Chapter 7: Desire Is Not Love, Love Isn’t Just Desire
Back when she read this scene in the novel, she had giggled like a fool, all kyaa kyaa, oh my god, the tension!
But watching it unfold in real life...
This was straight-up sexual harassment.
However, this was also a crucial moment in the story.
It was their first steamy scene, the start of Evelyn's internal struggle.
On the outside, she acted like she didn't want it, but secretly, she was eating it up.
A consensual non-consent.
It played out like this: Raphael, all smooth and confident, approached Evelyn, but she felt too insecure, too undeserving of his attention. He, meanwhile, was in deep trouble for the whole engagement-announcement-gone-wrong debacle.
He was declaring his undying devotion, his obsession, the earth-shattering intensity of his love.
"You're my world, Evelyn! My everything! My reason for breathing!"
But Evelyn was too insecure to believe any of it and... Raphael didn't handle her low self-esteem so well.