THE WORLD SHE PAINTED RED |KTH(18+)

CH-75| LOSING!~

Isabella's POV – 30th Floor

Her heels struck the marble like bullets as she sprinted toward the elevators, jabbing the button with trembling fingers. Her mind was chaos, her heart hammering so violently it hurt.

Please, please, please... let him be okay. God, please.

The elevator doors slid open, and she flew inside, pressing the 30th floor button so hard her nail bent. Her reflection in the steel walls stared back at her—eyes wide, lips moving in frantic whispers. Prayers. Pleas. Anything.

He has to be safe. He has to be alive. He can't—

The doors opened, and smoke hit her like a wall. Alarms wailed, red lights flashing. People were shouting, running past her, but she didn't hear a word. All she saw was the thick smoke curling down the corridor—the direction of the security room.

Her pulse roared in her ears as she ran, tears stinging her eyes from both fear and the acrid burn of smoke.

When she reached the security room, chaos exploded before her eyes. Flames licked through the doorway, black smoke billowing out as security and staff tried to douse the fire with extinguishers. The heat scorched the air, the sound of crackling flames swallowing everything.

"Move!" she shouted, trying to push past the men blocking the entrance.

"Ma'am, no! It's too dangerous!" someone yelled, grabbing her arm.

She struggled violently, shoving against their grip, her voice breaking into a scream:
"Leave me the fuck alone! Let me go inside!"

"Ma'am, please—"

"HE'S INSIDE!" she roared, her voice echoing through the corridor, raw and desperate. Tears blurred her vision as panic clawed at her lungs. "He's inside! He needs me!"

She fought like hell, her heels slipping on the slick floor as smoke curled around them. Her nails dug into their arms as she thrashed against their hold, her sob ripping out like a wound torn open.

"LET ME GO!" she screamed, her voice shattering, her throat raw. "TAEHYUNG!!!"

The name tore from her lips like a prayer and a curse all at once, echoing over the chaos. Her heart slammed against her ribs as the men held her back, the flames devouring the doorway she'd give anything to cross.

And for the first time in her life, Park Isabella—queen of control, steel and fire—broke completely. Because the thought of losing him was a pain sharper than any bullet.

"TAEHYUNG!" Her scream ripped through the chaos, raw enough to make everyone freeze for a heartbeat. She yanked and twisted in their grip like a wild thing, nails clawing, heels skidding.

"Ma'am, stop! The fire—"

"LET ME GO!" she shrieked, fury and terror colliding until her strength surged. With one brutal jerk, she broke free from their hold, stumbling forward toward the flames.

Smoke clawed at her throat as she dashed to the threshold. The heat seared her skin, but she didn't care—didn't feel anything but the crushing fear in her chest.

Please... let him be alive... let me see him...

Her steps faltered.

Through the thick smoke, a silhouette emerged—tall, staggering, coughing violently. His white shirt clung to his frame, streaked with soot, the buttons half torn. His coat—gone. His tie—missing. His hair disheveled, falling over eyes that searched blindly through the haze.

Her breath shattered as tears spilled free. "Tae..." she whispered, the word trembling out like a prayer.

He stopped too, his body swaying slightly as his gaze locked on her. Relief flickered in his dark eyes—relief so raw it stole her breath.