Morning rose like a warm breath, still carrying the shadows of the night.
Nari woke slowly, as if her entire body was still floating between two worlds:
the one where Sion had consumed her,
and the one where she had to return to breathe.
Her muscles ached —
a soft, deep, almost delicious pain,
vibrating through her skin like invisible bruises left by his hands,
his mouth,
his teeth.
She inhaled, a shiver running down her spine, the burning memory of the night imprinted against every inch of her body.
Sion was already awake.
He was watching her in silence, head slightly tilted on the pillow, his black hair messy, his bare chest rising slowly.
His golden eyes, still clouded with sleep, devoured her in a single look —
soft, possessive, almost tender.
A corner-smile tugged at his lips.
One of those smiles.
The kind that weakens your knees.
The kind that says you're mine without saying a word.
— Morning… she murmured, her voice still broken.
She leaned toward him and pressed her lips to his.
A slow kiss.
A kiss that had nothing of last night's brutality,
but everything of the aftermath:
skin still warm, hearts still stuck together,
the sweetness that comes when two bodies have already burned everything together.
Sion's taste was still on her tongue —
a blend of fever, night, and them.
He closed his eyes, savoring it, his fingers brushing her face as if he feared she might vanish.
Nari finally got up, naked, her skin prickling at the cool air that drifted through the room.
Morning light slid over her, revealing the faint trace of his fingers on her hips, the nearly faded bites along her neck.
Sion watched her cross the room without saying a word —
his eyes following her like a silent prayer,
like an obsession he no longer knew how to hide.
She entered the bathroom, let the hot water run, steam already filling the space when he joined her.
The door closed behind him.
Water hit the tiles in a steady rush.
Nari felt his body before she even saw it.
Sion slid behind her, his warmth cutting through the burning water, his hands settling on her waist with a deliberate, almost reverent slowness.
— Still beautiful… even under water, he murmured against her wet skin.
He kissed her neck, kisses melting into the stream, his lips warm as they gently bit at her damp skin.
She laughed softly as she turned around and wrapped her arms around him, their bodies sliding against each other, foam slipping over their shoulders, their hands finding each other without hesitation.
He pressed his chest to her back, the heat of his skin contrasting with the scalding water.
Nari closed her eyes.
Her heart stuttered.
He brushed his lips along her neck, a kiss so light she barely felt the pressure —
just the warmth, the promise, the shiver.
Then he bit her, harder this time, enough to pull a small sigh from her throat that dissolved into the steam.
She turned in his arms, her eyes lifting to his, water running down both their faces.
Sion was smiling — not a mocking smile, not a dark one.
A real smile.
A rare, precious one, as if it existed only for her.
— Don't move, he whispered.
He took soap in his hands… and began to wash her.
Not quickly.
Not absentmindedly.
Slowly.
With an almost religious attention.
His fingers traced every line of her body, slid over her shoulders, down her arms, massaging her hips in slow, circular motions.
White foam drew curves along her skin, and he followed them with his fingertips, as if learning her body by heart.
— You're perfect, he breathed.
The way he looked at her…
as if she were a piece of art he was afraid to damage.
Nari laughed softly when he accidentally tickled her while soaping her stomach, and a smile burst across his face —
a real one, rare, bright.
She grabbed some soap in return, brought her hands to his chest.
They slid over his pecs, his abdomen, his defined abs, water making every muscle glisten.
He shivered, his eyes darkening, his breath growing heavier.
— You know exactly what you're doing, he murmured against her mouth.
She shrugged with innocence —
an innocence so fake it made him laugh.
A real laugh.
A sound that vibrated in his chest.
Their foreheads pressed together, water running between them, their breaths mingling.
His hands slid slowly down her back, pulling her closer.
For a few seconds, there was nothing but this:
the sound of water,
their slippery skin,
their heavy breaths,
their locked gazes.
A suspended moment.
A moment of rare softness between two storms.
Then… the fracture.
His gaze drifted.
His smile faded.
The mask returned.
And the shadow fell.
The shift in atmosphere was brutal.
As if the joy and lightness of the shower had shattered against an invisible wall.
Water continued running over their intertwined bodies, streaming down their wet skin, but Sion froze suddenly, jaw tightening, shoulders tensing as if something had just crashed down inside him.
Nari felt it instantly.
A shadow.
A new tension.
A silent fall.
She gently placed her hand on his chest, her palm sliding over the warm skin where drops of water gathered.
— Sion… are you okay?
He didn't answer.
His eyes were lost somewhere behind her, fixed on something only his memory could see, something she didn't know yet, something already tearing at him.
Then he closed his eyes for a moment.
A moment too long.
Too heavy.
When he opened them again, he wasn't the man who laughed with her under the water seconds earlier.
— We should leave early, he said in a low, tense voice, something broken hiding at the edge.
She's waiting for us.
Just two sentences.
But they fell like an axe.
He stepped out of the shower in a sharp movement, almost nervous, grabbing a towel without even looking at her, leaving behind trembling steam and Nari frozen under the spray, water hitting her skin without warmth.
The door closed gently.
Nari remained alone under the water, unmoving, hot water striking her back like heavy rain.
A knot tightened in her throat.
She knew this version of Sion.
The Sion who shut down.
The Sion who suffered in silence.
The Sion she had to follow, no matter how much he resisted.
She placed a hand against the cold tile, inhaled deeply.
The day had barely begun…
and already, something in the air was breaking.
They left the apartment an hour later.
Sion didn't speak.
Not a word.
In the car, the silence weighed as heavily as the engine.
The vehicle's hum vibrated under their legs like a warning, Seoul's landscape sliding past in blurry shadows, neon lights streaking their faces like cold scars of light.
Nari watched him from the corner of her eye, her hands on her thighs, her fingers trembling slightly.
His hands gripped the steering wheel, knuckles white, veins tight along his forearms beneath his shirt.
His gaze stayed locked forward, frozen in a harshness that stabbed her straight through the chest.
He had that face…
that face he only wore when he was holding back something enormous.
Fleeing it.
Protecting himself from himself.
At a red light, Nari placed her hand on his thigh.
A light touch.
A simple gesture.
A call.
His eyes dropped.
One second.
Just one.
But enough for her to see the crack.
The shadow.
The fear.
That old pain vibrating beneath his skin like a memory ready to explode.
Then he gently moved his leg away.
Not rejection.
Panic.
The light turned green.
He accelerated.
In front of the clinic, the world felt different.
Colder.
Quieter.
The air carried that antiseptic and metal smell that sticks to your skin, stings your nose, makes you feel as if you've walked into a forbidden place.
Daewon was already waiting, a file clutched against him, his face perfectly neutral but his eyes alert.
Nari felt Sion's stress spike instantly.
His shoulders tightened, his breath shortened.
He placed a trembling hand on the car door handle.
— Nari… stay here. I'll be right back.
His voice was soft, too soft to be real.
A softness used like a bandage.
Or like a barrier.
She opened her mouth to argue.
He was already looking away.
Daewon stepped forward.
— Mr. Sion, he said, bowing slightly as he handed him the file,
— Here is the report you requested. But… regarding the bar owner… I found nothing except his name.
Sion didn't blink.
Just one muscle on his jaw that twitched.
— I'll look into it later. Thank you, Daewon.
— Always at your service, sir.
They spoke for another moment, but Nari didn't hear a word.
She watched Sion.
The way he kept his head high.
The way he inhaled before entering.
As if preparing himself to take a blow he knew was coming.
He returned to her, his face closed, his eyes gleaming with a tension she could almost taste in the air.
— Come, he murmured.
And she followed him through the cold hallways, her heart beating too fast, their steps echoing like a countdown.
In front of the room, Sion stopped.
He inhaled.
Long.
Too long.
Then he placed his hand on the door handle.
His fingers trembled.
— Stay behind me.
The words were firm.
But his voice…
it could barely stand.
And Nari knew — without the slightest doubt — that the moment he opened that door…
she would enter a part of him
he had never allowed anyone to see.
The door opened with a whisper far too soft for what it concealed.
The room was bathed in a white, pale, almost cruel light.
A fragile silence floated in the air, broken only by the discreet hum of a medical machine and the soft rustle of sheets as the woman sitting on the bed lifted her head.
Sion's mother.
Fragile.
So small in her pale blue gown.
Gray hair pulled into a clumsy bun, a few rebellious strands falling over her forehead.
Her eyes, a soft brown, lit up the very second she saw her son.
— Oh my Sion… my baby… she breathed, her voice trembling with joy.
Sion took one step.
Just one.
And she opened her arms as if she had been waiting a thousand years for this moment.
— Come here.
A crystalline, almost childlike laugh escaped her lips.
He approached, carefully, as if one wrong move could make the entire world collapse.
She cupped his face in her hands, kissed his cheeks, his forehead, his temples — quick, light kisses, a rain of tenderness one would never expect in such a cold, sterile place.
— You've lost weight, my heart… oh, look at you… you work too much… always too much…
Her voice vibrated with softness.
A rare softness.
Precious.
Too fragile.
Then her gaze slid to Nari.
It softened even more.
— And you bring me a beautiful woman, on top of that…!
Delighted, Miss Jeon. I'm so happy to meet you.
The mother placed her hands on Nari's cheeks as if blessing her.
— You're beautiful, my dear… truly.
— Thank you so much…
She straightened, proud and glowing.
— What's your name, sweetheart?
— Han Nari, ma'am, she murmured with a slight bow.
— Ah, such grace…!
You must be someone very special for my son to bring you here.
He never introduces anyone to his mom, you know…
Sion lowered his eyes, embarrassed.
A faint blush touched his cheeks.
It was soft.
Almost normal.
Almost a family.
A tightness gripped Nari's heart.
She hadn't expected this.
Not this light in the woman's gaze.
Not this laugh.
Not this tenderness.
She felt welcomed.
Truly welcomed.
Sion's mother continued speaking, telling little anecdotes, her thin hands dancing in the air, laughing at her own silliness.
— When he was little, Sion always slept with a fox plushie, you know? He said it was his best friend…
— Mom, not that… Sion sighed, a shy smile slipping out despite himself.
— Oh yes, yes! And he cried when he lost it in the garden, can you imagine? My little Sion — a total tragedy!
— Did you know that when he was five, he ran away from home to buy a chocolate cake? He scared me to death… oh dear!
— And when he was ten, he used to bring home injured animals… always trying to save everything he found on the street!
She laughed.
Nari laughed.
Even Sion let out a soft, discreet laugh.
For a brief moment, everything was fine.
Too fine.
Much too fine.
Because that was exactly when everything cracked.
A strange silence fell.
One beat.
Two.
Three.
His mother's face froze.
Her smile withered instantly, crushed under a sudden shadow.
Her eyes emptied.
Then filled.
Filled with a dark, visceral, explosive rage.
Her breath hitched.
Her features twisted.
Her fingers trembled, clawing at the sheets.
— You.
Her voice wasn't the same anymore.
Not human.
It vibrated with an ancient hatred.
— YOU!
She lunged at Sion with a speed impossible for her frail body.
Nari didn't have time to react.
Sion's mother was already on him.
Her fists crashed against his chest, his face, his shoulders.
— YOU LOCKED YOUR WIFE IN A MENTAL ASYLUM!
— MY MONSTER! YOU MONSTER!
— You want to kill me?! Like her?! Like your wife?!
The words hit harder than the blows.
Sion didn't move.
He took it.
As if it was normal.
As if he deserved it.
As if every insult tore him apart from the inside.
— You think I'm crazy?!
You want to abandon me?!
Traitor! Monster!
YOU WANT ME DEAD!
Then she grabbed his neck.
Her thin but violent fingers wrapped around his throat, squeezing with a strength born of pure insanity.
— I'LL KILL YOU! WITH MY OWN HANDS! she screamed, eyes bloodshot.
— NO! STOP!!! cried Nari, her voice cracked with panic.
She tried to pull her off — impossible.
The mother screamed even louder, her nails tearing Sion's skin, who was choking, eyes reddening, breath strangled.
— A DOCTOR! PLEASE! Nari sobbed.
— SHE'S GOING TO KILL HIM!!!
The hallway burst into chaos.
Nurses rushed in.
The struggle was violent.
Too violent.
It took three of them to restrain her.
A syringe.
A shrill scream.
Then her body fell back, trembling, her insults dissolving into heart-ripping whimpers.
Nari trembled.
Her hands trembled.
Her legs trembled.
Her heart… was exploding in her chest.
Sion stood still.
Silent.
Eyes empty.
His throat marked red.
Nari saw his eyes fill with tears — a tiny detail, nearly invisible — but it shattered her.
Her Sion.
The same man who faced the entire world without blinking.
The same man who fought against everything and everyone.
Now, here, he was crying.
Soundlessly.
Something had broken inside him.
Nari felt it.
As if the emptiness she had just seen in his eyes… wasn't new.
Nari stepped closer.
Very slowly.
— Sion… she whispered, reaching out her hand.
He recoiled.
Just slightly.
But it tore her heart apart.
The drive back was a tomb.
Not a word.
Not a steady breath.
Only the sound of the engine, heavy, regular, unbearable —
like a mechanical heartbeat hammering inside their skulls.
Nari stared out the window, but her eyes saw nothing.
Seoul's lights streaked past in blurry trails, dissolving into a mix of drizzling rain and tears she barely held back.
Beside her, Sion drove mechanically, his fingers gripping the steering wheel too tightly, veins bulging, knuckles white, jaw clenched so hard it shook.
He was barely breathing.
Each inhale was short.
Ripped out of him.
As if breathing hurt.
As if existing hurt.
Nari wanted to speak.
But every time she opened her mouth, she hit an invisible wall.
A wall of pain.
A wall of shame.
A wall of childhood.
When they finally arrived at his place, Sion stepped out of the car without waiting for her, his steps quick, almost fleeing, crossing the entrance, climbing the stairs, his back a living tension, a contained storm.
Nari closed the door behind her, softly.
He was going to explode.
She felt it in the air.
In the walls.
In the silence that vibrated.
He tried to enter his office.
She caught him just before he could close the door.
— Sion…
No answer.
He kept his head down, shoulders hunched, hand trembling on the handle.
— Sion, look at me.
He didn't move.
So she did something she had never dared to do before.
She placed her hand on his wrist.
Firm.
Firm enough for him to feel her presence, her warmth, her anchor.
— Talk to me. Tell me what you're feeling. I'm here.
Her voice, soft and broken, split the room like a beam of light in darkness.
Sion finally lifted his head.
His eyes were red.
Red from held-back tears.
Red from pain.
Red from rage against himself.
He murmured, in a strangled whisper:
— Let me go.
It hit Nari straight in the chest.
But she stayed.
— What, you're going to push me away again? Run away again? Escape again instead of talking to me?! she shouted suddenly, her voice trembling, tears already burning her cheeks.
Sion closed his eyes.
He pressed his forehead against the door.
He was breathing like a drowning man.
— Let me go, Nari… please… he said, his voice nearly inaudible, cut by a knife.
She didn't let go.
She threw herself against him, her arms wrapped around his waist, her face buried in his back.
She began to cry.
Not softly.
Not silently.
No.
Sobs, raw and cracked and visceral.
Cries pulled from the deepest part of her belly, from every wound she carried, from every fear he awakened in her without meaning to.
— Talk to me! Talk to me, please! Don't push me away! Don't do this!
Sion's body stiffened.
He tried to pull away.
But Nari held on even tighter, her fingers clutching his t-shirt as if she was trying to stop him from falling into a black hole.
— Do you hear me?! Talk to me! she screamed, her voice breaking.
Then something snapped in him.
He turned around abruptly.
His hands grabbed her face with desperate violence, his fingers trembling against her wet cheeks.
He looked at her.
Straight.
Deep.
Bare.
His eyes were flooded with tears.
— Why… why do you stay? he whispered, breathless.
— Why don't you leave? Why don't you hate me? Why aren't you afraid?
Nari placed her hands over his, holding them tightly against her skin.
— Because I love you, Sion.
— I love you like a madwoman.
— I love you with everything I have.
The words fell between them like thunder.
A truth crashing down, heavy, undeniable, irreversible.
Sion's eyes widened.
He inhaled sharply, like a man pulled back to life after being underwater too long.
And he kissed her.
Not like usual.
Not with rage.
Not with fire.
No.
He kissed her with heartbreaking softness.
A trembling kiss.
A kiss where every second quivered with the weight of his tears.
A kiss where he gave everything, even what he had never dared to give.
His fingers slid into Nari's hair.
He held her close, his body molding to hers as if he was trying to disappear inside her.
— I'm sorry…
— I'm so sorry…
— You don't deserve someone like me…
Nari pressed her forehead to his.
— I never asked you to be perfect.
— I asked you to be here.
— And I'm here too.
He broke into silent sobs.
She didn't say a word.
She wiped his tears with her thumbs, slowly, with infinite tenderness.
Then he kissed her again.
Harder.
More urgent.
More alive.
They fell onto the bed with slow, sensual gravity, their bodies curling around each other like two people who finally find each other after being lost in a world too loud.
This time, he undressed her as if he was afraid of breaking her.
As if every gesture was an apology.
A forgiveness.
A confession.
He entered her in one slow, deep movement, his eyes locked into hers.
She arched under him, tears still flowing, their breaths mixing in muffled murmurs.
Every movement was an "I'm here."
Every moan, an "I love you."
Every caress, a "don't leave me."
They finally came together, in a sacred silence.
Bodies trembling.
Tears mixing.
Hearts beating against each other.
Then he kept her close, wrapping himself around her, his breath still ragged, his fingers sliding on her skin as if trying to carve her presence into him.
Nari ran a hand through his hair.
— I'm here, Sion.
He closed his eyes.
A tear slipped down his cheek, slowly, like a confession he would never speak out loud.
And in the silence of the room, two hearts beat together.
Fragile.
Broken.
Alive.
Ready to love each other to ruin.