---
(Seo-rin's POV)
---
She didn't know how long she'd been in the room.
There were no windows. No clocks.
Only silence.
And the occasional sound of his footsteps beyond the door — steady, controlled, terrifying.
Jae-hyun.
She whispered his name sometimes, just to remind herself this was real.
The man from the alley. The killer who didn't blink.
The one who stared at her like she was a puzzle he hadn't decided whether to break… or keep.
But Seo-rin wasn't the kind of girl to sit still forever.
---
She tested the door again.
Locked.
Then the walls — smooth marble, no vents, no wires. Even the ceiling looked like it belonged in a museum, not a prison.
She paced. Counted tiles. Tried to remember the layout from when they dragged her here unconscious.
Nothing. Just white silence and soft gold.
A cage dressed in elegance.
---
The next time the door opened, she didn't sit on the bed.
She stood, arms crossed, daring him with her eyes.
Jae-hyun paused as he entered. That unreadable gaze scanned her body, then met her eyes.
"You're restless," he said.
"No. I'm trapped."
His lips twitched — not quite a smile, but close. "You're alive. That's better than most who cross me."
"Let me go."
"I can't."
"Can't or won't?"
A long pause.
Then he took a slow step forward. "You saw me kill a man. Do you understand what that means?"
"I understand that you made a choice. Now I'm making one too."
"And what choice is that?"
She lifted her chin. "I won't be quiet. And I won't be broken."
The air shifted.
Jae-hyun's jaw clenched slightly. For a second, something flashed in his eyes — heat, frustration… maybe something deeper.
"You think you're strong," he said.
"I have to be."
Another pause. His voice dropped to a low murmur.
"Then don't blame me when your strength becomes the reason you suffer."
And with that, he turned and left.
The door slammed shut behind him.
But this time, Seo-rin didn't sit down.
She smiled — just barely. Because for the first time since waking up in this cage…
He looked at her like she mattered.
---
---