When I opened my eyes, I saw an unfamiliar ceiling.
My head felt heavy, and the tip of my tongue felt rough like dry sand.
The hot, forced sensation of that time still lingered on her lips.
“You’re awake, my pretty one.”
When I turned my head, he was sitting on a chair with his legs crossed.
There were dried red stains on his arms, but his expression was extremely relaxed.
As soon as I opened my eyes, he smiled as if he had been waiting for me.
“…What was it, just now….”
As soon as the words came out, my throat felt like it was burning.
He handed me a glass of water.
“Was it hard? You suddenly collapsed….”
His golden eyes pierced me.
It was only then that I realized.
That I swallowed something in that kiss.
That which had been forced in had cut off my consciousness.
“You can’t live without me.”
He placed his hand over mine, which was holding the glass of water.
“I felt bad for you because you kept trying to run away… I just let you sleep for a little while.”
My hands tightened as if I was out of breath.
“Even taking medicine….”
“But you woke up. And in the end, you’re by my side.”
His voice sank low, but unwavering.
"Pretty, admit it now. You're mine. Whether I drug you to sleep or hold you like this... you'll always be by my side."
In the cold room, I was trapped again.
Even though I closed my eyes, his breath never disappeared.
The moment I saw his eyes consumed by madness, my breath caught in my throat.
His breath flowing over my lips was hot, almost cruel.
“Still trembling like this… How can you say you don’t love me?”
His voice pierced my ears and crushed my heart.
I shook my head violently.
“No… It’s not love… It’s fear!”
His golden eyes flickered for a moment.
But soon, it was covered with crazy laughter.
“Fear is love, too, pretty girl. That’s why you can’t leave me.”
At that moment, a faint light came in through the crack in the door behind me.
If he hadn't sent his men out, I might have already been dead.
But now, I had to seize even a moment to seize the opportunity.
I stamped on his feet with all my might.
“Huh…!”
The moment he flinched, he barely escaped the suffocating arms and ran down the hallway.
The floor was covered in blood.
I was followed by a vision of a corpse's hand grabbing my ankle.
The sound of his footsteps coming from behind was leisurely.
As if he was sure of it.
“It’s no use running away. Wherever you go in the world, I’ll find you.”
I grabbed a small dagger hanging on the wall.
Since he had already destroyed the gun, this was his only option.
His shadow is getting closer.
I was out of breath, but strangely enough, my heart was calm.
"I have to end this hellish relationship with this person."
The moment he approached and extended his hand, I raised my dagger.
“Pretty, that expression….”
Before his voice could reach me—
I stabbed the knife deep into his chest.
“……!”
His eyes widened as if he was out of breath.
The gold light faintly wavered and was consumed by the red.
Blood ran down my hand.
He put his hand on my shoulder without saying a word, and even as he fell, he still looked at me.
“It’s pretty until the end….”
His last words faded away, like an echo.
I leaned against the collapsed wall and stared blankly down at my bloody hands.
My heart was pounding like crazy, but at the same time it felt heavy.
The last breath of the man I loved was seeping into my hand.
It wasn't that I had to leave him, it was that I had to end him.
That was the freedom I gained.
As I walked down the hallway, the echoes of gunshots behind me grew increasingly distant.
Now, for the first time, I could live under my own name.
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Continued in the next episode>>>>>
What do you think…? It’s my first time with a short story… haha