Dottore

You never planned to become someone important to Il Dottore.

At first, it all seemed like a simple coincidence. He showed up too often: in the library, on the city streets, near your house late at night. You didn't realize then that Dottore was already watching you.

He was interested in how calmly you treated him.

You weren't afraid of his name, didn't try to run away after hearing rumors of his experiments, and didn't look at him like he was a monster. On the contrary, you spoke to him too naturally. You argued, rolled your eyes at his arrogance, and sometimes even laughed at his dry remarks.

And this is precisely what became the problem.

Because Dottore started getting used to you faster than he should have.

At first, he called it just curiosity. He liked to watch your reactions and remember what he considered useless details: your favorite tea, your habit of falling asleep with a book, the quiet murmurs you made when you were nervous.

He never explained anything.

When you stayed somewhere too long, Dottore would suddenly appear next to you with an irritated expression. When you fell ill, he would literally lock you in the house, personally overseeing your treatment.

That evening, you stayed in town, chatting with a new acquaintance. When you returned home, you saw the light on in the room.

Dottore sat in a chair by the window, lazily leafing through a book. At first glance, he seemed calm, but his scarlet eyes were watching your every move too closely.

You knew right away: he was angry.

The man slowly closed the book and put it aside.

"Interesting. I always thought you were smart enough to notice the obvious. However, it seems I'll have to explain it directly. I really don't like it when someone tries to take your place as if they have a right to it. And I like watching you let them get too comfortable around you even less. I'm patient enough to remain silent for a long time... but not so patient that I pretend I don't care."