I used to think the hardest part of love was finding it.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVzJwRFO7cA
Turns out, the real battle begins when someone tries to take it away.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHgdRUeO1zz
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdbLkInDYFt
The morning after Ariana confessed everything, I woke up before she did. She slept softly beside me, her body curled slightly toward mine as if afraid that even in sleep, I might vanish.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVi0Zml4TmP
I watched her for a while, wondering how someone so strong could carry so much fear beneath her smile.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8ufreHXh8P
Leo (thinking): I won’t let her fight this alone.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHHot9PL0eg
I slipped out of bed and stepped onto the balcony. The Seoul skyline stretched beneath the morning sun gold and bronze light touching every window, every rooftop.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxAFYBSl623
A new day. A war waiting to begin.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMcuRwdDUnU
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsAA1u83QWZ
At 9 AM, I received a call.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnJ1eTaIYDS
Unknown number.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkt6KP2PwXo
I knew who it was.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh888njH6GV
I answered.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr8FZxvLkGQ
Leo: Speak.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsEfLDMLtTc
A calm voice replied, steady but laced with quiet arrogance.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9D1hgIViGH
Hyun-Woo: You’re bold to answer so quickly.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ94YDsMGeOI
Leo: You’re bold to threaten me so indirectly.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbx6abPTGlM
A short pause. I could practically hear his smirk.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyLwFgFHwPQ
Hyun-Woo: Threat? No. Consider it… advice. Stay away from what isn’t yours.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe7CHqHAkCJ
Leo: She is not property.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTGWT8MKFtX
Hyun-Woo: She is promised. Our families her legacy her duty belongs here. Not with some outsider chasing fairy tales.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg3i66ZJOmy
My grip tightened on the phone.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3fdMtDMSAT
Leo: If she wanted you, she wouldn’t have left.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJ813cTGqIG
Silence. Then
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZq5yHdKYtV
Hyun-Woo: You think she left me? No, Leo. Her leaving was temporary. You… are temporary. And I will prove it.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYsOvTRODZe
The line went dead.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq03dvpS2ef
By afternoon, I was restless. Ariana was on her way back from a meeting, so I decided to wait for her at a café nearby. I sat facing the window, watching people pass by.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6GFiZe3At1
Then someone stepped inside.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnqgE8exroO
I didn’t need an introduction.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5os6U2uH9h
Tall. Sharp suit. Cold presence. Eyes like winter.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8LTLJCBXf5
Hyun-Woo.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUM8D20i03i
He walked straight to my table.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFwXAuEGGNs
Without asking, he sat down.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2bqKMK7Dc0
Hyun-Woo: It’s better we speak face to face.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWA8VJHEtYe
Leo: You’re not wasting time.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSJ2Ar9RHzn
Hyun-Woo: I don’t have time to waste.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPfgtLEQuMu
He leaned forward slightly, his gaze piercing.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw8VYnpFDbU
Hyun-Woo: Do you know why Ariana is valuable? It’s not just beauty. Not just kindness. It's her loyalty. Her sense of responsibility. And that… will bring her back to me.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtSlAwVi8EP
Leo: Loyalty isn’t duty. It’s choice. And she chose me.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1BdXWRFI6X
His jaw clenched, but his voice remained calm.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhZSYLb9hjX
Hyun-Woo: She will choose right, in the end.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPanYnUjfuw
Leo: Meaning… you’ll force her?
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLgdcfl1aSC
His eyes hardened.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeJGojpHqBp
Hyun-Woo: Meaning I don’t lose.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHPqUjgXzy0
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXbl7vJarID
Before I could respond, a familiar voice cut through the tension.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2LCMua74Tp
Ariana: Hyun-Woo.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPaudp1lWLx
She stood at the entrance, her expression unreadable strong, but wounded.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNd4yRXUVGM
He turned, his voice softening unnaturally.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBQsKhQnjtg
Hyun-Woo: Ariana. I was just
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfbzIcoNwcw
Ariana: Interfering. Again.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT1oDqL9D4U
She walked toward us, her gaze switching between us.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWPXJaqba9I
Ariana: Leo… Hyun-Woo… this ends now.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUN7lwhVN4V
She took my hand.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI66YTTZqlw
Hyun-Woo’s eyes flickered not with anger, but with something far more dangerous.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAhA4RGkAzY
Possession.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXm210wvR16
But as we walked away, I knew this wasn’t over.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbU4VUYq2df
That man was not going to walk away quietly.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw6nunXwLdb
And somewhere deep inside me…
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh91VT2u5d5
Something darker than fear began to stir.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfwrHbEOkPS
Not just love.
294Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlYlYJbUCOU
Defiance.
and then Add to home screen.