#katiny07

You stared down at your empty basket, the sudden wave of disappointment evident on your face. All of the effort needed for sneaking out of your estate and disobeying your curfew to search for a late night snack because of the strict diets your family put you through was now just a waste. You sighed; maybe this is a sign from the universe to stop sneaking out at night, the thought crossed your mind. The defeated look you carried on your face glanced up at the older merchant.

“I understand…” You bowed your head down before you began to walk away, giving the merchant one last solemn look. The farther you walked, the more your stomach craved yakitori: the yakitori that was sold for a price so low that it was almost offensive, and the yakitori that tasted better than any course that was fed to you to maintain your figure. This yakitori was a staple in your diet that preceded any sleep that your parents assumed you were getting.

Walking home with an empty stomach and an empty basket could almost be as bad as your sneaking habits being discovered by your father. Normally when you snuck out, you would be loaded with sweet and savory goods that you couldn’t get anywhere else. The yakitori from Mrs. Ogura was the cherry on top that made the late night runs so special. Except tonight was unique, where it seemed that a crowd before you had already swept the goods before you could even make it.

As you continued the disappointing trek home, you fell upon a fork in the road. Two pathways that lead you home were presented. The quiet lane, as you called it, was the path you normally took. It was a path that cut through residential buildings for commoners and other vendors. Except this time, the quiet lane was far from quiet; a crowd had gathered around to witness what appeared to be a dispute between two men. You glanced over to the other path; it gave a shorter journey back home and less people to potentially recognize you and your status. Normally it would be an easy decision on where you should go, but this shorter path was home to the Red Light District, a place you had no business being in. You watched older men stumble into brothels and soaphouses while there were women who drew customers in with just a quick glance and wink. You glanced at the quiet lane, now showing no signs of deescalation, and then glanced back at the Red Light District. As if your shoulders couldn’t slump any deeper, you sighed and walked away from the quiet lane.

Keep your head down, don’t make eye contact with anyone, you repeated those affirmations in your head as your eyes were glued onto the uneven, maroon pavement. It’ll be easy to avoid confrontation with people here since it’s not like these workers force you into prostitution. That is what you kept telling yourself at least; you could feel stares burning onto your passing slumped figure. You were moving as fast as your getas could muster, but the uphill road seemed to have not seen renovation in decades. 

The tension in your body withered slowly as the hike continued. You heard a few whistles and calls, but none of them were directed to you. One by one, the clients that were once walking the same road as you were beginning to thin out and disperse into buildings. You were now alone, or so you thought. Your head was lifted up from the ground and continued to walk the trail that appeared to be coming to an end. What you didn’t see was one last stare from afar burning onto you.

“Care to join me, pretty bird?”

Those words echoed through the empty road. You nearly halted in your tracks, turning your attention to the source of that echo. This was different from the other interactions you had heard previously; you were sure this time that this voice was directed at you. 

Your eyes finally fell on a man standing near a dimly lit alleyway; his feathery, long, ebony hued hair encaged his face as he leaned on the corner of the building. The dark gaze he held on you peered through the wisps of his hair and the vibrantly colored fan he kept over most of his face. You drew your head away from the man and continued your stride back home. You had already made the mistake of looking at him, being temporarily entranced by his alluring gaze, so it was best not to answer him. You may not have heard him speaking again, but you felt his eyes back on you once more. 

The walk out of the district was over soon; you still had over ten minutes left of your journey to complete before you finally reached your estate. However, the man you had encountered had lingered in your mind far longer than you liked to admit. Perhaps it was because you were intrigued by the idea of a man doing work like that, or perhaps it was because of the gaze he held with you and how you were ashamed to admit that it made your heart pause in the moment. He was quite the opulent man, the thought crossed your mind. You shook your head at the thought; you weren’t the type of person to engage in such activity with a random. Especially with someone with status such as yours. How would your family deal with you if they found out that their royal bloodline could have been potentially tainted by a district worker? 

The rest of the walk home was silent; you successfully managed to return to your room without anyone alerted of your presence. The thoughts you once had about the man you encountered were then pushed away as your empty stomach begged you for the food you had failed to acquire. It was then that you remembered that the next day you had promised your cousin that you would go shopping for jewels with her. Maybe then I can find a food vendor, you pondered to yourself as you felt your eyes drift into slumber.

Growing up with Hime made your childhood more bearable; Hime wasn’t like a best friend, but she was someone who served a valuable purpose to you. Unlike the other women of your class rank and your other cousins, Hime was someone who never seemed to be facetious even if it was just around you. No glaring after everything you said, no snickering behind your back, just a girl who wanted to share her life with you.

And that is what today was. 

Your voyages at night greatly differed from your day appearances. Expensive kimonos, extravagant eye makeup, and neatly tied hair went to cheap yukatas you secretly purchased and loosely tied strands of hair shielding your eyes. In the bright and early afternoon, the same street vendors you visited at night were making sales to common folk and the wealthy. You walked alongside your cousin as she went on and on about some topic that you couldn’t quite remember at the moment. Revisiting the same road you were once at last night made you think about the prostitute you encountered. His sharp, striking eyes making eye contact with you failed to escape your head. 

“Are you even listening to me, y/n?”

The sound of Hime’s voice cut through your thoughts like a blade.

“Ah- I apologize,” your startled voice stammered as you quickly turned your head over to her. 

Hime glanced over to you with a slight frown. “If I’m boring you out, just tell me…”

“No no, there’s no need for that- I mean, you’re fine. I was just distracted by something…” You trailed off. Hime sighed as you both stopped at a jewelry vendor.

Hime continued as she examined the various ear pieces displayed in front of you both, “What were you distracted by? Better be more interesting than me rejecting Hikaru for the fifth time…” She began to briefly speak with the merchant as she waited for you to explain. You couldn’t tell her that you’ve been sneaking out almost every night to get food, and you certainly couldn’t talk to her about the alluring prostitute you encountered last night. 

You cleared your throat, “Just… thinking about what’s for dinner tonight…” Thankfully, Hime was too invested into the jewelry she was examining for her to even question the validity of what you said. 

“Mhm…oh, yes! I think blue suits my skin tone quite well too!” Hime looked over to you and spoke, “You said you’re thinking about dinner? Would you care to join me tonight? I believe the menu tonight is being prepared by a foreign chef. I believe he is from an empire in the west. You might enjoy it!” 

“Actually, I’d quite enjoy that. I’ll be returning home with you then,” the idea of eating western cuisine, something you didn’t do often, enticed you. You spoke with a faint grin in anticipation. 

Hime had continued to speak to you about Hikaru, the man who had been trying for months to get her attention, while you assessed which jewel aesthetically complemented her the best. You had managed to get the man out of your head now, likely only because your cousin put another man into your head to think about. 

You glanced around the market place to assess the scene; commoners were the majority of the crowd present. Many families, adolescents, and lone figures were seen either selling their goods or purchasing others. You didn’t get much time to observe people since you were either cooped up in your estate or avoiding attention from others in your nightly escapades. Watching people in their most authentic state wasn’t an activity you got to practice very often; whether it would be within your family or at the various events you are required to attend, frequently you notice people putting on their best mask to appeal to others. However, with common folk, you could appreciate seeing them interact without thinking they are putting on a performance for others to believe.

Your gaze was beginning to return back to Hime until you caught the gaze of someone in the crowd. A man. A man was briefly watching you until he turned around and engaged with a vendor. His back was facing you now, but you felt an uncomfortable familiarity with him. You couldn’t recall the exact image of his face, but the vague glimpse you caught of his eyes were enough to send a shiver down your spine. Observing his back, you saw the grey striped yukata he wore with his black hair falling on his shoulders. It can’t be him, you thought to yourself as you watched him idly. 

You couldn’t even break your gaze off of him. He didn’t pose a threat to you or anyone in the area, so why are you worrying so hard?

“y/n~”

“y/n.”

“y/n!”

The sound of Hime calling out your name once more shook you back into reality. You flinched and glanced back down to her, muttering a quick apology.

“Is everything okay?” Her eyebrows furrowed up as her frown deepened. “You seem a little absent today…”

“I’m sorry, I just got distracted by a vendor over there. Uh, we should visit that one next!” The excuse you made up was enough to convince Hime, which was enough for you. You waited for a few more minutes so she could purchase her jewelry, checking your back every now and then to see if the man had looked over at you again. But yet, he was standing still, conversing with the same merchant.

It probably wasn’t him then, you sighed as you began to walk with Hime to search for another vendor. As you made your way down the street, you made conversation with her once again while your eyes scanned the crowd. When you passed him, your gaze made its way back to him for the final time. There he was, idly stationed, bargaining what seemed to be a yukata with the vendor. You sighed, perhaps this was all nothing, you managed to calm yourself down as you continued to walk with your oblivious cousin. Even if it was him, he would have never recognized me with this look, you assured yourself.

What you failed to realize, was that same burning stare from earlier came back to look at you one final time. 

The marketplace had called back to you just a few nights later. This time, you had made sure to sneak out earlier, so you could obtain Mrs. Ogura’s yakitori, among other goods from other vendors, before it ran out. The usual twenty minute walk was condensed with your enthusiasm and energy. 

Once you had set foot onto the main street, you bounced from vendor to vendor to acquire all of the treats you had daydreamed about since the last late night journey.  Though you had arrived at the busiest time of the night, you had managed to gather all of the treats your mouth had been salivating for. Even the fresh yakitori, which you were now eating as you made your way back home, was readily available for you to enjoy.

With the yakitori skewers in one hand and your woven basket in the other, you walked down the main road, more joyfully than usual, to prepare your journey home. It wasn’t until you ran upon the fork in the road once more. The quiet lane, the path you usually took to go home, was occupied by samurai policing the street. The halt in your steps came as quickly as the disappointment; walking down a road occupied by samurai was dangerous for you, the niece of a powerful shogun in the region. It appears that the altercation that took place many nights ago had prompted samurai presence in the area. You stared down the quiet lane before you groaned to yourself, spinning on the heel of your feet and making your way towards the district.

If the uphill road and the cheap, stiff getas you were wearing didn’t exist, perhaps you would’ve gotten home quicker. The street had gathered more clients than the previous night which made navigating up the road more challenging than it already had been. You struggled to keep your head held down due to you still feasting on the fresh yakitoris. You were down to your last skewer, making your way through most of the district. The drunk men on the street that stumbled their way into soaphouses were thinning out, leaving just you alone on the street - or so you had thought.

“I’ve missed you, pretty bird.”

The sound of the familiar, delicate voice of him. The unmistakable voice you had heard days ago. The sound of his voice did not startle you much despite the shiver it caused; if that, the sound made you walk at a quicker pace. It seemed to have been working, until you heard his strides follow behind you.

“Those cheap clothes don’t fool me.”

“I know who you are.”

The simplicity of his statement made you halt. You whipped your head back to face the prostitute, who now dropped his fan from his face. In the eyes, he resembled the same man you witnessed watching you briefly at the market. Of course that was the same man, your thoughts raced across your head. Your secret identity had been figured out so easily, by a man you’ve never talked to at that. 

All that could be heard in the street was your uneven breathing and the panic settling in. It seemed to be apparent to the man, as he slowly stepped closer to you, still maintaining his distance.

“I’m right, aren’t I?” The question slipped off his tongue like silk. The gaze his eyes carried was striking, but still held a level of softness to it that almost made you want to give up your guard around him. The softness in his eyes completely contrasted the faint, but mischievous grin he kept on his face. You stared at him and contemplated your next action. Lying was stupid; he was so sure of himself that it would take physical evidence for you to prove otherwise. Either way, his gaze almost seemed hypnotizing, like every action you did under his watch was under his command.

“Never fear, pretty bird. I mean no harm to you…” He took one gentle step closer to you with the same expression plastered on his face.

“Then how could I possibly be of service to you? I’m not interested in what you’re selling.” You managed to tell him, taking a small step back. “In fact, I was just on my way home.” You watched him cock his head to the left, intrigued by your resistance.

“You surely don’t act like it. There's got to be a reason we have met for the third time this week.” 

You gulped. As you were choosing what words to speak next, he had already beat you to it.

“You don’t think I don’t see the way you look at me?” A step closer. “Or that I see you’re starting to frequent this side of the city,” you avoided his stare on you as you felt your figure being scanned.

“It’s…it’s complicated,” you took a pause. “And frankly, none of your business.” 

And with that, you spun on your heels and began to walk away, hoping that would’ve been the last encounter you had with him. As you walked, you heard more footsteps behind you. This time, they seemed to grow heavier, like he was trying to catch up quickly.

“If you’re worried about me exposing your little secret, don’t,” he started suddenly, his tone coming across as more serious. 

“I’m not concerned with that.” 

You paused in your tracks again and turned around to face him. There he was with that smirk gone off of his face, showing a glimpse of vulnerability and empathy from a man you had just met. However, with his next statement, that vulnerability would be gone.

“However, I won’t lie and say it doesn’t intrigue me at all,” he eyed you up and down once more, his sly smirk returning fuller.

“I told you I’m not interested. I’m not sure why you’re still so stuck on me. Don’t you have other clients to attend to?” You took another step back which was followed by a subsequent step forward from the man. You didn’t feel fear around him, but rather you felt uncertainty brewing in your stomach. Uncertainty was brewed from your unfamiliarity with him and a secret, dwelling feeling that you couldn’t describe. 

Silence fell upon the man for a second before he smirked down at you. A step closer he took, staying nearly an arm’s distance away.

“It’s not uncommon for me to do services with wealthy men and women alike. But you…” you’ve never seen a stare so soft yet so intense. Perhaps it was the way he paused his sentence to read your face like an open book. Perhaps it was the way the mystery behind this man was almost enticing. 

“I’ve never met someone so resistant, yet so willing,” a silence fell upon you and him. You could feel your eyebrows furrow at the ridiculousness of his statement. Of course he was being delusional, you were everything but willing. Who did this guy think he was? Or perhaps you felt called out and read thoroughly. Regardless, the scoff you let out shortly after made him raise an eyebrow.

“Don’t flatter yourself too much. I’m only down here so I don’t get caught in those street patrols,” you nudged your head over to the direction of the quiet lane with the man’s head also following.

“Ah, you’re only visiting me because of that…” disappointedly he sighed before you opened his eyes back to you, a smirk returning to his face.

“But, still doesn’t explain why you’re still here talking to me. You could’ve just…left, yes?” You didn’t even have to look at him to see the smug expression he so pridefully carried. 

And with the final furrow of your eyebrow, you spun around again and stormed off away from him with a groan under your breath. This time, you didn’t hear him follow you, nor did you hear a call back to you.

“You’re delusional,” you told him one final time, already taking off.

What he couldn’t see was the rosy blush that crept up to your face or the brisk biting of your bottom lip. What you couldn’t see, however, was his menacing smirk growing heavier on his walk back down to his alley. 

You contemplated never sneaking out again; the quiet lane was occupied by samurai forces each night you went out, no matter what time of the day. Mrs. Ogura had told you that the altercation a few nights ago was between a now wanted man and an officer. If you couldn’t walk down the quiet lane then, you certainly couldn’t walk down now. Of course, this meant that your interactions with the man were almost inevitable. With every time you wanted to go get extra food so you didn’t fall asleep hungry, there was another appearance of him; or so, you assumed.

On your third interaction with him, you had told yourself to walk past him and to not give him the attention he wanted. In fact, you had rehearsed it in your head several times with each rehearsal resulting in you getting the last word.

Except when you actually walked past him again, you found yourself in the same predicament as before: stopped in the middle of the road and arguing with him. In the end, he got the last word. The last thing you remembered before you once again stormed off was the stupid, sly grin he always carried and his eyes piercing directly into you. 

That night, his eyes were all you thought about; you had never seen eyes like his before. A stare down like his made it increasingly uncomfortable for you to sleep at night. It was almost like he saw through you entirely. Such as the things inside of you that you were too scared to admit. But of course, you weren’t craving to see him again, you thought. It’s normal to think about someone at night when they keep finding you, right? 

And so the inevitable happened that night: he appeared in your dreams. Of course, it was normal to briefly imagine being suggestive scenarios with a sex worker you kept seeing on accident. Especially if he keeps insinuating such, what else could you do about that? Of course images of him hovered above you with his hair sticking to the sweat coating your face flashed in this dream, no, this nightmare that occurred. Of course, auditory hallucinations of him telling you how much of a good girl you were occurred. And of course, imagines of him completely nude and having you encased in his arms occurred. This was completely normal for you to imagine, of course, because he had been harassing you for some days now. It had nothing to do with any feeling you potentially held towards him, at least that is what you kept telling yourself.

Yet, despite everything, the following night, you went out again. Most of the vendors ran out of food and Mrs. Ogura ran out of her yakitori once again. However, you couldn’t recall feeling as upset as you did nearly a week ago. Annoyed and hungry? Yes, but it was probably because you didn’t feel like going outside that night. Yet, there you were, walking down the district path once more. 

You had walked down the path, almost reaching the end, until you paused your steps. The street was desolate and almost bleak. Turning around, you had seen only some older men stammering around and some women through the windows of the buildings. Instinctively, you had made your way down the road, glancing down every alleyway that you passed. It didn’t take long for you to finally reach the alley that the man usually resided in. In the middle of the road you then stood, aimlessly looking for that man. Naturally, you grew accustomed to his usual harassment and pestering. It wasn’t that you missed it, you were just thrown off by the lack of his voice and the absent feeling of being watched.

Your eyes then fell on a window above you. Inside the dimly lit room, a silhouette was vaguely visible. Despite that, you knew exactly what you were looking at: the silhouette of a man, the man, through the window. Vaguely, you could make out him putting his yukata back on his bare body and his hair flown down and resting on his shoulders. On the ground, a woman emerges from the building with her hair tangled and her own yukata being loose, as if she was just putting it back on.

When the woman walked away from you, your eyes trailed back up to the window. Unexpectedly, your eyes met his face, the man in the window. Despite the lack of light present outside and inside the building, you knew it was the same man from before. The man that had always tried to get your attention. You spun on your heels and resumed your trek home before you could meet his eyes or before he could have the chance to come outside to meet you. 

The rest of the walk home, a gut wrenching feeling resided within you. Suddenly, in that moment, you wished that Mrs. Ogura didn’t run out of yakitoris so that your usual night run wasn’t completely useless. The idea that your interactions with the man made somewhat of a positive impact on your night was simply untrue. You weren’t disappointed seeing him do his job as a prostitute with another person. You obviously knew how he made his money, that was never a secret to you; so why did your body react the way that it did? You were so sure that your gut wrenching feeling only lingered for so long because you had an empty stomach. Of course, it was your fault for not coming out earlier to grab the skewers. 

That night, you remained restless. It was because you were hungry, you thought. You continued to blame yourself for not visiting Mrs. Ogura earlier. You knew better than to sneak out nearly thirty minutes after your usual time. This has been the second time you returned home with an empty basket, yet, this feeling, this hunger, was far worse than the first.

For the next few days, you were content with falling asleep hungry. You didn’t sneak out as much as you did in the week prior. You convinced yourself that talking with that man again was bad for you, as everything he did, or didn’t do drove you insane. Perhaps it was time to acknowledge you began to enjoy his company, which was dangerous. You weren’t sexually attracted to him, no, you were just developing a platonic bond with him, which is normal for someone as isolated from the world as you.

It wasn’t until this night, where the idea of falling asleep hungry was unbearable. Having such a strict diet like yours was finally getting to you. Your sleep prolonged throughout the day and you were getting exhausted much quicker. You found yourself back at the market street again, standing in front of Mrs. Ogura’s stand, with another empty basket. Not even a yakitori from her; once again, you were too late. 

The walk up the district path was humiliating for you, even if no one else there was paying attention to you. The growl of your stomach combined with your tiredness made you come to an executive decision. Despite the risks, you decided to eat out in a restaurant, a place guaranteed to have food. You knew a place that was nearby; however, it was quicker to reach there by walking through the district. 

Towards the end of the path, you came to realize that the man was nowhere to be found. Saves myself from the embarrassment, you thought as the memories of you nearly encountering him naked after a session with a client came into your head. However, you couldn’t help but feel an unsettling feeling fester in your stomach, like this was all an unfortunate thing. Nonsense, you thought to yourself, you should be glad that you’re alone right now.

It was almost like you had spoken too soon.

“Long time, no see, pretty bird.”

The familiar whisper brushed up against your ear from behind. Suddenly, you were hyperaware of your surroundings; the man had been walking behind you, attempting to catch up to you just so he could mess with you by whispering up against your ear. You would never admit it, but his attempt in making you flustered worked. Though, you wouldn’t have to verbally admit anything, because the cover of your mouth with your free hand and your surprised face being red following your sharp turn to face him was already enough to make him tease you.

“Awe, did I scare you?” His voice was sweet and comforting, yet it carried an underlying vexatious tone. 

“Wha- what are you doing?!” You stuttered, dropping your hand from your mouth. You felt your tense shoulders drop finally, a sigh escaping your mouth.

You finally caught a look at his face. He looked like he wasn’t currently working as all of his excess makeup was absent from his eyes. The colorful yukatas he once championed were replaced with the dull, cheap yukatas that the general population wore. His hair encased his dark, olive-toned face, just like in the first time you met him. The same sly look on his face was still present; you just knew he enjoyed the sight of you flustered at any given moment, and that bothered you.

“I’m not working today. If anything, I was preparing to go home. But then, I saw you turn on this road.” He stepped closer to you, placing his hand on your shoulder. “If you missed me so badly, you should’ve said something earlier…” You immediately brushed his hand off of your shoulder and sneered at him.

“It’s not about you, I was just searching for food at the market down there…” 

“I see then. Is that what you do every time I see you?” He gave a quick glance down at your empty basket. 

“Doesn’t seem to be successful everytime.” 

You heard him chuckle at you; your eyes rolled at his teasing before you spun around and began to walk without him. Expectedly, you heard him catch up to you, now walking with you side by side.

“Are you returning home now?” You heard the curiosity in his voice. You decided to not answer him, hoping he would finally leave after he gets bored of you. You continued the walk uphill with the man lingering with you. You could feel his gaze scan all over you again, perhaps trying to read you. You kept your head low, so you wouldn’t have to give him that satisfaction of him seeing you submissive and nervous because of him. 

“If you don’t respond, I’ll just follow you back to your estate. I don’t think your family will enjoy you bringing home a pro-”

“I’ll give you whatever you want if you promise you’ll leave me alone after!” You, normally timid and a pushover, finally snapped. It was like he knew exactly how to get under your skin, and you hated that. You paused in the middle of the road and stared up at him. Watching down at you, you saw his smirk widen at your outburst. It was like he found enjoyment in nearly everything you did, even if it was you showing genuine distaste for him.

“Anything, you say?” The suggestive tone in his voice indicated something far from what you were considering. With your face flushed an even darker maroon, you responded.

“I’m not going to ask for one of your services!” You scolded him. “I was considering taking you out to dinner… only because I’m getting ready to go eat dinner myself!”

The only thing you heard after that was the deep, almost sinister sounding, chuckle emerging from his voice. You glanced up at him, witnessing the most amusement you’ve ever seen on his face thus far. 

“Lead the way then, pretty bird.”

In all of your years of being royalty, never have you used your notoriety or wealth to get something you wanted. If anything, you found that it was only degenerates who did such a thing. You’ve witnessed it done by family members, normally to escape small legal disputes they accidentally found themselves in. You vowed to yourself to never engage in activity such as that, under any circumstance.

That was until you found yourself slamming a large sum of cash on the zataku in a restaurant's private room. The host quickly took the money from you and left you alone with the man. As the door slid shut, you immediately felt a sense of guilt.

“You’re serious about not being caught with me, aren’t you?” The man's voice almost seemed to linger with shame as he stared at you from across the table. The room wasn’t so small that it was suffocating, but the room felt smaller knowing that the man you sat across from hasn’t seemed to leave your mind since your first meeting. 

Returning his eye contact meant that you suddenly felt bad for making him feel that way. Yes, you paid excessive cash so you, a person with much notoriety, wouldn’t be caught with him. However, despite how badly he bothered you, you didn’t want to make him feel like he was at fault here. He was likely trying to tease you once again, but you couldn’t shake the guilt that you felt in you.

“It’s not because of you, it’s because of me,” you paused for a moment, debating on what words you should choose next.

“I-I can’t be caught with anyone who isn’t family or below me in status. It’s not in my control,” you bowed your head slightly, almost as if you were apologizing. 

A silence fell upon the table until you heard him pouring oolong tea into both of your cups. You knew he was staring at you again. Was it out of frustration? Was he sad? Actually, why did you care? Of course it’s only because you’re just an empathetic person. It would be more concerning if you didn’t show any concern or care for his feelings.

Hesitantly, you brought up your gaze from your lap and brought it to his face. This was the first time you had seen him so calm and peaceful, like he wasn’t the same man who found pleasure from driving you insane. The tea cup slid across the table and landed in front of you which was followed by his signature chuckle. 

“Relax, pretty bird, I was just teasing…” The trail off in voice, the weak smile he tried to portray, the solemn sip he took from his cup; he appeared much differently now. You didn’t believe that he truly felt unaffected by all of this, but you decided to drop it for now, muttering a small thank you instead.

The next minute was spent in silence, with the exception of the sound of the both of you drinking or attempting to cool down the tea. You snuck glances up at him, trying to gauge what he was currently thinking, or what if he was planning to strike up a conversation with you. Surprisingly, he seemed to be occupying his own business, stirring his tea occasionally. 

“Is there something the pretty bird wants to know?” He didn’t move his contact from the tea cup, but you knew he had caught you staring at him. Your throat cleared, as if his question caught you off guard. 

“Well…I guess I have one- or two, actually,” you paused.

“Maybe three…”

You heard his laugh echo in the confined space, like his normal demeanor returned back to him. His hands dropped to rest on his lap, leaning in closer to the table. Was his yukata always this loose? The black cotton fabric was vaguely draped over his chest. You ashamedly took a glance down at his exposed, bare chest; his breast muscles contracted with every breath he took under his olive skin glistening in the overhead lantern. Fuck, he’s no different than the dream, you ashamedly thought to yourself. With every breath, the hem of the cotton teased you, like it wanted you to reach out and strip him bare.

A silent curse in your head was issued by you immediately after explicitly imagining that perverse thought about him. You returned his eye contact and prayed that he didn’t catch you fantasizing about his body. Even if you wanted to continue, his voice cut through your thoughts.

“Seonghwa.”

Your eyebrow raised instinctively, not expecting him to blurt out something so random. 

“I-excuse me?”

“You were wondering what my name was, I’m assuming? If you weren't, at least now you know my name.” 

The way he delivered his response was cocky and arrogant; but, he read your mind like it was his. In your head, he had always been referred to as “The Man” or “that one prostitute that won’t leave me alone”. However, you wanted to give him the respect he required, such as knowing his name.

“...yes. You’re right,” you took a pause to process his name. “Seonghwa”, you unintentionally repeated under your breath.

Your eyes met his again, “You’re not from around here, are you? I’ve never heard that name before.”

“I’m from Korea. I’ve been here since my early adolescence. I hardly remember the language anymore,” he spoke after he took a meek sip of his tea. Your eyes caught his grip on the cup; with every muscle contraction, his veins in his hand bulged. It was distracting. You didn’t know what had gotten into you. For the 2nd time tonight, you were ogling at his body while he was doing mundane tasks. You silently cursed yourself again, drawing your eyes away from his hands.

“I like it when you say my name, y/n.”

If you were drinking your tea, which you almost thought of doing to wash down your dirty thoughts, you would’ve nearly choked on it. Normally, you would’ve just rolled your eyes at his suggestive comments, but ever since you saw him through that window, dressing his nude body, and when you had that dream about him, you weren’t acting like yourself. Perhaps you were just going through a biological phase of some sort, something you couldn’t explain. 

Even though he knew your name for quite some time, as it was public knowledge, hearing him say your name for the first time gave you an odd sense of comfort. Apparently, he had felt the same way when you said his name. You had tried to ignore his comment, and you tried to show that you weren’t flustered by it, even if the color of your face and your tense posture showed otherwise.

“Uh-anyways, I also wanted to ask, why are you protecting my identity? You do understand, that there are people who would be joyful to know that a family member of a shogun is roaming the Red-light district, right?” A pause.

“Some people find great pleasure in tearing someone with so much power down.”

 There was a silence amongst you two again. The smirk on his face having faded and being replaced with a hesitant lip bite, like he was preparing to share something vulnerable or grave. Putting down his cup, he started.

“Ah, that is a valid question to ask,” he kept his eyes trained on you, not in a sly or suggestive manner, but like he was debating on opening up to you. You maintained eye contact, but inside, you wondered if you had asked him a question that had required him to share more than he wanted. Or worse, he was contemplating on actually exposing you.

“I apologize, you don’t have to answer th-”

“Many people place their own assumptions about me because of what I do.”

His voice suddenly interrupted yours, his serious tone making a return. When he wasn’t behaving mischievously and giving you that delinquent smirk, his permissive gaze that he always carried became more evident. You gave him a small nod, waiting for him to continue.

“I also assume that many people place judgement and assumptions on you as well,” he glanced up at you, searching for confirmation to his claim.

“Yes, you would be right.”

He continued, “I don’t want to be treated differently because of my status or my job, and I also assume you wouldn’t want to be either, right?” You gave him another nod.

“It is as simple as that,” he leaned in closer over the table, making it harder for you to avoid his eye contact.

“You may act otherwise towards me, but I can feel that you’re not a part of the crowd who looks down on me. You don’t think I’m an annoying pest; but, you do think I am an annoying human,” in typical Seonghwa fashion, he couldn’t finish a serious statement without delivering a joke, even if it was just to humor himself. Surprisingly for him, showing in eyebrows, this got a brief chuckle from you as well, which eased some of the preexisting tension in you. 

“You may irritate me, but I don’t despise you with all my being. Otherwise, you wouldn’t be here right now,” you spoke honestly, still maintaining your guard. It seemed that Seonghwa found your statement humorous, with him only responding with a laugh. 

The rim of your tea cup returned to your lips as you thought about the last question you had planned to ask him. Initially, you had felt comfortable with the idea of you interrogating him about odd behavior: Why did he flirt so intensively, even when he wasn’t working? Why you, out of everyone he could’ve asked? You were afraid to open Pandora’s Box, nervous about what the answer could be.

You need to be honest with yourself. You were growing attached to Seonghwa; not the same platonic attachment you described earlier, but rather something more, something greater that you couldn’t describe. Or a feeling you were too afraid to describe.

Worst of all, you couldn’t tell if he reciprocated. Which is why you hesitated to ask him your final question. You wanted him, and after days of verbally denying it, you were too scared to even speak up and mention it. Besides, you were so sure that he had encountered people like this before. People that developed an attachment towards a worker giving them the services they are being paid to do. Except, you aren’t his customer, you’re just a woman he occasionally pesters with when he gets the chance. 

You were probably the only one who was dreaming and fantasizing about the other. After all, you both had just finished a vulnerable conversation about empathy and trust. He would think you’re disgusting for having such perverse thoughts about him still. Your eyebrows furrowed just a tinge, bringing your lips back to your tea. Seonghwa must have noticed your off behavior, because he had spoken up.

“Is there a third question from me that you wanted to ask? I know you mentioned something about that,” unwavering, he held the gaze that you previously broke with him. You couldn’t tell if he was completely oblivious to your demeanor or if he was just teasing you again, which drove you insane. 

Before you could even answer or make up an excuse, the door to the private room opened. Bowls of noodle soups, platters of meat, and cups of rice were dispersed on your table. You thanked the worker, mentally, for coming with the food at the right time. There remained a silence between the both of you as you both watched the plates of food compile on the table. It wasn’t long until the worker had left, leaving you, Seonghwa, and the aroma of the food lingering.

Without paying any mind to his question, you unravelled your chopsticks and began eating the bowl in front of you. In your peripheral, you had watched Seonghwa slowly reach for his own bowl before he began to eat, like he wanted to say something else to you. For a moment, you had been glad to enjoy your meal and avoid the uncomfortable question you had wanted to ask him for the past week. 

But you forgot that “uncomfortable questions” don’t exist with Seonghwa.

“The last question you had for me? Were you going to mention anything about that?” He questioned you again after eating a generous portion of his food. 

“Ah- no, it…left my mind. Can’t remember,” you were a horrible liar, and Seonghwa seemed to have learned that just now. The burning stare came back and burned holes into your bowed head. You tried your best to behave like there was no issue that was vexing you, but Seonghwa wasn’t stupid. He could pick up on these things, likely better than you could. 

“I think you’re lying to me, pretty bird.”

That damned nickname came back in his vocabulary. You were initially able to just shake off that name like it didn’t mean anything. But with your recent acceptance of your feelings towards Seonghwa, a name as simple as pretty bird suddenly carried weight. Suddenly, you understood the power he had over you, and you didn’t like that.

You continued to eat your food, nearing the end of your noodle soup. You figured that if you had just continued to play dumb, then maybe, just maybe, there was a slim chance of Seonghwa giving up on interrogating you. Or, if you were super lucky, he could believe you completely, which you doubted. Regardless, you’d rather take that risk than open up.

“I really don’t remember, I got distracted by the food coming here…haha,” your little pretend joke barely made Seonghwa’s lips budge. Instead, the stare in his eyes narrowed in on you intensely. There was a brief silence, the aroma of the food vaguely masking the tension in the air, before you heard Seonghwa’s sigh breaking the silence.

“Is that so?”

You nodded your head, continuing to eat your food.

He paused.

“I suppose I should speak more about myself then. Maybe the question will come back in that pretty head of yours.”

Another pause; this time with you. You tried not to let your nerves show; even the most basic of compliments could suddenly make you go weak, and that was dangerous. So you resumed your eating, hoping the conversation continued smoothly.

You didn’t know how wrong you could be.

He took a breath.

“I saw you looking at me through the window.”

You halted your body, a small gasp vaguely escaping you. You didn’t have to look at him to know that his devilish smirk returned to his face. It was laced all in his speech; you had no reason to look back up at him to check if you were right. You paused before you placed your bowl down on the table, keeping your head bowed. While you were frantically searching for the right response, with your clammy palms and your quickened heart beat. 

“I suppose you didn’t know that I was watching you too, did you?” Of course this would happen. It was dark outside that night, and the room he was in was even darker. You could only interpret his silhouette, not his face or any other details. But of course, it would’ve been easier for him to see you in the maroon red lights that highlighted the entire street. 

You wanted to come up with an excuse, but they were all so pathetic and lackluster. He didn’t believe you then, and he surely wouldn’t believe you now. You were just going to have to admit that you were ogling his body after pretending to hate his attention for so long.

“I- I apologize for that. I shouldn’t have invaded your priva-”

“Oh, pretty bird, I’m not asking you to apologize.”

A pause.

“Look at me, I want to see your face.”

You hesitated to show him your face, but you complied. Your face rose up slowly, finally reaching eye contact with Seonghwa. His stare was intense. And it made you uncomfortable. But you liked it; in fact, you didn’t feel any inclination to look away from him. Like you were hypnotized, and you couldn’t do a single thing about it. Your palms, however, stayed glued to your lap, hoping he didn’t notice.

Seonghwa enjoyed watching you crumble over a simple order he gave. You could see it in his posture, how he leaned forward, resting his jaw in his hand. Or how he carried that damned cocky grin you hated even greater on his face. He had gotten you to behave like a walking ball of nerves after having you act so resistant to him a week ago; and God, was he getting a high off of it.

“Does anything I'm saying ring any bells for you yet?”

You shook your head. Another lie.

He continued, “You probably think that you’re hard to read. That I don’t understand what your true, most pure intentions are with me.”

He looked you up and down, feeling a sense of control over you and the conversation. You, unfortunately, couldn’t feel the same; he was unravelling you piece by piece, exposing every aspect about you that you had tried to keep hidden.

“You probably think that I don’t see you eyeing my body up and down. Or that I don’t see how all of the sudden, your demeanor changed around me. Acting so shy and timid around me”

You felt his eyes zoom in on each one of your features, “I love it when the words I say make you squirm on your lap like that. Or how red I can make your face without even having to touch you.”

You hadn’t even realized that all of your seemingly small behavior shifts were that noticeable by him. He saw every change in you. Almost on instinct, your legs uncomfortably shifted together again. Fuck, the way he read you made you damp, yearning for him. You maintained eye contact with him as you spoke up.

“So what’s your point?” Your meek voice attempted to taunt him. You watched the color of his face blush pink near his eyes, followed by him biting his own lip like he was holding back a maniacal smirk.

“I want you to ask me the last question you had for me. I want to know if I guessed right.”

He patiently waited for you to finally reveal what you had wanted to ask him all dinner, his finger tapping on the zataku at a steady rhythm. Whether it was because of his taunting voice, his exposed chest, his eyes holding the most graceful, yet most daunting stare, or the veins in his hands bulging, you were starting to lose your self control.

You figured you had nothing to lose at this point. Lying was pointless when he already knew nearly everything about you already. Yet, the fear that lingered within you made you excited, like you wanted to be perceived as a permissive, naive woman who was oblivious to her effect on him. You were so far gone, but you couldn’t care much anymore.

“Why me?” You began, “What makes me different from your regular customers that would make you want to come eat dinner with me?” 

Finally, the weight of pretending had been released from you. You watched Seonghwa’s smirk progressively grow into a menacing chuckle. This was the question he was looking for, you were sure of it.

“Why you?” his tone dimmed, washing over the devilish look on his face. 

“You’re difficult.”

You bite your lip, as if you were begging him to continue. Seeming like he heard your thoughts, you watched him pause his statement before he sat up and, to your surprise, walked over to you. He slowly knelt down beside you while you remained still.

“You want my attention. Even if you don’t act like it. I always know.”

“Because it’s written all over your face.”

A pause.

“You know, it’s not common for me to crave someone's attention so badly. I want your attention too, pretty bird.”

The palm of his hand raised from his side and hovered over your cheek.

“May I?”

Hesitantly, your full body shifted to face him, giving him permission to touch you. His cool palm, softly landed on your cheek with the heat from your flushed face warming his hands instantly. He leaned in, the opposite hand being placed firmly on the table beside you. He scanned you thoroughly, his eyes raking up and down your body several times. The only thing heard in the room now was the subtle panting above you. 

“Pretty bird…do I really need to explain to you why I want to fuck you?” The breathless tone in his voice escaped him, like he was pleading to you, needing you. 

With every inch he closed between you two, you retreated, eventually landing your back against the wall. He had had you cornered now, his free hand off from the table and firmly rested beside your head on the wall. The desperation in his face was a stark contrast to the persona he initially played into. The maroon cheeks, the burning stare onto your lips, and the slight tremble in his voice; his true feelings and intentions were manifest. 

His thumb dragged along your face before landing on the center of your lips, circling the bottom of your lip sensually. He continued, “I think about you when I’m with my clients. Fuck, I do it all the time. Especially on the nights when you come down the district.”

His knee slowly pushed your legs apart, “Stop me if you don’t want this”, his mouth dropped down to whisper into your ear, earning you a softly pressed kiss below your ear. He returned to look down at your face, staring at you intently while his knee continued to travel up your inner thighs. He stopped his knee at your entrance, letting it hover. 

This was wrong, you thought to yourself. Anyone could hear us. Or walk in. 

Despite your concerns, all you could focus on was Seonghwa’s body towering over you with his yukata drawn loose at his chest. Your eyes flickered up and down, from his eyes down back to his chest, and back again. He had barely touched you, but he already had your legs trembling and your breath shaky. When your eyes finally decided to keep eye contact with him, you instinctively bit your lip and his thumb that was lazily drawing circles. The soft hitch caught in his voice didn’t last long before he hesitantly inserted his thumb into your mouth. 

“Are you sure you want to do this here?” You could hear the self-control in him failing with every passing moment. He began to retract his finger from your mouth to give you a chance to respond, but your hand flew up to his arm to stop him; the muscle was flexed underneath your hands. You gently sucked on his finger and lathered it with your tongue, and with this action he understood your answer.

Before you could blink, his thumb deepened into your mouth. The grip you had on his arm tightened, earning a soft moan from you. Your other hand rose up and rested on his bare clavicle. The sly smirk he once wore now returned. He watched your face as his finger in your mouth played with your salivating tongue. 

“That night when I caught those pretty eyes of yours staring at me through the window,” he released his finger from your mouth slowly, letting the salvia that soaked his thumb drip on the floor beside you, “The same eyes you’re giving me right now,” you watched his face zoom in closer to your, feeling the desire in his breath against your mouth. He popped his soaked thumb in his mouth to taste you before this hand returned to cradle your face.

He continued: “I want those eyes on me while I touch you, okay? Can you do that for me, pretty bird?” He stared into you before he glanced back down at your lips. You muttered a quick yes under your breath, your head nodding at a desperate speed.

Before you could even say anything else, he inched away from you and pulled you down by your legs. You yelped as you fell on your back and onto the padded floor. Your legs wrapped over his shoulders, his hands aiding the process. The yukata that once modestly covered your body was now pooled at your hips. 

As Seonghwa’s gaze dragged over your bare legs, with his hands delicately running across your thighs and up to your ankles. The warmth that radiated from his palms sent shivers down your entire body. You watched him through half-lidded eyes as his hands massaged your legs, going down to your inner thigh. The only thing heard in the room was the soft whimpering you had tried to suppress from outside ears. 

“You’re already getting this noisy for me. I didn’t know you could be so responsive,” his finger trailed down your thigh once more before he reached the pooled yukata that vaguely covered your wet entrance. The further his finger travelled, the more your body throbbed for his touch. His hand reached higher and leisurely undid the tied yukata around your waist. All you could do was watch as he teased you so slowly, knowing you were craving for him to touch and please you already, your impatient shifting apparent throughout.

“I bet you’re already so ready for me. Shall I check?” He pressed a soft kiss to your calf before he zoomed in onto your inner thighs. His hand brushed away the loose cloth away from your heat, exposing your wet, throbbing core. 

He took his fingers and pressed them against you, rubbing circles across the lips. Your legs squirmed over his shoulders, a moan echoing in the room with the sound of your slick being played. He licked his own lips as he watched you struggle against his gentle touch. 

“Shh…shh…don’t be too loud,” his assuring, velvet voice spoke out to you as he slowed his pace down, “bite down on something for me,” he used his free hand to bring the collar of your yukata up to your mouth. Eagerly, you took the cloth into your mouth, both of your hands gripping the cloth with your teeth. 

Almost instantly, he quickened the pace of his fingers circling your labia. His free hand trailed down from your collar and slid underneath the cotton. His hands made their way to your breasts, giving a generous squeeze to the cup. He had complete control over your body, while all you could do was lay on your back and let him fondle you. The whimpers in your voice had gotten louder when you rolled your hips to the rhythm of his slick fingers. 

“You’re doing so good. Being such an obedient girl for me,” his voice purred. He teased a finger in between your folds, maintaining eye contact with you. 

“Mmpfh- Seonghwa, I need you,” you released your teeth from the cloth momentarily to beg, “Please, please just make me cum.” The speed of the tip of his finger quickened gradually as you continued to squirm and whimper under his touch. 

Seonghwa, who was getting off at the sight of you obediently and pathetically submitting to him, freed a moan from his lips. He dragged the hand on your breasts over to your nipples, the fingers lazily fondling the soft tissue.

His mischievous grin returned, “You better keep those pretty eyes on me at all times then. Okay?” His finger titillatingly flicked your clit faster as he waited for a verbal response from you. It was evil; just a few days ago you were so confident that he was just a bothersome man who developed an unreciprocated infatuation with you. Now, he had you moaning on the floor and teasing you.

“Please- Seonghwa, I’m being good for you,” you had no shame in your begging; your eyes glistened with tears as his finger continued to play with your clit.

“Awe, my pretty bird wants me to do more?” Perhaps it was the tears in your eyes that prompted him to stop teasing you and finally begin to stick his middle finger knuckle deep inside you. Your teeth clamped back down on your clothes as he started to stroke your pussy. 

The damp noises of his finger fucking you in the room could almost make Seonghwa salivate like a dog; there you were, hair sprawled out on the padded floor, your yukata dishelved and loosely hanging onto you, and the sight of tears falling down the sides of your face because of his fingers stimulating your body. His smile was maniacal. This is exactly how he wanted you, after all of those days he yearned over your attention. 

“You have no idea how gorgeous you look right now,” he pumped another finger into you as he quickened the pace of his strokes while his other hand on your breast roughly massaged with him occasionally pinching your nipple.

Your legs stiffened around his shoulders as you maintained eye contact with Seonghwa through your glossy eyes. You stuffed more fabric into your mouth to muffle the volume of your moans that increasingly grew louder with each of his strokes. Despite the eye contact you tried to maintain, your tears were clouding your vision. Your vision was only worsened when Seonghwa added a third finger; the tremble of your legs was felt by the both of you.

“Ah ah, I don’t want you to cum just yet,” you didn’t need your vision to know that his maniacal grin returned on his face. He stilled all three of his fingers deep in you while his free hand reached up to your face, his finger tenderly wiping away stray tears. 

“Please, Seonghwa, please, I’m so close-” he interrupted your pleading with his finger trailing down your face, landing over your lips.

“But y/n, you must not understand how beautiful you look under me right now. I just want to keep you like this forever…” he spoke in such a gentle purr. If it wasn’t for you nearly being folded in half with him knuckle-deep into you, you’d be swooned and serenaded by the soft-spoken tone in his voice.

“Do you really want me to make you cum?” He asked teasingly, his fingers moving away from your mouth and back down to your body. You rapidly, desperately nodded; but Seonghwa shook his head.

“Use your words, pretty bird. I want to hear what you want,” His effect on you made you look so pathetic, but you didn’t even care; this was exactly what you had dreamed about with him.

“Please, make me cum, Seonghwa…” You softly plead spoken under your breath, your imploring eyes searching his proud ones for any hint of approval. His eyebrow raised, as if he wasn’t fully convinced yet.

“Seonghwa…please,” He eventually chuckled at your final plea, his hand on your chest making its way back to your nipple.

“Since you used your words, I’ll make those lips sing,” Seonghwa didn’t give you time to respond; his fingers immediately began to pump in you quicker than before. The soft massages on your breasts turned into his hand kneading them. What once was a room only filled with sounds of your pussy being pumped by his fingers was now a room filled with sounds of your moaning croaking out from between your lips. 

Seonghwa had noticed that your yukata that you had bit down on to keep quiet was absent from your mouth, “Come on, pretty bird, don’t be too loud,” despite his warning, it seemed that he had been aroused by the idea of you being loud when you’re supposed to be quiet for him; the louder you got, the harder and faster he went. 

Your legs trembled on his shoulders, and your back arched from the ground; Seonghwa didn’t need you to tell him what you were about to do. Every twitch and shake in your body told him that you were about to cum.

“That’s right, cum on me,” Seonghwa’s delicate voice assured you. With your orgasm vibrating into the cloth in your mouth, you finished on him. You threw your head back onto the padded floor, feeling your trembling legs being pampered with kisses that felt like silk against skin. 

“You did amazing,” Seonghwa carefully placed your legs down on the floor before he crawled above you, resting himself on top of your stomach with his legs straddling your body. On one hand, his fingers were dripping in your cum; with his free hand, he took your chin and turned your head back so he could continue observing you. 

His soft, yet proud gaze scanned your entire face; your face was wetted by your tears and your hair was sticking to the tears that trickled down your neck. His clean hand wiped a free tear from your face again before it returned back down to your mouth, his thumb brushing against.

“Open wide for me,” you obeyed his command, watching his grin grow as your lips parted further. Without any warning, his cum-soiled fingers plunged into your mouth. Your tongue lathered his fingers as Seonghwa leaned down over you. The warmth of his breath was felt with every inch he closed between you. Beside your head, his other hand was planted on the ground, closing you in once again.

Your eyes locked with his before Seonghwa’s stare fell down to your lips, “Let me taste you,” Seonghwa removed his fingers from your tongue, letting his lips connect with yours gently. You melted into the kiss, your hands rising to cup his silk-like face. You couldn’t get enough of the sweet flavor that exuded from his lips; along with the soft texture of his lips on yours, you were disappointed to feel him pull back from the kiss, even if it was just to observe you once again.

“You taste so good, pretty bird,” his head dipped into the crook of your neck, deliberately placing wet kisses under your jaw, travelling down to your collarbone. His hands reached back down to your yukata, slipping through the fabric once more. 

“I wish I could eat you right now, but I need to finish up quickly,” he rose up from your neck and pressed another kiss on your lips, this time slower, deeper. Every inch of skin on your bare abdomen was being massaged by the graceful touch of his palms. With every moan from you that he felt through the kiss, and with every touch felt by your hands entangled in his hair, the hungrier the kiss became.

His hand trailed down your body again before it reached your labia. His fingers began circling over the region again; the present sound of the wet lips echoing in the room almost made Seonghwa weak, his moan vaguely being heard.

“You’re still ready for me. That’s good,” he broke the kiss as he sat back up, looking down at you while his hands undid the cloth wrapped around him. He let his yukata hang freely open, his cock springing out. 

The precum oozed from him, running down his length in anticipation. God, you couldn’t get your eyes off of his curve, and he loved that. You cursed under your breath, your salivating mouth unable to form phrases. He then came back down to kiss you softly on the nose, before trailing the kisses back down to your neck. All the while, his tip was knocking at your entrance door. You felt it grazing your folds, increasingly teasing you as he continued to suck on your neck.

“Ngh, Se-Seonghwa…” your fragile voice managed to escape, “I need more than your tip.” Your hands that pushed the yukata from off his shoulders begged him to do more to you.

“Ah ah, you’re being too eager. I need you to ask for it nicer,” his head rose to your ear, whispering his command gently. He leaned away from you, cocking his eyebrow up smugly as he saw the desperation in your eyes. His cock remained at your folds with every twitch causing you to throb harder. 

“Please, Seonghwa. Please just fuck me again,” you laid there begging pathetically and so desperate for him. Yet, he didn’t move at all. He just stood over you, his bare chest on full display, watching you beg.

As if he was testing you, his cock teasingly inched into you, earning him a desperate, but sinful sound leaving your quivering lips. You knew that he enjoyed watching you squirm around on the ground at his will; with every whimper he heard and with every desperate look he saw in your eyes, you could feel the remote throbbing of his member inside you, like the lust he had for you traversed through the veins that ran up and down his length.  

He stared down at you for a moment more, like he was enjoying the effect he continued to have on you. Then suddenly, his hands placed themselves on either side of your hips while his body was perched over yours. 

“Fuck, I can’t resist you,” was the last thing that muttered from his mouth before his cock disappeared into your cunt. The suddenness almost caught you off guard. You almost disobeyed him and screamed his name, however, you managed to bite down hard on your lips with your pathetic whimpers replacing what would’ve been a sinful scream.

His cock rested inside of you momentarily, allowing you to regain some composure. His hands, with a gentle yet firm grip, lifted your hips from the ground slightly. The warm air that filled the room crashed against your lifted lower back. Seonghwa panted like a dog in anticipation at the sight of his cock stuffed into your pussy. With the smirk of a deviant, he gave you one last knowing glance down at you.

“Remember to be quiet”

Following the order he gave in his rough, aroused voice, he started his thrusts slowly, allowing you to adjust to his size. Despite the slow tempo, he made sure to fill you up with as much of his cock as possible. You were doing well with managing him and remaining quiet, outside of a few whimpers that hummed in between your lips. Seonghwa knew this too; he was greedy, and he wanted to push you to your limits. He kept a malevolent smirk on his face that only grew more as his thrusts continued, like he was thinking of all of the fun he could have from witnessing you pathetically try to handle him without making a noise. 

His gentle grip no longer, he continued to thrust into you at a noticeably faster rate. The sound of his skin slapping against your pussy, the sight of his cock disappearing and reappearing from your body, and the sight of his long hair sticking to his temples was nearly enough to make you cum already. The tears you let out before returned to cry out in the sheer pain you experienced from biting down on your tongue so hard just so you couldn’t scream his name. 

But damn, did it feel titillating

Your hands fell down to your breast, stimulating the feeling of him sucking on your nipples earlier. You knew it would make it harder for you to control your volume, but you loved the danger. And so did Seonghwa. 

Your quivering legs on either side of him, your tight folds clenching around his length, and his flushed face that traded with the smugness he carried earlier; this was exactly what Seonghwa wanted to experience with you. No more nights of him imagining you as his clients. Just the real you, half naked on the floor with his throbbing length fucking you.

 Just as he anticipated, your moans managed to slip through your lips; it grew harder for you to control your volume.

“S-Se-Seonghwa,” you whined shakily, “Can’t stay q-quiet”. 

He abruptly stopped, keeping himself inside you. He looked tauntingly disappointed in you. Of course, he knew this would happen. His body slightly leaned over yours, with his facial features becoming condescending and the grip on your hips softening. 

He sighed, “Ah ah, pretty bird. I won’t let you finish until you stay quiet,” one of his hands left your hips and teasingly drew down to your folds, letting his ring finger fondle with them while he rested inside you. Even the slight tease with his fingers was enough to force you to bite down on your clothing. 

Your teary, desperate eyes met his. The vague smile on his face showed you that he was enjoying every second of your squirming and whining. Seonghwa watched you struggle to silently keep eye contact with him despite the fondling not ceasing. He just watched you, once again, pathetically try not to whine at his touch.

“You’re so beautiful like this, being obedient to me.”

The endless teasing didn’t stop even when he noticed your precum developing a small pool around him. In fact, it made him continue with another finger. The pain in your tongue and teeth resurfaced again as you bit down harder on your yukata.

A considerable amount of time passed as he continued the slow fondling. Your legs were still tensely still around his body, but the room became quieter. You continued to lay there silently in agony, anticipating for him to continue pleasuring you. His sudden chuckle left you in relief as his hand retreated back to your hip. 

“You’re a good listener. Perhaps I shall award you for your good behavior,” he gradually restarted his thrust into you as he continued the praise. 

“You’re doing so good, pretty bird,” he repeated his assortment of praises as he gradually pounded you. Your teeth clenched down fiercely on your finger wrapped in the yukata that was once in your mouth while your eyes began to swell in tears once again. The sound of skin contact was louder than before; surely, someone had to have heard such a sinful sound coming from their room.

Regardless, you both knew he was on the verge of cumming. The usual smugness of Seonghwa’s face on his thrown back head was replaced with his mouth agape. The sweat that resided on his temples were now dripping down his olive skin. His bare chest glistened under the lights. The hair that rested on his broad shoulders were stuck to the sweat that emitted from his neck. With the arch of your back and your trembling legs on either side of him, you knew you didn’t have much longer left.

“Open your mouth,” he moaned desperately, his cock twitching in you. Both of you were losing composure; the more Seonghwa softly moaned, the tighter the already tense grip on your hip became. Finally, he whipped out his cock as soon as the cum oozed out of him and slapped the tip on your lips. Simultaneously, your orgasm vibrated throughout the room, allowing his cum to trickle down your throat. 

You swallowed his fluid before you both laid down on the padded floor, hefty  breathing from both of your half naked bodies. He laid on top of you, still like a lifeless body. You both kept each other’s sweaty bodies wrapped in each other's arms. After basking in the comfort of each other's embrace, Seonghwa elevated himself above you, either hand on each side of your head. He glanced down at you, wiping away the tears that ran down your face. 

There was a peaceful silence that lingered amongst the room until he muttered, “You did better than I expected. I’m pleasantly surprised you managed to stay so quiet,” you rolled your eyes at his claim, brushing more tears off.

“Oh please, you think too low of me,” you gave him a grin, “I’m not that stubborn.”

Seonghwa inched away from your face and adjusted his head down at your sore folds. His tongue gently cleaned them, unsurprisingly making you squirm in pleasure. Before he rose from in between your legs, he gave the lips a final graze of his tongue as he retreated back to your face. He pressed his lips to yours, letting you taste yourself once more. Both of your lips tiredly and sloppily meshed together, with your hands returning back to entangle his hair, and his hands cradling either side of your flushed face. Seonghwa finally pulled away, his tired, yet euphoric, gaze studying the gratified expression you held.

“Ah, I suppose you’re right,” he jokingly pondered, “In fact, you gave yourself up to me quite quickly. Earlier, you had almost convinced me that you really didn’t want anything to do with me.” 

You groaned, pushing his face away from yours in playful irritation. Sitting up from where you laid, you fixed up your yukata, tying it around you once more. Your hands vaguely ran through your hair in its attempt to fix it.

“One day I’ll have to tame that stubbornness in you,” Seonghwa stood up to adjust his clothes, back now facing towards you. The muscles you had just memorized with your hand were now concealed by his yukata. 

You briefly paused; one day? He believes there will be another time after this? I mean, of course you wanted that as well. It was just that you were just assuming that what took place during dinner was just a one time thing. Your heart skipped a beat before you shook your head, discontinuing your wishful thinking.

When he noticed your lack of response, he turned his body and knelt down beside you. The vulnerable look on his face made a reappearance; your eyes avoided his face, but you knew that his eyes were glued on your solemn expression as you raked your hands through your tangled hair. 

“That is, if you want there to be a next time?” he paused, “I would like for you to come visit me again, in a less public area, that is,” his hand reached up to a loose strand of hair hovered over your face before it halted, like he was asking for permission before touching you again. 

“I-...well,” you turned your head to face him. It was evident from his furrowed eyebrows and slight frown that he looked disappointed at the possibility of not seeing you again.

“Yes, I would actually like for there to be a next time,” the hesitation was noticeable in your voice initially until you scanned his face for a positive reaction. It didn’t take long until Seonghwa’s hand finally brushed the hair from your face. 

“Good,” Seonghwa looked you up and down with his free thumb dragging across your lower lip once more, “Are you sure that’s what you want? You hesitated to answer,” His thumb slowed down against lips before Seonghwa turned his attention back to your eyes.

“I just wasn’t entirely sure if you wanted this again. I’m glad you do, but I just didn’t expect you to want it this much,” you embarrassingly confessed to him. You heard him chuckle, his thumb suddenly beginning to soothe your lower lip once more. The hair that hovered around Seonghwa’s face tickled your cheeks as he leaned in.

“y/n,” he began, “I wanted, needed, your attention for a reason,” Seonghwa’s lips connected with yours in a passionate exchange before he pulled away, his breath being felt on your face.

“You’re quite the intriguing person. And there is still so much about you that I crave to learn about.”

That sentence alone was enough to convince you. Maybe someone of royalty shouldn’t develop an infatuation with a person of a different class, but there was an excitement you had from sneaking out at night. A mutual fixation forming between the both of you, a sex worker and royalty, who were equally forbidden from developing any form of relationship with each other, was a dangerous game that you both were willing to play.

“Then, shall I visit you in a few nights-”

“Tomorrow.”

His voice interrupted yours suddenly. For a moment, a flicker of seriousness displayed on his face before the gentle yet menacing smile you were used to seeing grew. His hand trailed down your sleeve slowly before landing on your thigh. 

“I would like to see you again tomorrow, if your schedule allows it,” he gave your leg a gentle squeeze as he patiently awaited your response. You initially were thrown off by the sudden request from him, so you stilled yourself on the floor without emitting a single sound except for a giggle.

“Well then, I better see you at your alley again,” you promised him with a smirk on your face. Seonghwa stared back at you before he chuckled. He stood up from where he was sitting, towering over your frame. 

A hand from his side reached down to your head, tilting your head up to view him. The malevolence in his tone seemed to have run away. The gentle, unassuming expression returned to his face like nothing had happened. As if he didn’t just make you swallow his own cum. He allowed himself to check out your disheveled appearance, admiring his work he did on you. He finally locked eyes with yours one final time before he last spoke:

“Next time, I’ll make sure to make that voice sing louder, pretty bird.”

ᯓ seonghwa

Seonghwa was quite concerned to potentially watch you stumble and fall on your butt when your mutual friends recommended all of you to go ice skating in the recently opened seasonal outdoor rink. It wasn’t that he didn’t know how to have fun, no, but the sheer thought of you falling and hurting yourself or an innocent bystander trampling over your fallen body concerned him more than he’d like to admit. But, after much thought, he agreed to go with your group.

You both were novices at best. This made the realization that nearly everyone in the rink was experienced all the more humbling. As you eagerly put on your ice skate rentals, you glanced over all your group of friends, until your eyes landed on Seonghwa. He finished lacing up his skates before he awkwardly made his way towards you. 

“It looks intimidating over there…” he told you with worry in his voice as he turned his head to watch the crowded ice rink.

“Ah, yeah, but I think I’ll learn fast.”

Seonghwa sat beside you on the bench you resided on. You didn’t know, but his gaze remained on you the entire time, nervously watching you tie your last skate. He sighed, attempting to let his nerves go.

“I’m going to the rink now. Don’t bust your ass trying to catch up to me,” he teased you before stumbling his way onto the rink.

It was relatively easy to catch up to him, as he relied solely on the side railings to push him across the ice like an old man with a walker. Though you weren’t doing too great yourself, you managed to catch up to him, nearly ramming into (or honestly, getting rammed by) a group of 3 hyper kids on the rink on the way. 

“Haven’t busted my ass once!” 

You stood beside him, your hand bracing his shoulder with a tight grip. It wasn’t apparent to you, but that action alone nearly had Seonghwa fumbling over his own feet. 

“Just be careful here. These people go fast.”

He paused his sentence, glancing back over at the determined expression on your face. A part of him wanted to tell you to only stay by his side for your safety (and just because he wanted to be with you), but you had already gotten on to him for nagging you and the rest of your friends before. He groaned in his head; perhaps this was a sign to finally let his worries go and just enjoy the time you have with him

“Actually, race you to that lamppost over there?” He pointed to the side of the rink that resided near a lamppost adjacent to the sidewalk. The newly gained confidence he accumulated simply just so he could spend time with you made him push himself off from the side railings and begin to sloppily skate ahead of you.

“Bro, you can’t even stand on your own two fee-”

The irony of you nearly falling on your face while taunting him did not go unnoticed. You grabbed on his sleeve, nearly lunging on him. As he laughed at your blunder, you tried to regain your composure.

“You’re not funny, Seonghwa!” your hand quickly released him.  

Seonghwa was too busy laughing at your clumsiness while you decided to start the race by taking off on the rink. Seonghwa immediately followed suit, shouting about how unfair you were being. You both looked ridiculous trying to race each other, but he eventually managed to catch up to you vaguely.

The victory was practically in your hands, just like how you planned. But suddenly, that dream would get crushed by those same, pesky hyperactive children who were probably high off of sugar. Their presence startled you as you tried to halt your movements on the rink; but it was no use, you didn’t have an arm to desperately grab this time so you essentially accepted your fate of being humiliated by 3 randoms who were probably retired leash kids. 

It wasn’t much longer until your body was defeated by the unfortunate laws of physics. Your body plummeted towards the hard ice, your hands bracing yourself for impact. Seonghwa, who lingered behind you, tried his best to swiftly catch up to you.

He caught you from behind, his arms wrapping around your body. Your head fell on his chest, looking directly up at him. You stood like that in comfortable silence, your faces both flushing a shade of pink that definitely wasn’t because of the chill winter wind. His grip around you tightened again, his hands rested just right below your chest.

You had fully expected Seonghwa to scold you for being so reckless and order you to skate near the side railing with him. So why was he now towered over you giggling his ass off? Now you were both standing there like idiots in the middle of the rink, laughing at your fall. When he pulled you up, his hands remained on your arm firmly, pulling you closer to the warmth of his body. He gave you one last shit-eating grin before he spoke: 

“I thought I told you to be careful.”

Needless to say, no one ended up winning that race.

ᯓ hongjoong

“I promise, I’m almost done with this project. I just need to make sure the mixing on this is good…”

How many times was Hongjoong going to tell you that he was almost done?

Probably another 10 times. 

You had already asked him when he was ready to leave the studio nearly an hour ago. Despite it being his birthday, he was cooped up in the studio nearly all day. He had only taken a 30 minute break to eat the take out you got him hours ago. He had agreed to let you treat him to a birthday dinner tonight in his favorite restaurant in Seoul. Which was weird. Because it was still 7pm and he hadn't moved from his seat in ages. 

You knew Hongjoong could feel your stare burning onto his hunched back. He truly did want to go eat with you. In fact, even if it didn’t seem like it to you, he was really rushing on this project.

“You keep saying that you’re almost done. Are you sure you’re even hungry?” Hongjoong heard your voice speak up from the couch behind him. He slid his chunky headphones off of his ear and turned around. There you were slumped on the leather couch, eyes half closed and your head resting on the arm rest.

“Of course I’m hungry, I’m just…” he paused, “We’ll be out of here in 10 minutes. If I’m wrong, dinner is on me.”

You groaned into the arm rest, “But it’s your birthday! You don’t need to spend money on yourself on your birthday when I literally came here to do that.” 

Hongjoong turned back around to face his equipment with a sigh, “Yes, that was my point.” He slid his headphones back on his ears, as if he knew you were going to argue back with him.

You sat there baffled, unsure whether you should be annoyed or flattered at his attempted chivalry. Regardless of how you felt, the A/C unit blowing directly on your face was drying your eyes out, and you needed to take a brisk nap. Before you could even pull out your phone to set a quick timer, you had already passed out on the couch longer than you had intended. 

“y/n.”

“y/nnnn”

A pause.

“Y/N!”

You were suddenly startled by Hongjoong’s voice yelling at you. You yelped, sitting straight up from the couch.

“Wha-What!? I’m awake!” 

Hongjoong chuckled to himself before he stood back and checked his watch.

“Would you look at that, it’s been over 20 minutes since you napped. Looks like you won’t be paying tonight.” Hongjoong’s smug smirk stuck to his face while you scurried up from the couch to prepare yourself to leave.

“Why didn’t you wake me up earlier!” you were in the midst of putting your shoes on as you scolded him.

“I wasn’t done yet. I told you I’d pay for dinner if I worked too long, not if you overslept,” 

Perhaps it was exhaustion that overcame your body when you suddenly tripped over a plug that ran down the middle of the studio floor. You fell directly onto Hongjoong’s chest. Perhaps he’d been working out more because his short frame didn’t seem to budge when you fell on him. In fact, he had caught you with both of his hands firmly placed on your shoulders. Instead of letting go, his hands traced down your arms slowly, steadying you in front of him.

“Are you alright? Are you still drowsy from napping?” His demeanor quickly became protective when he had you in his arms. God, did it nearly make your knees weak with the way the concern flared in his gentle gaze.

“Ah, uh, yeah,” you continued to stare up at him until you suddenly shimmied yourself off of him and fixed your clothes, pretending that nothing awkward had happened. 

Hongjoong didn’t know it, but for the rest of the night, you couldn’t look at him the same anymore. Not after what had just happened, and not definitely not when he was driving you both to a restaurant and paying for the bill.

I think you’d both forgotten whose birthday it was supposed to be.

ᯓ yunho

“I’m sorry, it seems like your card declined again.”

You assumed that unlocking your card from your bank app would help your case that you aren’t broke at the register of a crowded mall food court. But nope, you just made a fool of yourself in front of not only the cashier, but in front of Yunho. 

Oh, he is so going to tell everyone about this at the table, you panicked in your head as you tried to dish for some cash in your wallet that could suffice. 

“Could you put both of our meals on the same bill? I’ll pay for it,” Yunho stepped closer to the register with his card ready in his hand. Damn, sometimes it was so infuriating how clumsy you looked in comparison to him. 

You had already had a rough day; your car decided to not turn on this afternoon when you were already running late, so you called up Yunho to take you to the mall since you both were already going there to begin with. Now, all of the sudden, your card wants to decline three times in front of him after you were just talking to him about how your boss gave you a raise this week. Not to mention, Yunho just so happens to be the man of your dreams.

So this was quite embarrassing to say the least.

With defeat written all over your face, you stepped away from the register to make way for him. You watched him continue to be as perfect as ever, not hesitating to pay for your meals and all like a true prince. It almost annoyed you how chivalrous he was not just to you, but also to everyone around him. Not only did it make you fall for him more, but it made you unsure on whether he even reciprocated feelings or if he was just being friendly. 

Yunho handed you your tray of food with a friendly grin plastered on his face. He looked nice now, but you knew when you both got back to the table with the rest of your friends, he was going to tease you for the rest of lunch (if you’re “lucky”, for the rest of the day).

“Thank you, Yunho. I’ll pay you back soon, I promise!” You ashamedly walked with him.

“Don’t be silly. That won’t be necessary,” with his free hand, he ruffled the top of your head.

“Cheer up, okay? I’m sure there was something off on your bank’s side,” Yunho looked down at you with those cheery, puppy dog eyes he always carried

Suddenly you were no longer upset.

“Haha, you’re right…” 

His stare on you lingered until he halted his steps, “Shoot, we forgot to get napkins! I’ll meet you back at the table.” Before you could even look down on your tray to search for the absent napkins, he had already taken off.

You stood there dumbfounded before you smiled at his dorkiness. You know, despite all of the annoying shit that you had undergone today, at least Yunho and the rest of your friends were there to make you smile.

It’s almost as if you keep speaking too soon; on your way back, you took your phone in one hand to check any notifications you had, namely from your bank, until you slipped on a random drink spill on the floor and lost balance. You had tried to secure your phone and your tray of food so you wouldn’t have to make Yunho pay for your food again. You managed to grab onto your tray and your phone, but that still didn’t absolve the fact that you were actively falling towards the ground.

It seemed that Yunho’s “y/n being clumsy” radar had gone off again, because your back never hit the tile floor. Instead, when you looked up, you saw Yunho, his tall frame nearly knelt on the ground, panting behind you. One arm was snaked around your waist in a stern grip, while his other arm was carrying his tray of food effortlessly. Not once did Yunho loosen up his grip on you. Nor did he attempt to raise you back up. He only kept his eyes fixated on you below him.

“You’re quite the klutz today, aren’t you?” Was all he had to say to make your heart skip a beat.

Now Yunho had another thing to tease you about with your friends.

ᯓ yeosang

Gossip. Gossip. And more gossip. 

That’s all you ever really get to hear in this office building. 

Everything is just about this “Kang Yeosang” guy. I’m sure he was nice, as everyone claimed, but some of the things these rumors discussed about him were quite ridiculous to say the least:

“I bet Yeosang’s beauty gets him raises.”

“He only got this job because his looks swooned the hiring manager, don’t you agree?”

“Isn’t Yeosang in a relationship? Wait, no, he couldn’t be! He rejected Kiyoung last week and apparently he never said it was because he was already taken! So clearly he’s single! Should I ask him next?”

These people were so delusional. Perhaps you didn’t understand the hype around him because this was your second week working at this location, and you haven’t seen this infamous Kang Yeosang yet. Or maybe you have, and he was incredibly ordinary-looking. And you didn’t mean that as an insult; you were optimistic that he was a lovely man, but you have high standards, and you’re especially not easily swooned by a man’s looks. 

It was unbearable. Everywhere you went, it was “Kang Yeosang this, Kang Yeosang that”. Even the men were talking about him. By this point, you knew so much about him except for exactly how he looked. And this drove you insane. You nearly wanted to seek out this man yourself just so you could have closure on who he really was.

All you knew now was that he worked in a different department than you, he smelled like baby powder, and he had an incredible physique. This wasn’t enough information because this could be literally any man in this entire building. How are you able to identify him with such vague descriptions? Does he know that everyone is talking about him like this? And why do you care?

You had no time to care at the moment; despite being new, the lack of employees in your understaffed department has already landed you a few overtime shifts, and tonight was no exception. The building was dim, and the main source of lighting being your laptop and the city lights that the large glass windows of the high-rise exhibited. 

Just when you finished filing one report, you glanced down at the final two reports that laid on your desk. This job was hell, and you were burning in it. You pinched your temples and squeezed your eyes shut, giving your dry eyes a rest from the excruciatingly bright computer screen. It had been nearly 2 hours since you last saw your coworkers, and it probably wouldn’t be until another 2 hours until you’d be able to rest in your bed. 

Again, this job was hell, and you were burning in it. 

If you didn’t pour yourself a late cup of coffee, you were convinced that you would accidentally fall asleep in this building. You made a beeline towards the break room, hoping that the janitor hadn’t locked it yet. You also hoped that the coffee machine was actually working too because that tends to not work, for some reason. Don’t we as a company have enough funds to get a new one?

You were so concerned with getting to the break room as fast as possible, until you thought you turned a corner too early and ran into the wall. Except for some reason this wall was carrying water that split on you?

Embarrassingly, you nearly tumbled backwards over your own feet and made a fool out of yourself in front of whoever this wall was until they hooked their arm around you, their hand resting on your lower back. They pulled you into them which startled a yelp out of you. Almost instantly, they let their grip on you go. You regained your posture and looked down at your water soaked shirt. 

“Ah, goodness, I apologize. I wasn’t looking when I turned the corner…” the stranger had quite a deep voice, so it wasn’t a woman who bumped into you. Actually, now that you recall, this man’s arms were quite large, like his arms were hard with muscle. You looked up and examined the man's face, but it was too dark to actually make out any distinguishable features.

“It’s fine! If anything, I should’ve been paying attention to where I was going!” You tried to reassure the panicked man. But it was no use; he was already stripping his blazer off his body and draping it over you, for whatever reason.

“I, uh, let me go find you a towel. Be right back!” and with that, the mystery man was gone, leaving you dumbfounded. This was by far the most interesting interaction you’ve had with anyone at work since you’ve transferred. 

It didn’t take long for him to return; however, he didn’t even have towels with him, well, he had paper towels, but I don’t think he intended to search for those. Instinctively, he reached out to wipe the water on your shirt, but he quickly retreated, realizing it might’ve been inappropriate. You instead awkwardly took the paper towels from him.

“It’s okay, I’ll take these, thank you- I’m sorry, what was your name again?”

And just like that, the mystery was solved:

“Oh, I’m Kang Yeosang, from finance.”

ᯓ san

A built, muscular man was no stranger to a gym. I mean, it's a gym, where else would they be? So you were quite desensitized to the appeal of a built, male physique. Of course, you didn’t hate seeing a man flex his arms every now and then, but it wasn’t something that would completely swoon you.

That was what you used to say before you switched to a gym that was closer to your apartment two months ago. Immediately, on your first day there, your eyes feasted on the most scrumptious looking man you’ve ever seen at the gym.

Of course, he had quite the handsome face, but his physique was insane. Not insane like you’ve never seen any physique like his before, but more like the combination of his face and his body made you weak in the knees every time you saw him.

You felt so perverted for even thinking that about him. You were tossing and turning in your bed thinking about this man; thinking about how you knew what days of the week he came in, what time of the day he came, what clothes he usually worked out in, and you even checked if he had a ring on his finger. His existence was stressing you out, and you needed to know who this man was. 

The clock read 11:02 pm. Normally you’d be sleeping by now, but unfortunately your brain had other plans. You rolled out of bed and tumbled your way toward your dresser, searching for clothes for a quick cardio session to clear your mind. 

Days like this you were glad your new gym was open 24/7; no one was inside during this hour and more importantly, all of the stair climbers were free, for once! 

45 minutes on the stair climber to clear your mind, shower, and then sleep; this was the plan for the night. And it was already going smoothly. Your headphones were fully charged, and playing something calm. To your surprise, 30 minutes through, your legs weren’t as sore as you anticipated. Literally, what could go wrong!?

You glanced around the vast gym as you normally did, giving yourself something to do while the last 10 minutes of your workout passed, until you saw a figure walk towards your direction. Initially, you groaned, being a little annoyed that someone else was going to be in the gym with you at this hour. You turned back to face the mirror in front of you and the machine and watched the man walk past you because it totally wasn’t going to be your gym crush.

The man in question? Of course it was your gym crush.

Immediately, you darted your eyes away from him and watched your own face flush red in the mirror. Surely, he’s not going to use the stair climber directly beside me, right?

You’ve really gotta stop jinxing yourself.

In your peripheral, you caught him climbing to the top of the stair climber right beside yours. 

Okay, there's no need to act insane over this. He’s literally just a guy. 

You just had to get by these last 10 minutes and then you could go home. And hopefully not think about him while you’re in your bed again….

The 10 minutes went by excruciatingly slowly. Perhaps it was due to the fact that you kept making sly glances at him or that you kept nervously checking your phone. Regardless, you absolutely needed to get home.

Immediately as you began your descent down the stairs, you misplaced your own foot and slipped down the stairs. Before you could even register the fact that you were embarrassing yourself in front of your fine ass gym crush, you were caught by someone. The person that grabbed you grunted, almost losing their balance from catching you. Wait, when was there another person in this gym? Surely it wasn’t your gym crush that caught you?

Again, you have to stop with the jinxing.

When you looked up, your eyes met his, your gym crush that you thought was just on the stair climber. His hands firmly grabbed onto your arms before they rose up to your shoulders. When did he even get down here? Why does he smell so good? And why are you standing there like an idiot saying nothing?

“Hey, are you okay? Not light-headed or anything, right?” The man’s eyebrows furrowed with concern as spoke to you. He slightly pushed you off of him while maintaining his grasp on you. Did his biceps always look this big?

“I-I’m good I just, uh, slipped. Thank you for catching me, though…” you cringed at yourself for stuttering in front of him. In return, he finally let go of you, muttered something that you didn’t hear because you were too distracted by his looks, and gave you a kind smile- wait, he has dimples?

He walked away, water bottle in hand, and made his way down to a nearby water fountain. And there you were, standing in the middle of the gym when you should be making your way back home. All you could do was simply think about how you definitely weren’t getting sleep tonight.

ᯓ mingi

You weren’t exactly sure why this train was extremely crowded today. Usually you take an earlier route to go to work, but your late night binge-watching finally caught up to your sleep schedule. Truth be told, you woke up twenty minutes ago and trying to take your normal route was completely out of the picture, so you aimed to rush out of your house to make it to this train.

Look, you were grateful that you didn’t miss this route. It was better than being late to work; but this train was so full and congested. As soon as you walked in, you tried to secure a seat, but of course, they were all taken. No big deal, right? You were left with the choice to stand instead, which isn’t an issue on your normal route, but you had to search for an open space to stand at before the train bolted down the city. You did eventually spot an available space, but squeezing your way through there was quite the trek. 

Note to self, never stay up until 2am watching TV again. 

You almost made your way to the vacant spot until your work bag conveniently got caught on someone else's bag. To make matters worse, the person didn’t even realize this, so you were stuck trying to untangle this mess by yourself. 

By now, you immediately started panicking. You just knew the train was getting ready to leave. For some reason you thought it would be intelligent to just continue walking towards the open pole grab and pray it would get un-stuck, but of course that didn’t work. 

Cursing under your breath, you stomped back to your bag and tried to undo whatever tangle you got yourself in. It didn’t take much for you to untangle your bag from the stranger's, but the train suddenly began to accelerate. 

The gradual acceleration knocked you off balance as you tried to reach a nearby pole to ground yourself. Your back ended up landing on someone’s chest. Of course, you did what any sane person would do and try to get off this random stranger’s chest and pretend nothing weird just occurred.

Except that’s not what ended up happening.

Before you could even dare to think about getting up and apologizing, a pair of large hands appeared below you and gently held your waist, lifting you off of them slowly. When you looked to your right, the face of a man drew down from above to speak. 

“It’s okay, I got you,” the stranger's cadence assured you. 

And that assurance in his voice nearly made you lose balance again.

Concern was written all over his face. Speaking of face, man, was he gorgeous; the thinly framed optics he wore sat on the bridge of his nose so gracefully as his pretty orbs batted their lashes at you in worry. You were about to ogle at his lips until you randomly gained consciousness and realized he’s been staring at you and waiting for you to respond. 

You cleared your throat and left his grasp, holding on the adjacent pole grab he was at, “Thank you for, uh, catching me,” you met his eyes with yours,  “And, I’m sorry. The train moved faster than I expected,” heat rose to your cheeks when you made eye contact with him as you stifled an awkward chuckle.

The same hand that cradled your waist reached up and took an earbud out from his ear while he stood in front of you, reaching for the overhead pole grab with his other hand. His towering frame was scanned by your wandering eyes. Whether he was oblivious to your shameless ogling was unsure, as he just kept looking at you with a friendly, yet adorably dorky, grin. 

“It’s no problem.”

That was the last thing he said before he turned away from you and continued to listen to whatever he has playing through his earjacks. The conversation was over, but you couldn’t help but gaze longingly at him more. His essence, his aura, the way he carried himself and the way he behaved like a dorky gentleman towards you; it was alluring, or something poetic like that. You actually weren’t sure why you kept staring at him except for the fact that you thought he was hot.

When you got to work three minutes before you were going to get scolded by your supervisor, you couldn’t seem to get the train man out of your head. But embarrassingly enough, you were exactly sure why you kept mapping out the probability of you getting to work on time if you started taking the late route to work. 

ᯓ wooyoung

Whatever pays the bills, I guess.

Was the exact thoughts you had every time you thought the dance rehearsal was going to end.

All of the years of training and hard work paid off when you finally landed a gig as a background dancer for Ateez for an upcoming, highly anticipated performance. You remembered the jubilation you experienced as you called your family and friends the moment you got the news. 

And of course you maintained that gratitude even when your legs were incredibly sore and aching for a break from running the choreo again. This was the first day of practice, and you are struggling to execute the choreography but also the formations properly.

This was your first major performance that you got to be a part of, whilst most of the other background dancers have been doing large projects such as these for months or even years longer than you. On top of that, there were the obvious elephants in the room, Ateez themselves, who were probably sick of your shit and ready to tell you to leave and never come back because you were doing so horribly! Or something dramatic like that, which probably wasn’t actually true.

Everyone was taking a quick water break, getting tips from the choreographers and all, while you were sulking against the gymnasium wall and trying to catch your breath. It took a lot of mental self-talk to encourage yourself to get up and actually do something so you didn’t look lazy. 

See, you didn’t normally struggle with picking up a dance, nor were you normally intimidated by other dancers in the room that often. This was probably because this was your first time dancing with a group of professional dancers rather than just anyone else. 

But those bills aren’t going to pay themselves.

You stood off in the corner and began practicing the choreography by yourself. It didn’t occur to you that someone had been watching you from the moment you stood up from the court. 

“Your lines are clean.”

Whoever was stalking you from behind also just got the pleasure of witnessing you yelp loud enough for it to echo through the gym and flinch. Initially you were frustrated with the person interrupting your much needed practice session until you whipped your head around to see the culprit. You immediately took back every swear word you cursed in your head when you saw that the person who was bothering you was in fact someone from Ateez.

You actually couldn’t remember his name; but you knew he wasn’t a regular background dancer when you saw the vast name tag on his chest. Whoever he was had genuinely looked like a prince. The ebony locks that stuck to the sweat on his neck and his temples, the curvature of his nose bridge, his toned arms and hands resting on his hips. Fuck, now you need to know who this is.

“Ah, my apologies for startling you,” the apology rolled off his tongue in his feathery voice. 

You carefully bowed your head before you replied, “Don’t apologize. Thank you for your kind words,” trying to formulate a coherent sentence. When you looked up, he had taken more steps closer to you.

“May I offer some advice?” 

“Please do, I could really use the help…”

He gave you a warm grin before he began. To be honest, half of the time you were just staring at him longingly as he explained most of the issues you had with the choreography. It wasn’t that you didn’t care or think he was providing useful guidance, but the teacher was just too distracting. 

In other words, you didn’t really retain anything of what he just said.

Well, what you did learn was that his name is Wooyoung!

“Hey, uh, do you think we could run this together?” You hoped and prayed Wooyoung wasn’t going to try and explode you with his mind for essentially asking him to explain everything all over again, but he agreed to it with no hesitation.

Regardless, his physical demonstrations were quite useful. And yes, you did actually retain information outside of his name this time. You also felt more confident in yourself to finish out the practice smoothly. 

What you didn’t realize was that your shoe randomly came untied.

While you and Wooyoung were covering footwork, you didn’t have your eyes on your feet, which probably would’ve made this interaction less awkward if you did. You stepped on your laces and tripped over your own feet, landing directly on Wooyoung. 

Though he was caught off guard by the sudden weight on his body, his hands grabbed yours arms from the behind, like he encased you in an embrace. The embarrassment set in the moment you felt yourself fall; but landing directly on Wooyoung influenced the embarrassment in ways you didn’t even know were possible. 

Despite the humiliation, all you could think about was him catching you. Surely his face was handsome, but his hands were hypnotizing. The way the veins that ran up and down the length of his arms and hands bulged was all that you thought about when Wooyoung asked if you were okay.

And suddenly you didn’t dread these dance practices anymore.

ᯓ jongho

Clear skies, low humidity, fair temperatures.

Today was the optimal day for a Saturday. You don’t normally do many activities that involve breathing fresh air and touching grass, but you really wanted to make use of the beautiful weekend you had. So of course you made the executive decision to purchase a kite this afternoon so you could play around at the park by yourself. 

Admittedly, you haven’t flown a kite without adult supervision in nearly 15 years, so you honestly don’t exactly remember the rules and important tips that you were supposed to know for flying a kite. But it’s also just a kite; if kids can do it, how hard can it be?

The kite got stuck in a tree.

Truthfully, it was going well for you and your newly purchased kite, but you got carried away with the wind speeds and you started running across the grass to see how high the kite could go. You were so determined to get it the highest you possibly could that you nearly ran into several people (sorry…) and it seemed that karma bit you back in the end.

So there you were, internally debating on how to go about this. The kite wasn’t stuck in some miniature, newly planted, tree. No, this kite was stuck in a tree that was probably older than this city. 

Now, you haven’t climbed a tree without adult supervision in nearly 10 years, so you were slightly more confident in climbing a tree than flying a kite. 

The tree climbing voyage was going mostly well, even if you were huffing and puffing. At least by now you had already made it to the lowest branch on the tree. All you needed to do now was to just climb up four more branches!

And so the voyage continued; some kids that walked past had exclaimed wanting to “join the tree person”, but their parents immediately said no and yanked them away.

On the bright side, you triumphantly reached the kite, grabbing it and holding it like a trophy. You began the climb down the branches, excited that you can go back to playing around on the lawn, until you ran into yet another problem.

You see, when you climbed trees when you were younger, you always relied on whoever was supervising you to catch you whenever you descended. Not to mention that the trees you used to climb were half the size of the one you were currently in; so you never really learned how to safely climb down a tree.

When you got down to the lowest branch, you did consider jumping down, but you quickly assured yourself that if you did then you'd probably break an ankle or two. 

After contemplating for 5 minutes, you made the wise decision to throw the kite on the ground after you told it you’d meet it down there after you jumped down. Which somehow made you even more terrified of jumping; but this kite wasn’t going to fly itself.

The jump down to the grass was almost done, your legs straddling the branch as your feet dangled, until you saw a man approach the trunk.

“You’re looking like a cat stuck in a tree up there,” the man from below called out, “Need any help getting down?”

The man kept his hands in the pocket of his jacket as he looked up. You really couldn’t make out his features much except for the black beanie on his head, but all you knew was that he looked strangely trustworthy, so you ended up going along!

“Can you, like, catch me?”

He stood silent for a moment before he took his hands out from his pocket and extended his arms out.

“Like this? Is this okay?” The man timidly moved around on the terrain, debating on where would be the best space to catch you. You slowly lowered yourself down, dangling from the branch with nothing but your hands holding you up.

“I’m ready whenever you are,” he told you as he prepared to intercept you. 

Your hands slowly slipped off of the branch. Closing your eyes, you yelped when you finally made contact with the man, who was already giving you reassurance that you were okay. When you finally opened your eyes, you examined his face as he did with yours. If eyes were the window to the soul, then you were sure that his eyes carried a sweet soul behind them.

Except when he put you down, his hand never left your arm. It seemed like you both wanted to stare at each other longer than intended but were afraid of creeping the other out. 

When he cleared his throat and let go of your arm, he spoke, “Are you alright?”

“Yeah,” a pause occurred while your gazes lingered on each other, “Thank you.”

The exchange was brief, but the man didn’t seem to leave your head for the rest of the day. When he left, you were almost tempted to run after him and ask him to join you and your childish kite flying session, but you just let him go and hoped that next Saturday also had clear skies and fair temperature, only because you wanted one more chance to see him again.