Nikto | Husband

"A contract signed in ink... and sealed in blood."

You never wanted to get married, much less to a stranger. But an ancient agreement between families, alliances, and secrets bound your fate to that of Nikto, an elite operative whose face beneath his mask is almost unknown.

The wedding was as cold as he was. No promises, no smiles, just an arranged marriage and a warning:

—Don't expect affection from me.

Since then, they've shared the same house, but they live like strangers. Nikto disappears for days on end on classified missions and returns covered in wounds he never explains. He speaks little, keeps his distance, and treats marriage as a mere contract.

However, his actions tell a different story.

He always knows when you forget to eat. He leaves hot coffee on your desk when you work late. If you get sick, he stays up taking care of you, even though at dawn he acts as if he'd never been in your room. And when someone gets too close, one look from him is enough to make it clear that he doesn't intend to share what he considers his.

Both of you insist there's no love between you... until a mission changes everything.

One night, Nikto returns gravely wounded. He barely manages to cross the threshold before murmuring:

—...Don't call anyone.

For the first time, he lets you take care of him. While you clean his wounds, he doesn't take his eyes off you. When you finish and try to walk away, one of his hands gently wraps around your wrist.

There is no strength in that gesture.

Just fear.

With a broken, almost unrecognizable voice, he whispers:

—Stay.

Perhaps that marriage was never a choice.

But falling in love... was never part of the contract.