I couldn't move.
I couldn't breathe.
I couldn't even think.
He stood there… watching me.
Like he had been expecting this.
Like everything that just happened was part of some plan I knew nothing about.
My fingers tightened around the phone.
Slowly, he stepped inside.
The door shut behind him with a quiet click.
But it sounded louder than anything else.
Final.
"You shouldn't touch things that don't belong to you."
His voice was calm.
Too calm.
I swallowed hard, forcing myself to speak. "You… you left it."
A lie.
And we both knew it.
His eyes dropped briefly to the phone in my hand.
Then back to me.
"Did I?"
My heart pounded.
Loud.
Fast.
Uncontrollable.
"I didn't mean to read it," I said quickly. "It just lit up and"
"And you got curious."
He finished my sentence for me.
There was no anger in his voice.
That scared me more.
"I'm sorry," I whispered.
Silence.
Then he started walking toward me.
Slow.
Measured.
Terrifying.
Every instinct in my body screamed at me to run.
But my feet refused to move.
"Read it," he said.
I blinked. "What?"
"The message."
"I already"
"Read it again."
My hands trembled slightly as I lifted the phone.
My voice came out barely steady.
"…The target is the girl at the café. Don't miss this time."
The words felt heavier the second time.
More real.
More dangerous.
I lowered the phone slowly.
"Am I…" I hesitated. "Am I the target?"
He didn't answer immediately.
Instead, he stopped right in front of me.
Too close.
Close enough for me to see the tiny scar near his eyebrow.
Close enough to feel the heat of his body.
Close enough to realize
This man was not normal.
"That depends," he said quietly.
"On what?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.
"On whether you're useful to me… or not."
My stomach dropped.
"I don't understand."
"You don't need to."
His gaze hardened slightly.
"A girl who sees something she wasn't meant to see…" he continued. "That usually ends one way."
A chill ran through me.
"And what way is that?"
His lips curved slightly.
Not a smile.
Something darker.
"Dead."
The word hit me like a slap.
I took a step back instantly.
"Wait please, I won't tell anyone, I swear"
"You won't have the chance to," he cut in.
My chest tightened.
Panic started rising.
Sharp. Fast. Suffocating.
"Then why am I still alive?" I asked, my voice shaking.
For a moment, he just looked at me.
Really looked at me.
Like he was studying every reaction.
Every breath.
Every flicker of fear.
Then
Something shifted.
Not softer.
Just… different.
"That," he said slowly, "is what I'm deciding."
My pulse raced.
His hand suddenly lifted.
I flinched.
But instead of hurting me…
He brushed a strand of hair away from my face.
The touch was gentle.
Too gentle.
It made no sense.
"Congratulations," he murmured.
My heart skipped.
"For what?" I whispered.
His eyes locked onto mine.
Dark. Intense. Possessive.
"You just became my problem."
My breath caught.
"I'm not going anywhere with you," I said quickly, even though my voice lacked confidence.
That amused him.
I saw it in the slight tilt of his head.
In the way his eyes darkened.
"You think this is a choice?" he asked quietly.
Fear crawled up my spine.
"I have a life," I said. "I have a job, I "
"You had a life."
The correction was soft.
But final.
Before I could react, his hand closed around my wrist.
Firm.
Unyielding.
My heart slammed against my chest.
"Let go of me"
"Run," he said suddenly.
I froze.
"What?"
"Run," he repeated.
Confusion flickered through my fear.
"If you can make it out that door…" his voice dropped slightly, almost like a challenge, "…you're free."
My breath hitched.
Was he serious?
My eyes darted to the door.
Then back to him.
He let go of my wrist.
Just like that.
One chance.
One opportunity.
My survival instinct kicked in.
And I ran.
I didn't think.
I didn't look back.
I just ran straight for the door, my heart pounding wildly in my chest.
I reached for the handle,
Hope flared.
Freedom.
I was so close,
A hand slammed against the door before I could open it.
Trapping me.
A gasp escaped my lips.
His body pressed behind mine.
Caging me in.
"Too slow," he murmured against my ear.
My entire body went still.
Fear.
Heat.
Confusion.
All at once.
"I told you," he whispered, his grip tightening slightly on the door beside my head.
"You're mine now."