𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐒𝐓𝐎𝐋𝐄𝐍 𝐑𝐎𝐒𝐄 🌹(18+)

31:- Promises and Shadows

A guy sat on the bench beside the girl, the low hum of the city streets around them barely touching the silence that settled between them. The wind ruffled the girl's hair, and she pulled the strands behind her ear, glancing sideways at the boy, unsure if she should speak first.

He didn't look at her. His eyes were on the ground, but there was an intensity to his gaze that spoke volumes, a kind of quiet strength she hadn't seen in anyone her age. He wore his usual smirk, like he knew something she didn't, like he always had the upper hand in everything, even in moments like these.

"You're here again," she said, her voice softer than she meant it to be.

He didn't respond immediately, only continued to watch the ground, his fingers tapping rhythmically on the bench. The cool evening air hung thick with unspoken words, but for some reason, neither seemed eager to break the silence.

She waited, hands clenched in her lap, wondering what game he was playing today. But his presence was comforting in a way that confused her. She wasn't used to this feeling-the feeling that someone might actually be paying attention.

"Do you always come here to wait for trouble?" she asked, her tone laced with teasing but also a hint of something more-something like fear, but she would never admit it.

The boy turned to her then, his expression unreadable. "Trouble follows me. I don't go looking for it," he said, his voice a low murmur, almost a whisper, but sharp enough to cut through the air between them.

She chuckled, despite herself. "So what's your excuse today?" she teased, nudging him with her elbow.

His lips curled into a smile-half mocking, half genuine. "Maybe I'm here to see if you're any different than the rest." His eyes flicked up to meet hers, and she froze. For a moment, it felt like everything around them had disappeared, the world narrowing down to just the two of them on that bench, sharing a quiet secret.

Her breath caught in her throat. "I'm not like them," she said quickly, defensive, unsure why she felt the need to prove herself to him.

He leaned back, his shoulders relaxed as though the weight of the world didn't touch him. "No. You're not," he said with that same grin, before looking away, his voice shifting to something softer, more serious. "But that doesn't mean you're not in danger, you know?"

She turned her head slightly, sensing something deeper in his words, but before she could ask, he stood up, adjusting his jacket.

"I'll see you around," he said, the words heavy, like a promise or a warning she couldn't fully grasp.

As he walked away, she felt an unfamiliar tug at her chest, something pulling her to ask him more-to ask what he meant by all of this, by the strange connection they shared. But the moment passed, and she was left sitting there, watching his retreating figure disappear into the crowd, the weight of his words lingering in the air long after he was gone.

A smirk curled across Taehyung's lips as he stood by the window of his dimly lit office, the city lights shimmering beneath him like a restless beast waiting to be tamed. He ran a hand over the edge of his jaw, feeling the familiar itch of anticipation crawl under his skin.

Everything was falling into place-the gears turning, the pieces aligning just as he had planned.

Jungkook was leaving.

The news had come as a surprise, yet it was exactly the opportunity Taehyung needed.

After all, the Mafia King didn't leave without a reason, and the fact that Jungkook was going without Nari by his side?