Aiven barely slept.
Every time he shut his eyes, the headline burned behind them like fire:
"WHO IS THE BOY WITH RAZE?"
And worse—
#RazeMysteryBoy
#KiyoshiRaidenCaught
#ECLYPSEScandal
By morning, Aiven felt like he'd been crushed under the weight of the entire internet.
His tea turned cold on the table.
His phone buzzed nonstop, vibrating like it wanted to run away from him.
Fans demanding answers.
Idol blogs tagging him.
Group chats exploding.
He pressed the phone face-down and sighed shakily.
But the next vibration stopped him.
From: Unknown Contact
Only one name showed:
Kiyoshi Raiden
Aiven's breath froze.
Raze.
Stage name: Raze.
Real name: Kiyoshi Raiden.
ECLYPSE's center.
The idol whose life he'd ruined by accident.
The message was short:
> Raze: We need to meet. Now.
Aiven's fingers trembled as he typed:
> Aiven: Sorry, wrong number.
Instant reply.
> Raze: Aiven Hale.
Open your door.
He blinked.
…My door?
A sudden knock shook the apartment.
Three slow, controlled knocks.
Aiven jumped to his feet, heart pounding in uneven beats.
"No. No way. He didn't—"
He opened the door.
And froze.
Raze stood there.
All in black.
Mask. Hoodie.
Cold air still clinging to his hair.
His silver-gray eyes locked on Aiven like a storm trapped behind glass.
"Can I come in?" Raze asked, voice low and sharp.
"You—y-you can't be here," Aiven stuttered. "What if someone saw you?"
"No one followed me," Raze replied, stepping inside anyway.
"I've dealt with worse than sneaking past fans."
Aiven swallowed as Raze entered his small kitchen, towering over the space like he didn't belong in a world this ordinary.
Raze pulled off his mask.
No makeup.
No cameras.
Just a tired, beautiful boy with exhaustion written in his eyes.
"You should have told me someone was filming last night," Raze said quietly.
Aiven snapped. "I didn't even know someone was filming!"
Raze stepped closer.
Closer.
Until Aiven could feel his breath.
"Then why," Raze said softly, "is your face everywhere? News. Twitter. Fanpages. Even ECLYPSE's official comment section."
Aiven looked away. "I didn't ask for this."
Raze's jaw clenched.
"And I didn't ask for a scandal a week before our Christmas comeback," he shot back.
"Zenith is furious. Kaze won't shut up. Astryx is threatening to kill whoever posted the video. And Nova keeps asking if you're nice."
Aiven blinked in shock.
"They… they know about me?"
"Oh, they know," Raze said darkly. "The whole world knows."
Aiven felt his chest tighten. "Just tell them I'm nobody. It'll go away."
Raze shook his head once—slow and dangerous.
"It won't."
Another step forward.
"You need to help me fix this."
Aiven stared. "Fix what?"
Raze's eyes softened for the first time.
"Everything," he whispered.
Aiven's breath caught.
"I'm an idol," Raze continued. "A scandal ruins more than me. It affects the entire group. The company. The fans. Everyone."
Aiven looked down. "I didn't mean to ruin your life…"
Raze reached out and lifted Aiven's chin with one finger.
"You didn't ruin it," he said.
"But you did change it."
Aiven's heart skipped.
Raze exhaled.
"My real name," he said softly, "is Kiyoshi Raiden."
His eyes held Aiven's.
"Now tell me yours… properly. Not the one the internet is screaming."
Aiven swallowed.
"Aiven Hale," he whispered.
Raze smiled—small, tired, real.
"So, Aiven Hale…"
He stepped even closer.
"What are we going to do about the fact that the world thinks you're my boyfriend?"
Aiven's breath stopped completely.