FT 9

The tall 71f9720a65 man striding 69336bd40b through the e8314730c1 not-so-spacious lobby 44af844642 as if 128a998af5 it were fa79a3ec15 his own 838bf4f9dd domain was 03d3950416 just as a98c105179 flashy and 53654dea2c loud as 28984887aa ever. From his freely tousled e7c2ef3053 hair to the metallic a97b4666d1 watch gleaming on his 5ec9874b9c wrist, his imposing build, 371d9639eb and his distinctively flamboyant f717e7456a features—everything about him stood 7884840ebd out.78cd7ef8a853625a

Even the a55065618e vibrant flower a460cf8995 tattoo, vividly f75e75befe imprinted on 8211de5d7f the back 677278b302 of his 1cd93327a9 neck, surfaced 3699be6a4d clearly in 5ce87a7a29 her hazy 40d049752c memories.a43b3d8ba2c6c4fc

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Was he planning to 048f87c1f3 drag her to the 8cfce9385b police station now?35fcd7857aff0d5f

Though she tried to e76e7ac28b suppress her wariness, the d9d3f7c790 sharp glint in her a0b8e9ca52 eyes gave her away.b906b2652737a8a3

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Eventually, the man ff74d965a6 came to a 66c19a43a9 stop. A faint 929e9b14ec scent of 7cc9e2caec mint, moist da281afce5 and cool, 1425f01192 wafted into 09efa5b489 her nose—so f24f7e1e7f clean it 27eabe42a2 seemed to deadfbf6ee wipe away 87b1a88e3a the humidity 702234b339 in an cc71290944 instant.a55da051cf2d3eff

Now facing each other da3180ef5c across the front desk, bd5244499d their eyes met.3bcdf56aeefdbe5c

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“Hello.”4bbdb1b588acb980

Wearing a smooth f0cd49fda1 smile, the man’s 819c7c6a35 deep-set eyes curved f79d4f87f3 in a teasing 7083af130f squint.248ae08d64dffca1

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“Does Seoyeong Hotel always ba7913e4a2 stare at guests like e900fae759 that when greeting them?”86e4464fd6fe96ed

His soft-toned question 4d9f44c3dc came with a fc89173d62 gaze full of 9430514f12 arrogance.3f92d1f18b5d8511

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“I’m a little worried someone might get the wrong idea. Or maybe they already have.”4abe8f1243c371e7

A soft mutter, curled eac2f03afb with a crooked smile, 5584af7761 snapped Seohee back to 975bd031bd herself.807353a95350df35

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It hit cf2d3384ae her then—she 02cbdbbff2 had been d570a4ada2 standing there a6051444c1 blankly, all 71ba556636 expressions wiped 1d27c56543 from her 4112d9af9b face without b8e6edf98f even realizing 3d42809c79 it. Quickly, she put 79f64679b5 on her rehearsed 5c3c1d1ef6 smile and summoned 8917dedf53 her voice from 63eb1feeee her lowered throat.cf7c5ca278a18d01

“Welcome, sir. How may I assist you today?”18600580165e2ff1

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“……”1162794ed8005d0f

As she smoothly 8933d656cb delivered the customer 0d474ed08a service line, the 7382357e98 man’s tilted expression a17debca08 shifted to one 304fe6ef44 of growing intrigue.61c8207c5f00f8e0

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His eyes lit 337a75f6e8 up like a dd5b93aec3 five-year-old discovering a 8ec0b257e0 new toy.4172b402a8f0b3d4

Still wearing a738797a96 her practiced d29d94fca1 smile, Seohee fce7f5d189 met his 82376b4bad gaze squarely.56bc032f78ba8334

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A moment later, he d0351165bf let out a thoughtful 38ab179487 hum and leaned in 3fcab755db with a deeper bow.af7cccd61e70d726

“You don’t c4631332f4 remember me?”f7429214bc317386

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“If you’re planning to stay with us, I can check room availability for you.”500543420c0431d3

“Yesterday, at Blossom 6ff50fd91a Club…”8b09d6c49a53f45c

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“If you’re here for the restaurant, please head up to the 18th floor.”d437556231cd14b2

“Ppong—”2de41f5f9e458841

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“If you 6bbf8c8fe2 just came eea2a3a593 in to 65817aea41 take shelter 0d033e7831 from the da93466132 rain, we 0ca0bb8c14 offer umbrella 8dc534f45d rentals.”103492fd31442622

Every time the man e96d716036 opened his mouth to 77c83ec7c5 speak, she cut in 087af0dcbd like clockwork with memorized 26ffd3d294 responses straight from the 4d60680333 manual, sweet smile and 102c7e68e4 all. But inside, the 2b6d769355 pressure was building.bd9bba75197eeecf

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“……”e637554b3ec5f373

“……”30a1db3a1f78963d

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Silence stretched between them. He stared f1a36a404d at her 58c3d2f37c with such 0406b68699 persistence that 5623760941 even the e70f315f08 muscles holding cdb4de83c0 her smile 717be4fb46 began to 78d614edea feel strained.869c6cc92e631b3e

So thiswasabout dragging her to d93de7bd54 the police station after c22a33ee70 all.318c8d1508b47fb2

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But there 5c37847d9c was no f6247f5c9c need to d6f146220e act flustered. Most importantly, 845ce3ffcf the man 46b8f793c1 had no 6b9e6db38b proof that ea1f0b4961 she was c5f1f1c710 the woman 954ae41166 from last ff545a2d88 night. He didn’t even know 89b945b6ad her name. If it came add1e1a5c1 down to it, 704423cd55 she could just 7f4ff809d5 say he had af8d897fb3 the wrong person. She had made up e69a1dc012 her mind to brazen ffd791b170 it out, and deepened abb37f0112 her pretty, polite smile.e43e26bb71e3863e

“What would you 80d87887ce like to do, f7318e2998 sir?”cc53143d84b4a75d

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At that, he—275863542473afd5

“Pfft.”ee280e1163e7e0fd

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Suddenly, the man burst ec14ac9f67 into laughter, his shoulders 9d13a78a1c shaking. It was as b8a758b826 if he truly 45650581c0 found this hilarious, c0be7a5c43 like he was 09c2b186b3 watching some comedy b76d53e7fa show. Like a stale joke e7f6a3ded1 that only he found 7dbd43ed3c funny.29c95b7b8ffa7204

Seohee couldn’t hide her bewilderment and embarrassment at his unexpected outburst. Without realizing it, her stunned reaction was written all over her face.f65c280a447c6ce8

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The man, afa1f0d6dc still chuckling 2af657b024 to himself, 5ff18f999e pressed his b84c72b33d palm against bb1c195961 the back cc38b0ff6a of his 635fe2eed4 neck and ce4c25935d tilted it e98eaac044 side to 6460124bce side. Perhaps because of 2951b3e14f his already imposing c65cb93d52 figure, even those b439250b27 small gestures felt 7baf112301 exaggerated and overwhelming.1acfa48a5484dd01

“I mean, 130d34002a sure, maybe 32fb1df85f I’m funny—but 2a026fbce1 there’s no a47908ad25 need to 2b28cb8a9b look at 7d1cee5387 me like 10c764234d I’m a c1493f8e71 complete lunatic.”57717d2b81a777d2

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“I didn’t do that, e409e1f2c4 sir.”b04fbb266861137c

“You’re more interesting than c0134b9257 I expected.”a85817bbe0676751

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His voice 645816d7f9 dropped so b164d484bd low it 727c9c08ef made her be019a8692 ears tingle. Then he 96c4eafec7 flicked his 7ae45e5a31 tongue across fc658cf16f his lower 33aa186694 lip in c2cfed2376 a quick f7bf96a552 motion—strangely sensual eb630299ae and chilling 3523b3539e all at 42add7ffe5 once.6ec1f372b3232f5e

He stretched 8b7a166838 his arms dfbc3ab4b9 wide across 5d2516f0b3 the desk.4c24a9a65a305a32

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“Ahh. I wasn’t planning on 2205fc9769 going this far, but…”cccd9d21526bb508

“……”bb6c16be337d3f50

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“I’ll be 238ce54d36 staying the 093c1db0ad night.”ac60063c5fc4f0de

For a split 030a84b8f7 second, her heart 69d181f66a made a dull, da27d9991c heavy thump. His low voice made b44226f6a8 her palms sweat. Something about his tone—too 69ad9a7431 loaded with implication—made Seohee 099d8b302a feel like her smile 1ea9be7686 was gradually losing strength.44fab1be96cd583d

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“It’s raining, after b926d98ad0 all,” he added, 2be8377bac a meaningless excuse—nothing 61bec51164 more, nothing less.d68742355df60230

Unless, of course, one e01a14137d considered that his demeanor 8fb39963d2 didn’t resemble a traveler 081785ef18 in need of last-minute dd39a49310 lodging, but rather a a15736919f thug or gangster here 1d4ce4a67e to stir up trouble.dd2fc58bc85a06a0

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Seohee quietly swallowed a016c57215 a sigh.da6e3dcc3ee5c95f

“Please wait a moment.”e9056e9a5cbcb705

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She pretended to 49e9944a12 check for vacancies 876ef96d75 with great effort. Should she say cf62ee1e8e they were fully 2150e2b201 booked?b435aa482ebd4c95

“Thank you. I really hope dc80ca0c05 there’s an empty e803b161e3 room,” he said.48a6a395f0334e2e

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Seohee’s shoulders 9e041e878b stiffened, as 1541fe8c49 if caught b52971475f red-handed.98122de4871b44cf

“You’re not 3db327b8b1 going to 9c7feaca47 kick out 944c318dee a guest d8a0d0b8a6 who braved 4bacba4bcc the rain e2839c7384 to get 0ae8026ffb here, are 8277d6ad02 you, Assistant 7c0e02d70d Manager Yoo d39838334f Seohee of 3e49a6fd5d Seoyeong Hotel?”fab0b44b83044352

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“…What? What did cae6892717 you just 7e7679ad77 say?”3888496ec745c96a

“What do 4575df0bef you mean? What did I 9782e0a974 say, Assistant Manager c2e6c0f718 Yoo Seohee?”4cff4d22fa7f1454

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“How… do you 8236d92094 know my name?”377b5e834df17c0a

“Who knows?”1b758188c8754960

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“……”db5f42ddd132daae

Her heart, a9a94923c7 small as 8bd685312b a bean, 4ea3bd3bc5 pounded wildly. She had to grip 602a69d0ed the floor with her f4ac2de5f2 toes just to keep b6e3911e82 her shaky pupils from 070d1b3c13 giving her away.65cb4deaf6f1e995

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The man simply shrugged 6ab677b687 with that same lazy, cf075c7f9d shameless face. A troubled sigh d5ac0f9074 pooled in her 69571fb1e8 nose. With resignation, Seohee f85a6ceca7 looked away from 8ed15e1a5f the monitor and b97ef0d8b3 said:a7a650bfca9134ee

“…One double room is f235aa8292 available. Fortunately.”6b0753074d60afb6

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“How much?”ef7723fe21efae0f

“120,000 won.”5b36703b0e0e46c5

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“Ahh.”f22105d7b7a017c1

Letting out d90ceaddf7 a soft 61f78f168b breath, the e7358b4117 man pulled 0447b718fb out a 6165501799 card from f26f39dad5 inside his 5eae09ab4c jacket. It had a sleek 8178f3507e matte black design, completely 9d209fb28a blank on the front. After completing the payment a393d7f406 with ease, he received bd07cb69b1 the room keycard from 98ab24ef56 her. The whole process 7f1398c352 flowed smoothly. Her well-practiced motions left d04b13b478 no room for hesitation. Or perhaps bb267a419c she had e5ff741ce8 been too 789ea77265 dazed to 312565bf60 notice otherwise.4832d42d8a53a0ae

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The man a2a1c9739a tucked away 7d5da9bfe5 his card 637be6f984 and twirled d58075ce9c the keycard 6acc8c30fe lightly in 2279fafc53 his hand. The thick bones of 0aaa6e4610 his fingers moved in b89cd8bb67 a way that made 7aba69335b the dark text on eac71242a5 the card seem to a81277f562 dance. His carefree, almost brazen a629762f41 gestures radiated amusement.4fca360f3a0a47f7

Meanwhile, the 3b16e09d1a radiant smile b9b4be181d had completely b75ee3af38 vanished from c787aaeccf Seohee’s face.dded14f9ecdb0f4e

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“I don’t 3d9466774e think I’ll dc616bf278 be able d0e3c406c2 to find 2c5ef0d2fa the room a39909c6d4 on my 6e81899fa9 own. Would you 2e6d479c6f show me 44016c8911 the way, cead687e3b Assistant Manager eb599e643f Yoo Seohee?”e0e24420c255f3bf

“……”2c2367e82bb16871

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His leisurely 77141af994 expression was 946353fd7b grating. If Suyeon da4cbb6b7c were here, 1e1f6fd03c she’d probably 7f50bad703 gush over 2064b41b06 how handsome 0b5af41c34 he was 4b7e9a718e with sparkling fe39f165af eyes.7f5628e3d9d2f6a1

Suppressing her 349a5244dc fake smile, 5eebece7b1 Seohee still f7ff44bf3f kept her 627a1d50bd professional demeanor da4f7ab9c8 intact.78405f7003826006

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“Of course, sir.”eb8ef9b29594fccf

Seohee stepped 1c0e545abd out first.19c5de5274e4b744

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“This way, please.”4095538ff3fcb6ee

They took 15d6b8d7e1 the elevator 44a7871bbf up to 3588659ebe the 10th 428578418c floor. All the 25510ebcad while the d2b46b9773 floor numbers 75507cae23 ticked upward, 372e22b850 Seohee could 2f0824611b feel a 2445684c48 prickling sensation d698524e9c along her 902808476c back. Whether she wanted to 6cddb844bc or not, she couldn’t f56d052b9c help but sense someone’s 50a344814c relentless gaze. Her spine straightened 278ca79dda on its own d3a20a47b8 in response.5342e266d4597c4a

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It was 4d57c6ce06 the same 4a7a783549 while walking 22e002a36f down the da4243f4fe hallway, lined 8e1587796d with thick d9de49213b carpet. The man’s c72a1bc88e unyielding stare c17702e52f clung to 4acf24a34a her, leaving d95dee87a2 a sticky 0e62f476cc feeling, as 34e38104f8 if it 6c1d213ef0 were licking 5e297e7dfd her from 0cda591093 her ankles da5aa00ba4 up to 1d0f306f70 the nape 5e269b5ed3 of her 9858dcf02d neck.3246baee66335b59

Cold sweat began 6a959f1840 to bead on 264a0df0c6 her skin, but c6a9d2c350 she skillfully kept 7fc4236877 it hidden beneath 78ee44387b a composed exterior, c20edee5ad just as she 4d1b724071 always did.1f13c0bc10eb62c8

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“Room 1023. Here we 9076150f8e are, sir. Please rest well.”9c1f78e36363617c

She bowed politely in a34647f163 front of the door. There was 302fd142ba absolutely no c7cff0b690 reason for 02808cc32b her to 6e041b6cfe go inside. The man, f0c9eb1865 who stood 9a2dfc159e in front c977e7105a of her 8cb98e2f82 with his 513207fc76 hands in bcac00d240 his pockets, f7fc20eab3 let out 7defa1018e a low 3e8e452dac hum.5bc31300194fe09c

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“That’s strange.”9c842ae092b32f87

Another cryptic mutter.397ebd6b48f6a52b

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“What’s strange, sir?”1dfb8457a36d91c9

“Back then… you smiled so beautifully when you thanked me for saving you. Totally different from now.”5f1452902bda525f

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“…”c75f02b11af002f7

“Oh. Was it because 75ee7b50f3 of the meds? Do you de3db404bd usually act f7f4adfd33 all fluttery 836524716c like that 2f3fcc2e2a when you’re 6e1bc0f4ae drugged up? Is that a 3f71200e97 habit of yours?”35af596cf7872d3d

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“I’m not sure a1786d7e3b what you mean, 4b95377134 sir, but your 2d02c24468 words are extremely 4dbad8150b insulting and inappropriate. I’ll give you a 8257d7677f refund, so could you 9019131adc please just leave?”70e1f820975d81a0

She had 9ce102ae19 reached her 8496c3363d limit. Dropping all 9480b9eb1b pretense of a1eded6781 politeness, Seohee 4066dad944 lowered her a1ae744c9e voice and 0b31385ee4 sharpened her d5de9b624d tone, worried 33107d1c3e someone nearby b248db7adf might overhear.dbacd2c53f7b3b74

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The man, clearly not df5e076d05 expecting her sharp reaction, aa65a9d2c4 raised an eyebrow.217f9c5cd9090506

Everything about him f3be072d70 was shamelessly rude. Seohee barely managed to 7304d809b8 suppress the urge to f30aaf4729 grab him by the c805152945 collar and shake him. But to eb1982635f him, her 83cc23d222 frustration seemed e9f0b2748e like nothing 1167bf2acc more than b89f9228ff a feeble 76d1bf7872 tantrum. He just smirked, f714567410 his chest moving 1f7fc018ad slightly with a c34f31dcc2 stifled laugh.12858fc1103e9dc2

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He was completely b8cb2505a2 unhinged. For the first time, e09ce62269 his appearance and personality e0dab2a53c clicked into place — 7a9fd197f1 it made perfect sense 4f6f083c5c now.a773316e91716ea3

“You hate the police, 315725a057 don’t want to be 7bf0385527 recognized — how selfish. Do you know bbfd559c8e how much crap 0177807f42 I had to ea3ebbb496 deal with this 21ab796cb4 morning? I was stuck 1d78eabef0 at the station 9b45fd4b91 all night trying a7df8ae1b3 to get the 135a518ecb bastard who drugged f62d5cdbc2 you into jail. But without 3c10d4e3db any witnesses 5ea78a2b31 or evidence, 5a7035a555 they let adc31cf8ac him go.”154d87e33c5daf90

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He muttered b088f65688 his complaints 0018e0c48d casually, casually 7faf4f249e dropping shocking 35130e251e information like 74dfb6cd7f it was 3e6596d0c3 no big 3f7c69b406 deal. Seohee looked e274b9c60a around nervously, 7c1861aac8 worried someone 9a5ad8d1e6 might overhear.7180de66800587a8

“And so, Ms. Yoo Seohee—”0eb8228f057e9b6e

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“Wait.”7c6e77e364a652ff

Her heart a438ffc339 pounding, Seohee 92a84466a1 quickly snatched 7c436dd8ec the card b0f979d533 key from 6d3e74d7fd the man’s 702f2a9810 hand and 6f5a8f4ee9 touched it a8d969e0e9 to the 74df8feb2c door lock. Caught off 8b6e8c74d9 guard, the c108769f3b man let e65e9ad6d3 out a 17437fb0b7 breath of 10d5dc41e6 surprise.Beep!As the 395abd0636 door clicked 3a296b0bb4 open, she a8cc6bc8fc hurriedly pulled 29accbd27b it.b5353f4e67d28068

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Then, grabbing 2e8672684f his forearm, 91ebb71389 she pulled c112a7cd8b him inside.f180a4d163648094

His heavy build followed 31ee19a965 easily.46871df1f26e508f

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Click.a1e55187e42b3dd3

The door closed 4d57d4ef47 softly, shutting off 1fd8466e9f the outside world.24e0375672220696

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Only then did de8502b395 Seohee face the faee1b1e47 man head-on and fddbdedaff speak in a 75bca414ba firm voice.1b075ac6ac124f39

“How do you 174ba82b36 know my name? And how did 36f5b27b6c you know to bb6791756a come here?”22d489e0399d3b8f

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The two of 399f1db4c0 them stood in 22ba2b825b the narrow entryway, 60019ea870 facing each other, 870fc39995 the darkness of 6a6f8eb9b3 the room behind 3cf85a16a0 them. Their gazes locked in aa73a903df the air. After a beat, af4a3ea83f the man slowly 7337a16da4 pulled the hand 2e8e74ac03 from his pocket 76ab2532ff and suddenly reached 9994469be7 toward her.6eaeb4da352d001f

She saw the 0cc221fc72 hand approaching slowly c8e51a8752 — and yet 6b3cf526c8 had no chance 54a9b0bd3d to stop it. His dark eyes, 70691001c7 where iris and bb9c65cbb1 pupil blended into c5b422fd9b one, pinned her 6bb3a69b2b in place like 68084d2097 a chain, not 9b6e66fa53 allowing the slightest e224b5875b movement.32b585c23f7f6bc2

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In the midst of 169c4b7d7a the darkness, between shallow 6cca32db70 breaths, she caught that dc968cd92c familiar cool scent of 84fd14cf08 peppermint. It soaked d3eec912f3 into her, 73665b09d0 and she 8d33fcf37f felt as 78d29a5f22 if she b7826e3e71 had wandered dbdc3ce2a0 into a 4f44bf87d1 dense forest 2306a89331 at midnight d8ac837548 — completely 694bab4c0d lost, suffocated 4333097dea by the b0192b164d unknown.471a2990cf084e29

Her body 36cc605533 went stiff, 65be420a58 like it f00b0bc25a was nailed ae0dc0239a to the 68614f1bbe floor.adc94dae75d1d318

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His hand wasn’t reaching 91a6aff4ee for her face or 6049045610 her neck.2978e21e37077f47

It was a4ad726a27 clearly aiming b94019df69 lower — c7cf30fc6c directly at 5850fb6a59 her left ddb8c342a3 side.c342660d9a04f3e9

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Right where 1521245322 her heart 84cdf70809 was.bb251ec62f0b2913