The café had grown busier as the morning stretched on. Waiters moved between tables, the hum of conversation rising just enough to blur individual words. To anyone else, it was just an ordinary day.
But not to Luv.
His eyes flicked to the window for the third time in five minutes. At first glance, nothing was unusual—just people walking by, cars humming along the street. Yet his instincts, honed by years of betrayal and silence, stirred uneasily.
Someone was watching.
He shifted slightly in his seat, angling himself so he could scan the reflection on the glass behind Ayu without making it obvious. Two men lingered across the street. They weren't drinking coffee. They weren't talking. They were waiting.
And their eyes never left the café.
"Are you even listening to me?" Ayu asked suddenly, breaking his focus.
Luv blinked, meeting her curious gaze. She had her chin resting on her palm, studying him with a playful tilt of her head.
"You look like you're a thousand miles away."
"Just thinking," he said simply.
"About what?"
He hesitated. He didn't want to scare her. Not yet. But she was sharper than most—he knew she'd notice if he brushed it off.
"About… the people outside," he admitted quietly.
Her brows furrowed. "People?"
"Two men. Been watching since I came in."
Ayu's heart skipped. She wanted to laugh it off, to say he was imagining things. But something in his voice—calm, certain, deadly serious—made her pulse quicken.
"What do we do?" she asked, lowering her voice.
Luv's gaze softened slightly. Even in fear, she faced him with steady eyes. That fire again—the one he had seen in her messages, the one that refused to break.
"Nothing yet," he said. "Stay calm. If they make a move, we walk out together. No panic. No hesitation."
Ayu nodded, though her hands tightened around her cup. She forced a smile, pretending to sip. To anyone else, they looked like two friends enjoying coffee.
But under the table, her leg trembled.
Luv leaned back in his chair, posture relaxed, eyes half-lidded. To the casual observer, he looked bored. But every muscle in his body was coiled, ready.
And in his mind, one thought burned:
If they try to touch her, they won't leave this place alive.
Across the street, one of the men lifted his phone again. His lips moved in a whisper.
"They're here. Waiting for orders."
The reply came sharp through the static.
"Don't wait. Move now."