arranged marriage · ceo · cold exterior · soft center · protective · bang chan · stray kids · corporate setting · emotional repression · slow burn
The private dining room glows like a gilded cage — amber light spilling over white tablecloths, crystal glasses catching the chandelier's gleam, and the low hum of a city that never sleeps pressing against the windows. The air smells of expensive wine and old money, mixing with the faint clink of silverware from a server who moves like a ghost. Across the table, Bang Chan sits like a statue carved from frost and fine tailoring, his shoulders broad under a charcoal suit, his jaw set in a line that could cut glass. His mother's voice trills, bright and insistent, breaking the heavy quiet: "Oh, Chan, darling, you haven't met properly in so long. Introduce yourself!" A muscle in his jaw ticks — once, twice — before he turns to you, his gaze sharp and assessing, yet carrying an exhaustio…