The moment Kai said the words, the air in the room shifted heavy, trembling, suspended between past and present. The confession had slipped from him like a wound tearing open: raw, unplanned, unfiltered. He hadn't meant to say it. He had fought it with every breath, every heartbeat, every lie he stitched together. But Alina had broken every wall he had built, peeled back every layer, pressed every bruise until he bled truth.
And when that truth slipped out, when he whispered, "Yes… I was your roommate," the silence that followed was not silence at all. It was thunder. It was a shattering that echoed in both of their chests.
Alina's lashes trembled. She did not move immediately. She didn't gasp, didn't flinch, didn't even blink. She simply stood there, breathing in that truth like she had been starving for it, like her lungs had forgotten how to function until that moment.
Then very softly, very quietly, she murmured, "Finally."
Her voice was almost a whisper, but it held victory… relief… and something warm and tender that wrapped around Kai like a chain. He stiffened, his grip tightening at his sides as though bracing for something he couldn't name.
Because this moment… this exact second… This was the plan. The trap they had set. The provocation they had crafted. The only way they could pull the truth out of Kai, a man who would rather swallow knives than emotions. And she had done it.
"Finally," she repeated, her eyes softening but shining with something sharp. "This was exactly what Ryan and I planned… the only way to make you say it."
Kai's breath stuttered. Something flickered in his chest: anger? Shock? Fear? Longing? He couldn't tell. It was everything and nothing at once.
She took a step closer, closing the distance between them until there were barely any steps left. The gravity between them was enough to pull planets out of orbit. He didn't move away. Couldn't.
"Kai," she whispered, voice slow, low, heavy like velvet soaked in midnight rain.
They faced each other fully. Close enough that their breaths tangled in the small space between their faces. Close enough that he could feel the warmth from her skin brushing the air around him. Close enough that her scent was soft, familiar, painfully missed, wrapped around him with a force he had never prepared for.
Their eyes locked. And the world… simply… stopped. Not metaphorically. Not poetically. Literally. Her heart thudded hard, too hard. She could feel it in her throat. Kai didn't touch her. He didn't even move.
But his eyes… Those quiet, stormy eyes were fixed on her like she was the only thing in the room worth looking at. And suddenly the whole world felt distant. The ticking clock. The AC hums. The faint traffic outside. Everything faded until it was just the sound of her heartbeat…and his breath brushing her lips.
She didn't blink. He didn't blink either. It wasn't just eye contact; it felt like their souls were leaning closer, reaching, searching. Her stomach twisted tight, sweet, dizzy. A soft flutter spread through her chest, then down to her stomach. Butterflies. A whole storm of them.
She swallowed, but her throat was dry. Kai's gaze flickered just a little from her eyes to her lips. Just once. That single tiny movement sent a spark straight down her spine.
God… why did it feel like he was touching her without touching her? Her breath hitched just slightly. He noticed.
His chest rose, slow and deep, like her closeness was affecting him too… like it was too much, too intense. And still neither of them stepped away.
She didn't know when her fingers brushed his shirt by accident, but the moment they did, Kai's breath caught. Just a fraction of a second. But she felt it. His eyes softened. Like something inside him cracked open.
Her pulse raced faster. She knew he could feel her breath trembling. She could feel his too warm, uneven, brushing her cheek. There were no words between them. But the feeling… The feeling was loud. It was that terrifying, beautiful moment when two people stand on the edge of something they can't name.
His lashes lowered slightly as if he was losing control. As if he was fighting something inside him. And when his hand lifted slowly, hesitantly toward her…
Her whole body froze. Not out of fear. Out of anticipation. He didn't touch her face.
He brushed a loose strand of hair behind her ear instead, slow, careful, like she was something fragile.
Her breath stuttered. Her fingers curled into the fabric of his shirt without her permission. Her entire body felt weightless. This wasn't just an attraction. It wasn't just tension.
It was that moment when two people stop pretending. When the truth sits in their eyes, even if neither of them says it. The room felt too small for the feelings between them. She could swear his heartbeat matched hers, fast, heavy, impossible to ignore.
And then… He leaned in. Not enough to kiss her. Just enough that their foreheads barely brushed. Just enough for his breath to mix with hers completely. The butterflies in her stomach exploded, soft, warm, overwhelming.
Kai forgot where he was. Alina forgot why she came. The tension of accusation, the heaviness of betrayal, the sting of truth, they all melted into the background until nothing remained except the magnetic pull between their hearts.
They were just two hearts standing too close, feeling too much. The kind where a thousand emotions pass with just a blink. Where memories touch memories, and longing reaches longing.
Their hearts were beating too loudly; he could hear hers, she could feel his. Their breaths hitched in rhythm, light and shaky, brushing each other's lips even though they weren't touching. Alina exhaled slowly. Kai inhaled sharply.
It felt like they were the only two souls in existence. As if they had waited lifetimes to stand this close again. A warmth stretched across Alina's chest, an ache made of longing and recognition. She could see everything in Kai's eyes: fear, love, guilt, desire, regret, hunger, the battle he lost and the battle he still wished he could fight.
She didn't speak. She didn't need to. Her eyes said everything. And his eyes spoke back. They were starving for each other. Craving each other. Reaching, trembling, needing.
Alina felt the pull first, the urge to touch his face. Kai felt it too so intensely that his fingers twitched before he could hide it. His hand lifted just an inch. Then another. He touched her fingers lightly, so lightly she barely felt it.
Then his fingers slipped over hers… to her palm… to her wrist… Slow. Gentle at first. As if asking permission without words.
Their eyes never broke contact. Not even for a second. Her breath trembled. His heartbeat thundered. And then....Kai's grip tightened.
His expression changed in one quick, sharp flicker, his jaw hardened, his eyes darkened, a storm flickered behind his pupils. Before Alina could react, he slid his fingers along her wrist, gripped it firmly, and twisted her arm behind her back in one swift movement.
She gasped. "Aah—Kai!" she cried, shocked, breathless. Her body reacted instantly, tensing under the sudden pain.
"What...what are you doing?" she demanded, voice breaking.
Kai twisted a little more, not enough to injure, but enough to send shockwaves through her nerves. His face came close... too close, and yet his eyes were cold. The warmth from moments ago burned into smoke.
"I'm removing the delusion," he said, voice low and rough. The dominance in his tone was chilling. Sharp. Controlled. Dangerous.
"The delusion you have," he continued, twisting a little more, making her gasp again, "that I am sweet… caring… and gentle." His voice cut like a blade.
"Hear me carefully...I am none of those."
Her breath trembled half from pain, half from the shock of his sudden change.
"You think I'm someone with those characters..." he said, leaning closer, "…but you're wrong." He twisted again.
"Aah—!" Alina's cry broke the air.
He didn't flinch.
"I don't care about you," Kai said, his voice cold enough to freeze through skin. "I don't worry about you." He twisted once more.
"Stop—Kai, please—!" she gasped.
"Understand?" he asked. "Or should I explain more?" Then his grip loosened. He let her wrist go suddenly, stepping back as if she burned him.
"Get out," he said sharply. His voice carried no hesitation. No softness. No cracks. Only ice.
Alina winced, rotating her wrist as pain pulsed through it. She turned sideways, her face twisting not just in physical pain but in emotional shock. She moved toward the couch and sat down slowly, crossing one leg over the other, knowing very well he was expecting her to storm out.
Instead, she lifted her chin. "There is no way I'm leaving," she said quietly. "Not until I get my answer."
Kai froze in place. Then he scoffed. "Fine. Stay here." He turned and strode toward the door of his office, jaw tight, movements sharp.
"Hey…" she called softly as she watched him walk away, but he didn't stop.
"What happened to him…" she whispered to herself. "Why is he hurting like this…" Her hand cradled her wrist. Her heart cradled something much deeper. The storm had only begun.