Yuhan and Zhang stepped into the brightly lit room, the door creaking softly as it closed behind them.
The space was immaculate—clean lines, expensive finishes, and a kind of quiet luxury that didn't need to announce itself. Of course, its owner was wealthy. What else would anyone expect?
They approached the desk at the centre of the room.
Behind it sat a tall man, his back to them, gaze fixed on the intricate design carved into the far wall. He looked lost in thought, as if the world behind him didn't exist.
"Boss?" Zhang called.
The silence stretched.
Zhang didn't wait for a reply. He knew better.
"Yuhan has the information you asked for."
Yuhan stepped forward and placed a red file on the desk. It wasn't thick—just a handful of papers and a few tucked-in documents—but it felt heavy all the same.
The chair turned slowly.
Kai.
His presence alone shifted the air in the room.
Kai leaned forward, long fingers reaching for the file. He opened it and flipped through the pages with unhurried precision, velvet-red eyes scanning every line.
A bead of sweat slid down Yuhan's temple.
If this went wrong, he wasn't sure he'd walk out of here.
"You're a beta?"
The question came out of nowhere.
Kai's gaze lifted, locking onto Yuhan's face. The deep red of his irises, framed by dark shadows, felt sharp enough to cut through him.
"Uh—y-yes. I am," Yuhan stammered.
Kai closed the file and slid it back across the desk. The force sent it gliding to the edge, stopping just short of falling.
He rested his head against his hand, still watching Yuhan for a moment longer.
Then his attention shifted to Zhang.
Zhang gave a small nod and gestured toward the door.
Yuhan didn't hesitate. He left, and the door shut softly behind him.
The room fell quiet again.
"Two weeks," Kai said.
Zhang exhaled. "Boss, that—"
"I gave you one," Kai cut in.
He tilted his chin toward the red file. "Is it reliable?"
Zhang reached up and removed the earpiece from his ear, letting it hang loose against his shoulder.
"As far as I know," he said, "yes."
He clasped his hands behind his back, posture straightening, his bodyguard composure sliding back into place.
"We couldn't secure a trustworthy source fast enough. That's what caused the delay."
Zhang stayed calm.
By now, he knew exactly which of Kai's reactions meant danger—and which meant he still had a chance.
Kai rolled his neck slowly, stretching it back and to the side.
"Where is he?"
He leaned into his chair, gaze locking onto Zhang's dark-brown eyes.
Zhang drew in a breath and met that stare head-on. "With a woman. In Hora City."
"The city in the middle?" Kai asked, tilting his head, one brow lifting.
"Yes."
"With whom?"
"Minji."
Kai's fingers tapped once against the armrest. "Data."
Zhang straightened. "Omega. Owns a salon. Parents are both successful lawyers. Almost the same height as Rei. Currently pregnant by her ex. Lives in a penthouse in Hora City. No siblings. Estimated net worth between one and six million."
He paused, then added, "Carefree, bossy exterior. Internally guarded. Suffers from loneliness and trust issues. She agreed to let Rei stay with her."
Zhang cleared his throat. "As far as I can tell… she's mentally stable."
Kai tilted his head, a slow smirk tugging at his lips, more amused than relieved.
"Get him back," he said. The words were calm. Final.
Zhang hesitated. His gaze dropped before he forced himself to speak.
"I think it would be better if he comes to you."
His voice was low, almost like he hoped Kai might half-miss it.
Kai's head tilted a fraction more. "Why?" His eyes glinted, entertained by the idea. "You're telling me you can't bring my own husband home?"
The room felt smaller.
Zhang swallowed. "Because if you go to him… he won't come back as Rei. He'll come back as someone who's afraid of you."
Kai's smirk faded.
Not completely.
Just enough.
The room went still.
Not quiet—still.
Even the hum of the lights overhead seemed to hesitate, like it wasn't sure it was allowed to exist anymore.
Kai didn't move.
For a long moment, he didn't even blink.
Zhang felt it in his chest first—the pressure, the invisible weight of being seen too closely.
"Afraid," Kai repeated softly.
He stood.
The chair scraped against the floor, sharp and loud in the silence. Kai stepped away from the desk, slow and unhurried, the kind of pace that made every movement feel deliberate.
"Do you know what fear does, Zhang?" Kai asked, stopping by the window.
Outside, the city glowed—distant lights, tiny and fragile against the dark.
Zhang didn't answer.
Kai turned slightly, his reflection in the glass lining up with Zhang's. Two shadows, one standing still, one looming.
"It makes people run," Kai continued. "It makes them forget. It makes them disappear."
Zhang swallowed. "He already did."
That got a reaction.
Kai's fingers curled against the window frame. Just slightly.
The carved lines of control around him cracked for half a second.
He exhaled through his nose, slow and steady. "That won't happen again."
Zhang took a careful step forward. "Then don't become the thing he runs from."
Kai finally turned.
His velvet-red eyes weren't sharp now.
They were deep.
"I'm already the thing he runs to," he said. "He just doesn't remember it yet."
The words settled heavy in the air, thick enough to choke on.
Zhang hesitated. "Minji is… grounding him. Giving him space. If you tear him out of that—"
Kai raised a hand.
Silence.
"He doesn't belong in borrowed safety," Kai said. "He belongs with me."
Zhang's jaw tightened. "And if he says no?"
Kai stepped closer.
Once.
"Then I wait," he said. "Right where he can see me."
Zhang held his ground, even as the air felt thinner.
Kai turned back toward the desk. He rested his hand on the closed red file, fingers pressing lightly against the cover.
"Pull back the surveillance," Kai ordered as he headed for the door.
Zhang blinked. "You're letting him be?"
Kai stopped.
"I'm going there myself," he said.
Zhang's head snapped up, concern flashing across his face. "Not safe."
"Don't care."
The door creaked as Kai opened it and stepped out.
"…For Rei," Zhang breathed into the empty room.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Yuhan's foot tapped relentlessly against the polished floor.
He sat alone in the main hall, the massive automatic entrance doors looming across from the seating area like a silent promise—or a threat. Outside, the building glowed against the night, its glass and steel catching the city's light in cold, elegant reflections.
The sound of his tapping must have carried, because a woman from the administrative counter approached, a glass of water in her hand.
"Here," she said gently, offering it to him.
"Uh—thank you," Yuhan replied, startled, but he took it gratefully.
"First time meeting the boss?" she asked with a knowing smile.
Yuhan's gaze drifted past her to the enormous painting on the far wall. It sat in an ornate gold frame, its design so intricate it almost felt alive. At the bottom center, a diamond-shaped rose caught the light, scattering it in soft, fractured gleams.
The woman snapped her fingers lightly in front of his face.
Yuhan flinched, shoulders jumping. "Huh?"
"Are you meeting our boss for the first time?" she repeated, patient but amused.
"Uh—yeah," Yuhan said, glancing once more at the painting before looking back at her.
She was a brunette; her hair swept into a neat bun that somehow still looked soft. Noticing where his attention kept drifting, she turned to look at the painting herself, then back at him.
"Would you like to see it up close?" she asked, her pink-glossed lips catching the overhead light as she smiled.
Yuhan blinked, then nodded. "Yes, please."
The woman led the way, and Yuhan followed, obedient and uneasy.
With every step closer, the details of the painting sharpened.
The moment Yuhan's focus drifted from the jeweled rose in the frame to the figure on the canvas, his breath caught.
It was a man.
Only his upper body was shown, from the shoulders up. Soft, lavender hair drifted around his face, as if caught in a gentle current of air. A deep red rose concealed most of his features—but one bright lavender eye peeked out from the side of the petals, watching.
Yuhan's mind stuttered.
The man he had seen that night at Kai's house.
The face in the file Kai had given him.
The missing person he had spent weeks tracking.
It was the same person.
It was him.
"I'm sorry," Yuhan said quickly, turning to the woman, urgency slipping into his voice. "But… who is that?"
She paused, surprised by the intensity in his tone.
Then she smiled, like the answer was the most obvious thing in the world.
"That," she said, "is our boss's husband."
The words landed heavier than any silence ever could.
To Be Continued... ...