I took a step closer, slow and deliberate, closing the space between us inch by inch. My fingers twitched at my side, then lifted—drawn to her without permission. I brushed a knuckle along her cheekbone, soft and tentative. She didn’t flinch. Didn’t pull away. If anything, she leaned in.
That was all I needed.
I dipped my head. Not rushed. Not hungry. Just… drawn. And when my lips found hers, everything stilled.
Her mouth was warm, and the kiss was nothing like the ones I’d known before—those had been games, weapons, distractions. This was something quieter. A breath shared in the dark. Her hands found their way to my chest, not pushing me away, but curling into the fabric of my shirt like she needed something to hold on to.
I pulled back a fraction, enough to see her face again—her lashes fluttering, her lips slightly parted, her cheeks tinged pink. A breathless beat passed.
“What was that for?” she asked, voice hushed and disbelieving.
My answer came without thought, carved from somewhere deep in my chest. “Because you’re here,” I said. “And I want you here.”
She stared at me for a long, heavy second. I could see the questions swirl behind her eyes—the ones she wouldn’t ask yet. But she didn’t need to. Not now.
Instead, she stepped in, almost touching. Her breath ghosted against my jaw. “You really mean that?” she whispered.
“Yeah,” I said, steady as a vow. “More than you know.”
She didn’t answer with words. Just leaned into me again, closer than before. And in that charged stillness, where nothing else existed but her hands against my chest and the weight of all the things we hadn’t said, I knew one thing for certain:
This wasn’t pretend anymore.
The moment our lips met again, the world around us faded. There was no arena, no bet, no ghosts from my past whispering warnings in my ear. Just Mina—soft, warm, real. Her hands gripped my shirt tighter as I deepened the kiss, pouring everything I felt into that one moment.
I’d never been good at this—letting someone in. But with her, it felt almost natural, like breathing. My heart raced as I savored the taste of her; a hint of cocoa and something sweetly intoxicating that was entirely her own. The softness of her mouth against mine sent jolts through me—an electric charge that ignited something I’d buried for too long.
I pulled back just enough to catch her gaze. Her eyes sparkled with surprise and warmth, like she couldn’t quite believe what had just happened. I didn’t want to think about how much courage it took to stand there—to be this close without fear creeping back in.
She looked up at me like she was still catching up to her own heartbeat, lips slightly parted, cheeks flushed. I could see it—the war waging behind her eyes. Hope and disbelief. Want and hesitation. It mirrored everything I felt down to the marrow.
I lifted a hand, brushing my thumb gently along her jawline, grounding myself in the softness of her skin. “You okay?” I asked, voice low, careful not to shatter whatever fragile magic we’d just built between us.
She nodded slowly, eyes not leaving mine. “Yeah,” she whispered. “Just… trying to remember how to function.”
That made me smile—an actual, real one. Not smirk. Not amused exhale. A quiet, reluctant smile that tugged from some place I didn’t know existed before her.
“Really,” I said.
She took a breath, and for a moment, neither of us moved. I could feel her hands still clutched in my shirt, not pulling away. Like maybe she needed that anchor just as much as I did.
“We’re in trouble, aren’t we?” she asked softly, her words feather-light but razor-sharp.
I let my forehead rest against hers, barely touching. “Yeah,” I murmured. “But I’m not running.”
And in the space between that promise and the next breath, something settled between us—quiet, powerful, and terrifying in its truth.
I pressed my lips gently to the curve of her neck, letting the warmth of her skin seep into me. She gasped—just a breath, just enough—and it lit something inside me I hadn’t realized I was holding back. My hand slid up, brushing the fabric of her shirt away from her shoulder. One kiss. Then another. Slow, reverent. Like a promise I hadn’t spoken aloud yet.
Then her voice cut through the haze, quiet but certain.
“Wait.”
I stilled instantly. My heart thundered, but I stepped back, giving her space without hesitation. Her gaze dropped, breaking the spell we’d spun between us.
“I… I shouldn’t,” she murmured.
The words weren’t rejection—but they weren’t surrender either. I searched her face, jaw tight with restraint. “Because of him?” I asked, sharper than I meant to be. Mikel’s name burned on my tongue like poison.
