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Niki Nishimura couldn’t shake the strange feeling that had settled over him ever since he’d locked eyes with that stranger at the bar. It was rare that anyone held his attention for more than a few seconds on a case, but there was something about the young man’s face that lingered in Niki’s mind like a shadow.
That face—soft, angelic, and serene—was so at odds with the violent world surrounding them that it felt like a breath of fresh air. Yet there was something else, too: a hint of something hidden behind those gentle eyes that sent an uncomfortable chill down his spine. He had almost dismissed it, yet his instinct told him to keep watching. As much as he hated to admit it, he was intrigued, a feeling he could neither explain nor entirely ignore.
By the time Niki returned to the precinct, it was past midnight, but he was wide awake, drawn back to his evidence board like it might suddenly reveal something he’d missed. He stared at the photos: grainy security footage, close-ups of the black roses left at each scene, and profiles of each victim—all powerful men with reputations for charming others and wielding their influence mercilessly.
And then, in the corner of his mind, that fleeting image of the beautiful stranger from the bar.
What was it about him that felt so… familiar?
Shaking off the thought, Niki pulled out a fresh notepad, scrawling new observations and piecing through potential leads. But after nearly an hour, his mind wandered back to that encounter, unable to let go of the way the man’s gaze had held him, just for a second. The moment had been fleeting, yet it echoed like a warning.
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ACROSS TOWN
Sunoo leaned back in his dimly lit apartment, the glow of the city casting a soft, blue light across his face. The thrill of another successful night coursed through him, a dark satisfaction settling in his chest. Yet, strangely, his thoughts weren’t on his target or even on his next move—they were on the detective he’d seen at the bar. Detective Nishimura.
That look in Niki’s eyes had been different from anything Sunoo had seen before. A focused intensity, mixed with something… else. Curiosity, perhaps. Or suspicion. Either way, it had felt too close for comfort, and yet, deep down, a part of him had wanted the detective to look just a second longer, to truly see him.
He laughed softly to himself, shaking off the thought. He couldn’t afford distractions. Not now, not when he had carefully crafted each step to leave nothing but whispers and roses behind him.
Still, his mind kept returning to Niki, wondering if the detective would remember him or if he’d simply blend back into the blur of faces in a case full of them.
---
THE NEXT DAY
Niki found himself lingering near the art gallery in the heart of Morcrest. He didn’t know why he was there, exactly. Maybe he was trying to follow a lead, or maybe it was just a way to clear his mind from the case that seemed to haunt him at every turn. As he moved through the gallery, he found himself drawn to a photograph on the wall: a stark, monochrome shot of a city street at dusk, almost identical to the alley where the last victim had been found.
“Do you like it?”
The voice was soft, almost delicate, but it made Niki freeze. Turning, he came face to face with the last person he’d expected to see: the stranger from the bar.
Sunoo’s expression was as calm and inviting as it had been the night before, his gaze holding Niki’s with a gentle curiosity. He tilted his head, waiting for Niki to respond.
“It’s… haunting,” Niki managed, his voice catching in his throat. “Almost too real.”
“Real can be beautiful,” Sunoo replied softly, his gaze never wavering. He took a step closer, his calm presence somehow magnetic. “Sometimes, people only see what they want to see. It’s safer that way.”
For a moment, Niki felt like he was falling, drawn in by Sunoo’s serene expression and the way his words seemed to carry a double meaning. He knew he should ask for the man’s name, yet he hesitated, afraid of shattering the mystery.
“Are you an art lover, Detective?” Sunoo asked, his voice a gentle murmur, laced with the faintest hint of amusement.
The use of his title sent a jolt through Niki. He hadn’t introduced himself, and yet this stranger knew exactly who he was. The quiet smile on Sunoo’s lips suggested that this hadn’t been a coincidence.
“You know who I am?” Niki’s voice held a mixture of curiosity and caution.
Sunoo’s smile grew just a fraction, his eyes bright with a secret that he didn’t intend to share. “I do my research,” he replied simply, before turning his gaze back to the photograph, as if it held answers only he could see.
Niki studied him, suspicion stirring in his chest. Everything about this encounter felt orchestrated, yet there was nothing he could prove, no reason to call him out. For all he knew, Sunoo was just another Morcrest resident caught in the intrigue of the Saint of Shadows case. Yet, his gut told him otherwise.
And for the first time, Niki found himself wondering if his killer might be standing right in front of him.
“I didn’t catch your name,” Niki said finally, his voice steady but his eyes searching.
“Sunoo,” he replied, his voice as calm and smooth as the quiet before a storm. “Just Sunoo.”
A chill crept up Niki’s spine, yet he couldn’t look away. Sunoo’s gaze held him in place, a glint of something dark flickering behind those innocent eyes.
“Well, Sunoo,” Niki said, his voice low and careful, “I don’t usually take to strangers, but… it seems like we’re bound to run into each other.”
Sunoo’s lips curled into the faintest of smiles, the kind that felt both warm and dangerous, like the edge of a blade hidden behind velvet. “Maybe that’s just the way of things, Detective.”
With that, he turned, disappearing into the crowd without a second glance. But as Niki watched him go, his heart pounded with a strange mixture of excitement and dread, realizing that he might have just come face-to-face with the very shadow he’d been chasing.
---
HDJSBDJSBWJWNWNWB I WAS GIGGLING WHEN I DID THIS
