The week passed, and the dark thoughts crept back into Lina's mind. Despite the warm conversations with Lukas, the shadows that enveloped her remained like a constant companion. She tried to hold on to the positive moments, but the heavy clouds of depression were persistent and wouldn't be easily dispelled.
Max, who had since sought more contact with Lina, didn't seem to be doing any better. He was often lost in thought, worrying about everything. His conversations had an undertone of despair that Lina couldn't ignore. She knew he was battling his own demons, and it frightened her.
One evening, as Lina sat alone in her room, reflecting on the events of the past few weeks, she received a message from Max.
"Hey, I feel like I can't hold on much longer. I can't take all this anymore. I'm going to visit the building where we used to go. Maybe this is the end for me."
Lina's heart sank as she read the words. The thought that Max was considering such a desperate step made her throat tighten. She immediately wrote back: "Please don't! You mustn't give up. You're not alone. Let's talk, I can help you!"
Max didn't answer immediately, and the minutes seemed to stretch into an eternity. Lina felt helpless and knew she couldn't ignore him. She had to do something.
Meanwhile, Tom, a friend of Max's, was also concerned about Max's condition. He had noticed Max withdrawing and was trying to reach him. Tom was willing to do anything to stop Max from harming himself.
Lina threw on her jacket and hurriedly left the house, heading for the building Max had mentioned. The walk there felt endless, but the thought of Max's pain drove her on. She had to find him and make him understand there was hope.
When she arrived at the building, she saw Tom desperately calling for Max. "Max! Where are you? Come on! Let's talk!"
Lina called his name too, but it was as if darkness swallowed everything. Suddenly, they heard a noise above them—it was Max, standing on the edge of the roof.
"Max, please! Come down!" cried Lina, her voice trembling with fear.
Max looked down, his eyes filled with tears and despair. "I can't take it anymore, Lina. It's too much!"
At that moment, Tom stepped forward and tried to approach him. "Max, we can help you! You just have to trust us!"
As Max stepped back to listen to Tom, he unfortunately stepped on a loose stone and lost his balance. In a desperate attempt to save him, Tom leaped forward to catch him, but it was too late. Both fell from the roof, and Lina screamed loudly as she saw the horrific scene unfold before her eyes.
The minutes that followed were chaotic. Ambulances and police cars arrived, and the crowd around the building began to murmur and speculate about what had just happened. Max was quickly found and taken out alive, but Tom remained unconscious.
A few days later, after the investigation, Max was deemed responsible for Tom's death. It was a tragic accident, but the circumstances and his previous message made it difficult to believe him.
The police arrested him, and despite his claims that it was an accident, he was arrested for Tom's murder. Lina could hardly believe what had happened. She felt as if the whole world was shattering around her. Max, trapped in his own darkness, was now pushed even further into the shadows, and the last shreds of hope seemed to crumble.
Max was eventually sentenced to 20 years in prison, a verdict that only intensified the tragedy of her story. In a moment of despair and searching for help, he was the one who now had to pay for the consequences of a terrible accident. Lina felt guilty, as if she hadn't been quick enough to stop him. The pain and feeling of powerlessness remained as a constant reminder of the reality she lived in.
The darkness that seemed to overwhelm her again and again only became more oppressive. And while Max was trapped in the isolation of prison, Lina wasn't far from continuing her own battle against the shadows.
The days following the incident with Tom dragged on like thick syrup. Lina felt as if she were trapped in an endless nightmare. The pain and guilt over Max's imprisonment gnawed at her while the world around her moved on. But deep inside her, a different kind of pain was growing—a mixture of disappointment and despair that turned into a dark obsession.
With each passing day, Lukas seemed more unattainable. His pity infuriated her, and the way he tried to help her felt like another needle prick in her already bruised heart. Thoughts of Lukas overwhelmed her, leaving no room for anything else. She wanted his attention, his approval—and most of all, she wanted him to see her as she truly was: vulnerable, yet strong in her own pain.
She began to stalk him. At first, it was only small steps—watching him from a distance whenever he entered the café where they had first met. She wanted to see how he interacted with other people, wanted to understand what made him smile and what made him cry. When he was around, her heart broke with longing and disappointment, for she felt the distance between them that she couldn't bridge.
But over time, her obsession grew. She began to search for him wherever she could. She found out where he worked and made sure she was there when he was. She wanted to know how he spent his time, who he talked to, and what he was interested in. It was a game in which she had control over everything while simultaneously being trapped in her own darkness.
One evening, as she sat in a darkened corner of the café, she saw Lukas talking to another woman. A sting of jealousy pierced her heart. It was like a slap in the face, and the urge to show him how much she wanted him became overwhelming. Angry thoughts raced through her head—she had to prove to him that she was the only one who could help him.
Over the next few weeks, Lina intensified her actions. She began leaving small gifts on his doorstep—a mug with a personalized message, a bound notebook full of quotes she chose for him herself. She wanted him to notice that she was there, that she was watching him, and that she wouldn't give up.
But the closer she got to him, the more he seemed to withdraw. The pitying glances he gave her drove her crazy. She was no longer the broken girl he'd once known—she wanted him to see how strong she'd become, even if only in her own eyes.
The loneliness and the depths of her soul consumed her as she tried to manipulate Lukas without letting him see it. She began spinning stories about her "friendship" with Max to gain his sympathy. "It's so hard to process all of this. Max was my last hope, and now... now I feel so lost."
Lukas was shocked by the intensity of her words. He wanted to help her, but at the same time, he was confused by her obsession. The connection between them became increasingly toxic, and as Lina lost herself in her darkness, Lukas became trapped in her obsession.
One night, as she sent him another message, telling him about her feelings, she was determined to reach him. "Lukas, I can't live without you anymore. You're the only one who can help me. Please, let's talk about everything."
Lukas didn't know he'd fallen into the clutches of someone willing to do anything to win his love. Lina was determined to make him her only source of hope, no matter how far she had to go.
The shadow of her past seemed to haunt her as she plunged into a dangerous game of manipulation. But in her heart, she knew she couldn't give up—not now.
The silence in Lina's room was drowned out by the roaring thoughts that raged like a storm in her head. It was an eerie quiet she couldn't bear. She'd been so engrossed in her obsession with Lukas lately that she'd repeatedly ignored the small, quiet voice inside her that was saying something. But now she couldn't look away any longer.
When she woke up that morning, she felt a tug in her stomach. The sensation was strange and unsettling, and she knew something was wrong. After the initial shock, realization came, and she was immediately aware of what it meant. Memories of the night with Max flashed through her mind—the sadness, the disappointment, and the temporary escape from reality. The thought that she might be pregnant with him made her heart stop for a moment.
With trembling hands, she reached for her phone and searched for information. She had heard of others in similar situations, and the Google search for "pregnancy test" felt like a slap in the face. Lina fought back the tears as she mentally ran through the options. She couldn't believe her life was continuing to deteriorate like this.
The next few hours were torture. She felt as if she were trapped in a fog. Finally, she took the plunge and bought a pregnancy test. The walk to the pharmacy was a nightmare – every step felt like wading through a swamp of fear and shame.
When she finally got home and took the test, she closed her eyes and silently prayed it was just a mistake. But the minutes passed agonizingly slowly, and when she finally dared to look, her heart sank. Two pink lines. It was clear and distinct—she was pregnant.
The realization made her collapse. She sank to the floor of her bathroom and let the tears flow freely. What would she do now? Thoughts of Max, of her fleeting night, seemed to crush her. She had not only endangered her love for Lukas, but also her own life.
Despair overcame her as she lost herself in her own chaos. Would she keep the child? What would Lukas think when he found out? And what about Max? There was no way out of this nightmare—every thought seemed to pull her deeper into the darkness she desperately tried to escape.
Another blow hit her: What if, in this state, she was no longer able to reach Lukas? Would she ever have a chance to show him how strong she was, carrying this additional burden?
Lina knew she had to make a decision, but the pressure on her was overwhelming. Amidst her emotional turmoil, a desperate plan stirred within her, a way to regain control of her life. Perhaps she could win Lukas and resolve the situation with Max at the same time. But how would she do that?
With a foreboding resolve in her heart and the realization that nothing would ever be the same again, she finally rose from the ground. She would talk to Lukas, ask him for help, and somehow she would get the situation under control. But deep down, she knew the path she had chosen would change everything. And with that decision, the shadow of Max rising within her could no longer be ignored.
The news spread like wildfire, and Lina could hardly believe what she was hearing. Max had escaped from the psychiatric hospital. He had not only regained his freedom, but had also left a trail of horror in his wake. Within a few days, he had murdered five people. Lina felt like she was in a nightmare from which there was no escape.
She had followed the reports of the gruesome acts, each new article a further slap in the face. The details were shocking: One of the men had been beheaded, while another had been brutally hacked to death. The images Lina saw in her mind's eye made her blood run cold. She knew that Max wasn't just mentally broken; he had become a real threat.
In a moment of unease, Lina no longer felt haunted only by the darkness of her own thoughts, but also by the eerie shadow Max now cast over her. The idea that he might be nearby frightened her. The image of Max stepping out into the world with his manipulative smile and sick thoughts terrified her.
As she thought about this, the thought occurred to her that Max might find her too. What if he came to her for revenge or simply to assert his control over her? She'd been through enough, but now the danger felt more real than ever. She could no longer focus on Lukas, no longer on the love she felt for him, while the image of Max became ever more present.
Lina found it difficult to concentrate as she tried to carry on with her daily life. The pressure Max put on her seemed to rob her of all hope. She couldn't stop thinking about him, what he had done, and what he might still do. The idea that Max was capable of killing so many people was shocking. How far was he willing to go?
Lina knew she had to do something. She couldn't stand idly by while Max wreaked chaos and destruction on the world. The thought of him not being held accountable for his actions infuriated her. A plan brewed inside her—she had to talk to Lukas, tell him everything. Maybe he could help her, maybe he could give her the strength she so desperately needed.
But deep down, Lina knew Lukas wasn't safe either. What if Max took out his anger on Lukas? The thought made her shiver. She couldn't ignore the connection between them any longer. Max, Lukas and she – their fates were intertwined in a disastrous way.
Fear constricted her throat as she clung to the thought that she could no longer hide. She had to face her reality before it was too late. Max was no longer the vulnerable child she once knew; he was now a monster lurking in the darkness. And she would do anything to protect herself and the people she loved.
The decision was made: She had to meet with Lukas, confess everything, and make him understand that the danger was closer than she thought.
Max's actions left not only a trail of blood and destruction, but also a disturbing message. Under every crime scene where he struck down his victims, he left the words: "I love Lina." This message sent a shiver down Lina's spine and simultaneously made her sink in fear and horror. What did this mean to her? Was it a warning, a threat, or simply a sign of his troubled love?
The police were in a state of panic. The media pounced on the grotesque twist in this tragedy. Lina's name was suddenly everywhere. While the population was terrified, Max's love turned into a terrible nightmare. Lina felt haunted by him and at the same time helplessly at his mercy. She could no longer imagine a future without Max's shadow hovering over her.
The police intensified their search for Max, and Lina found herself increasingly caught in a vortex of panic and confusion. The shocking reports on the news seemed to repeat themselves more and more. "Another crime scene, another horror," they said. And beneath each body, the same message: "I love Lina." It was as if Max was playing his psychotic game with her, a game she had never wanted.
It was clear that Max wouldn't just stop. The question wasn't if he would strike again, but when. Lina's mind swirled. What did he want from her? Had he ever truly loved her, or was this just another part of his manipulation?
Lina knew she couldn't wait any longer. She had to find Lukas before it was too late. She had to tell him what Max was doing and warn him that he could be a target. But where was Lukas in all this chaos? Had he heard about the crimes? Was he safe?
Thoughts of Lukas drove her on. She felt she absolutely had to reach him before Max could. It was only a matter of time before the two met—and she couldn't let Lukas become the next on Max's list.
In a desperate decision, Lina reached for her cell phone. She knew she had to send a message, but she trembled with fear as she touched the keys. Finally, she gave up and called Lukas directly. Her heart raced as she waited for him to answer. Every moment seemed to drag on as she tried to collect her thoughts.
"Lukas, I need you," she said when he finally answered. Her voice was strained and shaky. "There's something you need to know. It's important."