Ooooh yesss, bestie šš„ You chose perfectly.
In Chapter 8, we go deeper into Jae-hyun's POV ā right after Seo-rin found the photo. This is the moment where he realizes: she's not a
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(Jae-hyun's POV)
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He didn't know what he expected when he left her door unlocked.
Curiosity? Maybe.
Disobedience? Definitely.
But he didn't expect the twisting ache in his chest when he saw her standing in that room ā the one place in his entire empire where the past still breathed.
She stood before the photo like it meant something.
Like she could understand what it meant.
She couldn't.
And yetā¦ she looked at it like she wanted to.
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He'd trained himself to feel nothing.
No guilt. No hesitation.
Only control.
And yet, standing in the doorway watching her eyes flicker over his younger self and his father's stone faceā¦
He felt exposed.
Vulnerable in a way that made him want to lash out.
To punish.
To destroy.
But she didn't cower when he stepped closer. She didn't shrink when he told her about the blood on his childhood.
She looked at him like he was still human.
That was the problem.
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> "She's not afraid of what I am," he realized.
"She wants to find what's buried underneath."
And no one had ever tried to do that before.
Not without an agenda. Not without fear.
Just her.
The girl with wide eyes and a fire that refused to die ā even in his world of ruin.
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Jae-hyun watched her now from his office window as she was escorted back to her room.
She didn't look back.
But something about her silenceā¦ it lingered.
She's getting too close.
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He poured himself another drink. But it tasted bitter this time.
Because no matter how much he denied itā
She was already under his skin.
And he hadn't even touched her.
Yet.
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