating to the camera app. After ensuring she was distracted organizing files on her computer, he snapped a selfie of himself wearing one of Andrea's pajamas that he had grabbed from the bedroom.

Time for a little psychological warfare, he thought maliciously, typing out a message to accompany the photo.

"Having a wonderful evening with Sofia. About to get some well-deserved rest in your bed. Thanks for making this so easy, Andrea. Don't bother coming back—your spot is permanently filled."

He hit send and immediately deleted the message from his own phone, ensuring no evidence remained of his provocation.

Miles away in the luxurious Konstantinou estate, Andrea was experiencing the first peaceful sleep he'd had in years. The silk sheets and down pillows were incomparably more comfortable than anything in Sofia's villa, but more importantly, he felt safe for the first time in months.

No more walking on eggshells, he thought drowsily as sleep claimed him. No more measuring every word, every action. No more being treated like a servant in my own marriage.

The morning sun filtering through expensive curtains woke him gently. For a moment, he forgot where he was, then the events of the previous day came flooding back—the hospital confrontation, the revelation about his family, the complete transformation of his circumstances.

His phone buzzed with a message notification. Expecting perhaps a update from Maria or the hospital about his grandmother, he opened it casually.

The photo that greeted him made his blood run cold—Nikolas, wearing his own pajamas, lying in what was clearly the master bedroom of Sofia's villa. The accompanying message was designed to wound, to make him jealous and desperate.

But instead of the intended pain, Andrea felt only a weary sort of amusement. He's still playing games. Still trying to provoke me into reacting.

He deleted the message without a second thought and set the phone aside. I have bigger concerns than Nikolas' childish taunts.

Sitting up in the massive four-poster bed, Andrea suddenly realized something important. In his rush to escape the previous day's chaos, he had left behind crucial documents—his passport, birth certificate, and other identification papers that he would need for his new life.

I can't move forward without those documents, he realized. And they're still at Sofia's villa.

He found Maria having breakfast on a sun-drenched terrace overlooking the estate's gardens. She looked up with a warm smile as he approached.

"Good morning, Andrea. Did you sleep well?"

"Better than I have in years," he admitted. "But Maria, I need to ask a favor. I have to return to Sofia's villa today."

Maria's expression immediately became concerned. "Why would you want to go back there?"

"Yesterday, when Sofia had me locked up, I didn't get a chance to collect my personal belongings," Andrea explained. "Most things don't matter, but I need my identification documents—passport, birth certificates, legal papers. I can't start this new life without them."

Maria nodded thoughtfully. "Of course. Those documents are essential. But Andrea, after everything that woman put you through, are you sure you want to face her again so soon?"