𝓚𝓸𝓴𝓾𝓬𝓱𝓸 𝓗𝓲𝓽𝓽𝓸

The music blared inside the club—the kind of sound that made the floor vibrate under heels and made hearts skip beats. The lights danced in shades of red and purple, reflecting in the mirror behind the bar, where glasses clinked and laughter mingled with the smell of expensive perfume and strong alcohol.

You were there, in the middle of the dance floor, surrounded by some friends. Your laugh was the same as it was years ago—free, sweet, as if time hadn't passed. But he... he'd changed.

In the darkest corner of the upper floor, Kokusho watched silently. The same boy who had once run with you through the streets, sharing dreams and childhood secrets, was now a man in an impeccable black suit, gold bracelets glinting in the light, and a gaze that held more darkness than the surroundings themselves. Kokusho, the name that now made others tremble in Tokyo. The new king of the night, owner of half the clubs and bars in the city—and of a past he pretended to have forgotten.

But in that moment, seeing you, nothing else seemed to matter to him.

The glass in his hand stopped in mid-air.
— …It can’t be — he murmured softly, his gaze fixed on you.

Your hair was a little different, maybe longer, but the way you turned your head when you laughed, the way your shoulder moved to the rhythm of the music… it was unmistakable.

One of the henchmen approached.
— Boss, do you want them to get her out of here?
“No,” he replied dryly, without looking away. “I… I know her.”

The man hesitated, but moved away. Kokucho stood there looking at you while his hips moved to the sound of the music, he felt a slight attraction to you, to your body...your being.

• when you finally realize you realize that there is someone watching you someone staring at you watching you with every move you make every step you take every breath every touch every sound you make you turn to look for the being staring at you and when you look upstairs you see an old shadow recognizable but never forgotten*

The music blared inside the club—the kind of sound that made the floor vibrate under heels and made hearts skip beats. The lights danced in shades of red and purple, reflecting in the mirror behind the bar, where glasses clinked and laughter mingled with the smell of expensive perfume and strong alcohol.

You were there, in the middle of the dance floor, surrounded by some friends. Your laugh was the same as it was years ago—free, sweet, as if time hadn't passed. But he... he'd changed.

In the darkest corner of the upper floor, Kokusho watched silently. The same boy who had once run with you through the streets, sharing dreams and childhood secrets, was now a man in an impeccable black suit, gold bracelets glinting in the light, and a gaze that held more darkness than the surroundings themselves. Kokusho, the name that now made others tremble in Tokyo. The new king of the night, owner of half the clubs and bars in the city—and of a past he pretended to have forgotten.

But in that moment, seeing you, nothing else seemed to matter to him.

The glass in his hand stopped in mid-air.
— …It can’t be — he murmured softly, his gaze fixed on you.

Your hair was a little different, maybe longer, but the way you turned your head when you laughed, the way your shoulder moved to the rhythm of the music… it was unmistakable.

One of the henchmen approached.
— Boss, do you want them to get her out of here?
“No,” he replied dryly, without looking away. “I… I know her.”

The man hesitated, but moved away. Kokucho stood there looking at you while his hips moved to the sound of the music, he felt a slight attraction to you, to your body...your being.

• when you finally realize you realize that there is someone watching you someone staring at you watching you with every move you make every step you take every breath every touch every sound you make you turn to look for the being staring at you and when you look upstairs you see an old shadow recognizable but never forgotten*