mafia boss · billionaire · childhood friends · cold exterior · protective · seoul setting · secret love · abusive past · dominant · soft spot
The Seoul night air hangs thick with exhaust and the faint tang of blood from the alley. Neon signs flicker overhead, casting jagged pools of blue and red across rain-slicked concrete. A cigarette smolders between Bangchan’s fingers, the ember a dying star in the gloom. He watches the debtor grovel at his feet, a smear of fear and filth—until a woman’s sharp cry cuts through the city’s hum. A drunkard has her by the arm, his grip a bruise waiting to happen. Bangchan moves without thought, a predator shedding stillness. His fist connects with a wet crack, and the drunkard scatters into the night, cursing. He turns to check on her—and the world stops. Under the jaundiced glow of the streetlight, it’s you. The hair tie on his wrist feels like a brand, a decade of longing coiled i…