My anger flares, but I remain silent, lost in the depths of his mesmerizing eyes. "You have a knack for getting on my nerves," he says, chuckling softly.
"And you have a knack for making everything infinitely more complicated," I retort, though my v...
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"You're avoiding me."
The words sliced through the smoky air, laced with that unmistakable arrogance only Hwang could muster. I didn’t bother turning around. My grip tightened around the glass I’d just poured, the amber liquid inside rippling slightly. I could feel his eyes on the back of my neck, like he was daring me to react.
"No, Hwang, I don’t avoid people."
"Yet you're avoiding me." His tone was smug, almost playful, but it carried an edge that grated on my nerves.
I finally turned to face him, taking a slow, deliberate sip of my drink. His smirk deepened as I met his gaze. He was pissing me off, but maybe that was because he was right. I would never admit that to him, though. "I’ve always avoided you."
Hwang’s smirk shifted into something darker, something that sent a shiver down my spine despite my efforts to remain unfazed. "I must have fucked you up, huh?"
I narrowed my eyes, my grip on the glass tightening as I resisted the urge to throw it in his face. He was enjoying this too much, and that only made me want to punch him even more. But instead, I kept my voice calm, even though it took everything in me to do so. "You’ve fucked up a lot, Hwang. Which fuck-up are we talking about here?"
He rolled his eyes and chuckled, the sound low and grating. "I’ll let you pretend it didn’t happen, but just know that I won’t." With that, he turned to the drink stand, casually pouring himself a glass like we were old friends chatting over drinks instead of bitter rivals exchanging barbs.
I sighed and leaned against the table, trying to shake off the unease that crawled beneath my skin. "You’re an ass, you know that?"
"Why? Because I left you wanting more?" His voice was dripping with mockery, his eyes fixed on his drink as he smirked.
I ran a hand through my hair, trying to calm the storm brewing inside me. Was he crazy? What the hell was Hwang doing, flirting with me? This had to be some kind of twisted game, and I wasn’t about to play along. "No, Hwang. Because you enjoy getting on my nerves."
Finally, he looked up, his gaze locking onto mine as he stepped closer. The distance between us was suffocating, like he was daring me to close it—or maybe daring me to run. "Then riddle me this, Han: you could’ve pushed me away. Hell, you could’ve punched me. So tell me… why didn’t you?"
His smirk only grew as he whispered those words, and I hated that they got under my skin the way they did. It was a damn good question, and I didn’t have an answer. At least, not one I was willing to admit.
"You should go find Lee," I muttered, desperate to shut down this conversation before it spiraled any further.
Hwang just leaned back, still smirking like he had all the time in the world. "Lee’s busy arguing with Yang. So, to entertain myself, I’m here—arguing with you."
