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Chapter 9 - Chapter 9 "The Long Night"

Ayaka's hands were trembling as she slowly slid open the bedroom door. The faint creak made her freeze mid-motion, her heart thundering in her chest.

She peeked in. Minato was asleep, his body sprawled comfortably across the futon, snoring softly. The sound, normally a source of quiet annoyance, now gave her a strange sense of relief. She lingered another second, watching him—her husband—before slowly backing away, shutting the door with a whisper of sound.

She tiptoed to the back entrance, switched off all the outside porch lights one by one, then unlocked the wooden side gate with practiced stealth. As she slipped outside, the humid summer air clung to her skin, mixing with the sweat already forming on her brow.

Riku was there. Leaning casually against the compound wall at the edge of their property, half-lit by moonlight, arms crossed like he owned the night.

Ayaka ran straight to him and grabbed his wrist roughly. Her voice was barely above a whisper but full of fury.

"Are you insane? What the hell are you doing here? Are you a moron or what?"

She pulled him behind the house, where shadows cloaked them from any street view. Her eyes darted toward the neighboring windows. One curtain shifted—and she froze—but it was just the wind.

Riku smirked, saying nothing at first. Instead, he reached into his hoodie pocket and pulled out something small and dark.

Ayaka's breath hitched.

It was a black lace panty—hers.

The one she'd worn the night at Ogawa Love Hotel. The one she must've forgotten in the tangled sheets.

He brought it to his nose and inhaled deeply, shamelessly, his eyes locking with hers as he did.

"Forgot something, didn't you?" he said.

Ayaka's mouth fell open, horror twisting her features. She lunged and snatched it from his hand, crumpling the fabric tightly in her fist.

"You came all the way here just for this?" she hissed.

Riku leaned in closer, his breath brushing her cheek. "I came to return it. I thought you might want a souvenir."

"Riku…" Her voice cracked with a mix of anger and desperation. "You need to go. Now. Before someone sees you. Do you have any idea what would happen if—"

"Relax," he said with a shrug. "Everyone's asleep. Including your boring husband."

Her eyes narrowed. "Don't you dare talk about him."

Riku's grin widened, unbothered. He leaned his back against the wall casually.

"I'll leave," he said. "But not until I get what I came for."

Ayaka blinked. "What are you talking about? You already gave me the panties, so—"

He interrupted, voice low and teasing.

"No, Ayaka. I came for sex."

The words hit her like a slap. Her stomach twisted.

"Are you crazy?! Here?! At my house?!"

"Behind your house," he corrected smoothly. "You're already this worked up. Might as well make it worth it."

She stared at him, panting, heart slamming in her ribcage—torn between fear, disgust, and that ever-persistent heat between her thighs.

Her fingers were still clenched around the black lace.

Ayaka's eyes widened. Her grip on the crumpled black lace in her hand tightened as she hissed through clenched teeth.

"No way." Her voice came out in a strangled whisper, urgent and breathless. "Get out. Right now."

Riku just tilted his head, smirking like a brat catching his prey squirming.

"Aww, Ayaka-chan…" he cooed mockingly, dragging out her name with a childish lilt. "You're getting angry. Should I wake up your husband to calm you down?"

Her blood turned to ice.

"Of course, you love him, right? I'm sure he'd be happy to comfort his dear wife… while she's out here whispering in the dark with another man."

Ayaka stumbled back a step, heart sinking like a stone in water.

"Please…" she breathed, her voice breaking into a trembling whisper. "I beg you. Just go now. Before anyone—"

But Riku wasn't listening. He turned from her and casually lowered himself onto the grass lawn, sitting cross-legged like he was at a picnic.

His face was calm. His smile was infuriatingly smug.

"No." He looked up at her. "I will not go…" A pause. "...until I fuck you tonight."

Ayaka's knees nearly gave out.

Her whole body was trembling now—not from anger, but from fear, from adrenaline, from the twisted coil of emotions that had been strangling her for weeks.

She glanced back at the dark windows of the house.

Minato was inside. Sleeping. So close. So trusting.

And just a few meters away, in the dark, the man who knew her filthiest secret was sitting on her lawn with a quiet, perverse patience.

She felt sick. 

"Please…" Ayaka whispered, barely holding it together. "Go now. We'll meet tomorrow. At the love hotel."

Riku raised an eyebrow, unimpressed.

"Nope."

She swallowed, her voice cracking.

"I'm begging you. Not here… if anyone finds out—not just me—Sakura and Hana's lives will be destroyed."

For a second, there was silence.

Then Riku scoffed.

"I couldn't care less."

The bluntness of his words hit her like a slap.

Ayaka's eyes shimmered with silent panic.

"Please…" she said again, more desperately.

"No."

He wasn't moving. Just sitting there on her lawn like a demon with all the time in the world.

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