Evan Leigh's POV
The moment Evan's car door shut, the world outside became muted.
Not silent, not peaceful.
Just… distant.
Like the entire campus, the students, the principal, even the air itself no longer mattered.
Because the only thing Evan could think of was the look in Kian Silver's eyes.
That defiance.
That cold refusal.
That shameless audacity.
Evan's fingers tightened around the steering wheel as he drove out of the college parking lot, his expression unreadable, but the tension in his jaw was enough to crack stone.
He'd been rejected before.
Of course he had.
But not like this.
Not with that kind of pride.
Not with that kind of disgust.
Kian hadn't just refused him through an assistant.
He hadn't just refused a ridiculous amount of money.
He had refused Evan Leigh.
To his face.
As if Evan was just another rich man trying to buy his way into someone's life.
As if Evan's name didn't carry weight.
As if Evan's power didn't crush people for breakfast.
Evan exhaled slowly, eyes narrowing as the memory replayed in his mind.
Kian Silver.
The boy didn't even tremble.
No hesitation. No fear. No greed.
Just… rejection.
Evan's lips curled faintly.
A cold, amused smile that didn't reach his eyes.
"So you think you're special," he murmured to himself.
His car moved smoothly through the city streets, the engine purring beneath him like a tamed beast.
But Evan's thoughts were far from calm.
He had seen plenty of people pretend to be righteous.
Plenty of people pretend to be "different."
People who swore they couldn't be bought.
People who acted offended at wealth.
People who threw pride around like armor.
And then, the moment life squeezed them hard enough, they crawled.
Begging.
Crying.
Offering loyalty.
Offering their bodies.
Offering everything.
Because in the end, everyone had a price.
Everyone.
Evan's gaze sharpened.
Except maybe…
Maybe Kian Silver hadn't found his price yet.
And that made Evan's interest deepen into something sharper.
Something darker.
His phone buzzed.
Evan glanced at it.
His assistant.
He answered without slowing down.
"Yes."
"Sir, you're already leaving the school grounds," the assistant said cautiously. "Should I schedule another meeting with Kian Silver? Maybe offer him a contract instead of employment?"
Evan let out a soft laugh.
It wasn't warm.
It wasn't even amused.
It was the kind of laugh that belonged to a man deciding how he wanted to ruin someone's life.
"No," Evan said.
The assistant went quiet.
Evan's voice lowered.
"I don't want another refusal."
He loosened one hand from the steering wheel, tapping his fingers lightly against the leather.
"I want everything."
The assistant hesitated. "Sir… everything?"
Evan's eyes remained forward, focused on the road, but his thoughts were already wrapping around Kian like chains.
"Yes," Evan said, calm as a blade. "Everything regarding Kian Silver."
His tone sharpened.
"I want his full name, his address, his family background, his school history, his finances, his medical history if possible, his part-time jobs, his grades, his friends, his enemies, his daily routine."
He paused, voice turning colder.
"I want to know what time he wakes up and what time he sleeps."
The assistant swallowed audibly through the phone.
"…Understood, sir."
Evan continued, his words smooth, controlled, and terrifyingly certain.
"I want his favorite café. His favorite food. The hospital he visits if he ever gets sick. I want to know if he has anyone he cares about."
His lips curved slightly.
"And I want to know what makes him angry."
The assistant cleared his throat. "Sir, may I ask why? Is Kian Silver connected to Aiden Frost's disappearance?"
Evan's fingers tightened again on the wheel.
For a moment, he didn't answer.
Then he spoke.
"No," Evan said simply.
The assistant was silent.
Evan's gaze darkened, voice lowering into something almost intimate.
"This has nothing to do with Aiden Frost."
He exhaled.
"This is personal."
The assistant hesitated again. "Sir…"
Evan cut him off immediately.
"Kian Silver has become my target."
Those words fell like a verdict.
Not loud.
Not dramatic.
But absolute.
The assistant's breathing turned cautious.
Evan leaned back slightly in his seat, one hand still steady on the wheel, his voice smooth as poison.
"He refused me twice through you," Evan said. "And then he refused me again to my face."
His eyes narrowed.
"He looked at me like I was filth."
His jaw tightened.
"He dared to act like he was above me."
A quiet pause filled the call.
Then Evan spoke again, his tone calmer now, but far more dangerous.
"I don't tolerate arrogance."
The assistant said nothing.
Evan's lips curved into a faint smirk.
"But I will admit… he's interesting."
The word interesting left Evan's mouth like a confession he didn't intend to make.
Because it wasn't just Kian's refusal that caught Evan's attention.
It was the way he refused.
Kian hadn't been trembling.
Kian hadn't been desperate.
Kian hadn't tried to negotiate.
Kian had simply turned his back on Evan Leigh like Evan was nothing.
And Evan hated that.
But at the same time…
Something about it pulled at him.
Like a challenge.
Like a locked door Evan suddenly wanted to break down with his bare hands.
Evan's voice became quieter.
"Most people beg for my attention."
His eyes glinted.
"Kian Silver ran from it."
A pause.
Then he added, cold and deliberate:
"So I'll make him regret it."
The assistant swallowed again.
"…Do you want me to send men to follow him?"
Evan's smile widened slightly.
"No," he said.
The assistant froze. "Sir?"
Evan's voice softened, but that softness carried cruelty.
"I don't want him handled by anyone else."
He tightened his grip on the wheel, the leather creaking under the pressure.
"This isn't a normal target."
His eyes flickered with a strange heat.
"This one… I'm going to handle personally."
The assistant didn't speak.
Maybe because he knew better.
Maybe because even he could sense the shift in Evan's mood.
This wasn't business anymore.
This wasn't a job offer anymore.
This wasn't even about hacking.
This was Evan Leigh being challenged.
And Evan Leigh didn't lose.
Evan's car turned onto a wider road, the city lights reflecting against the windshield like blurred fire.
His expression remained calm.
But inside him, something had awakened.
A hunger.
A desire to dominate.
Not physically, not yet.
But mentally.
Emotionally.
To take that pride Kian wore so confidently and crush it between his fingers until the boy had nothing left but submission.
Evan spoke again, voice low.
"Bring me everything by tomorrow morning."
The assistant nodded quickly, even though Evan couldn't see him.
"Yes, sir."
Evan ended the call.
The silence inside the car returned.
But it wasn't empty.
It was heavy.
Evan's eyes stayed on the road, but his thoughts were already elsewhere.
He imagined Kian's face again.
The stubborn tilt of his chin.
The coldness in his voice.
The refusal.
Evan's lips curved.
A small smile.
A predator's smile.
"You don't know what you just did," Evan murmured.
"You should've taken the money."
His gaze sharpened, voice turning into a whisper.
"Because now… you've caught my attention."
And Evan Leigh's attention was not a gift.
It was a curse.
A slow, suffocating shadow that followed until the victim had nowhere left to run.
Evan leaned back in his seat, letting the engine carry him forward.
And as the city swallowed his car whole, his smile deepened.
Kian Silver was arrogant.
Proud.
Untouchable.
For now.
But Evan had already decided.
He would break him.
Not because he needed him.
Not because he wanted his hacking skills.
But because Kian had made one fatal mistake.
He had refused Evan Leigh…
and walked away like he could live his life peacefully afterward.
Evan's eyes gleamed.
"How cute."
His voice dropped, cold and final.
"I'll teach you what happens when you reject me."