My eyes drifted open slowly, drawn by the feeling of someone's hand on my face.
The touch was so soft, almost careful.
My body knew him instantly...
there was no fear, only a deep, immediate pull.
In the faint light,
I focused on the severe beauty of his face.
His lips were full and shadowed, and his eyes, visible above the black mask, held an intense, fixed scrutiny.
I felt the sharp, punishing line of his jaw and wanted to trace it.
I lifted my hand, reaching for his, and pulled him gently toward me.
My heart was desperate for this closeness. This raw, physical need felt like the only way I could truly express my thanks for what he had done.
His masked face was inches from mine. I saw the muscle tense in his jaw..
a silent signal of his own controlled need.
I closed my eyes and kissed him, a deep, firm claim that asked for everything.
His hand cradled my head, then slid into my hair, guiding the moment.
My kiss deepened, transforming instantly into a fierce, consuming hunger.
I pulled at his shoulders, tugging him fully above me, wanting his weight, his presence, to block out everything else.
When his mouth traveled from my lips to my neck, tracing the delicate skin, a shaky breath escaped me, carrying the only words I could form:
" thank you...for today"
He paused, his body momentarily frozen above mine.
"Don't stop,"
I pleaded, gripping his jacket.
"Please, don't stop before I change my mind."
He lowered his body again, his mouth moving slowly, deliberately, down my chest. He took my hands, easily pinning them above my head with one of his own, fingers laced tightly through mine.
Then, his beautiful, shadowed lips pressed against the soft skin of my belly.
A wave of intense shivering ran through me...a mix of vulnerability and pure, immediate pleasure.
Desperate to pull him back, to taste him again, I broke free, reaching up with my free hand.
I grabbed a handful of his dark, thick hair and yanked him upward.
I brought his masked face crashing back down to mine, closing the gap with a savage, finality.
I kissed his lips so hard, so roughly, that I could taste the faint, metallic hint of blood
a dark seal on our exchange.
He consumed me then, like I was something wonderfully sweet ice cream and I was melting, disappearing into the storm.
As the intensity subsided...
I asked in a whisper, "Those rumors... ? Is that you ?"
He didn't speak.
He simply marked me..
a gentle, yet definite bite on my neck, hard enough to sting, soft enough to promise control.
It was his definitive, silent Yes.
I don't know exactly when or how I finally drifted into sleep.
When my eyes opened to the morning light, his scent was heavy on my pillow and sheets...
a trace of cold smoke and leather but he was gone.
I felt the deep ache in my muscles and the throbbing tenderness on my neck, confirming it was all real.
I built a wall in my mind, quickly creating the only story I could live with:
It was just a thank you from my side. And I was desperately lonely and horny. It's okay. It was a fair exchange.
After convincing myself for the hundredth time that last night was nothing serious
just hormones, stress, comfort, whatever excuse my brain could grab ..
I forced myself out of bed and went to college.
A part of me expected a message from that creep.
But my phone stayed silent.
And I shouldn't have cared.
But somehow… I did.
I hated that.
---
First class today was Asael's.
Of course.
He walked in like he always did ...
calm, effortlessly sharp, too put-together for a normal human.
Girls straightened in their seats.
Boys pretended not to stare at his watch or his car keys.
I didn't waste a second.
I walked straight to the podium and placed my assignment on his desk.
He looked up, one eyebrow rising slowly.
"Fast," he said. "The deadline was next week."
I shrugged, feeling his eyes on me longer than necessary.
"It's finished. So I submitted it."
For some reason, my voice shook a bit.
I walked back to my seat before he could say anything else.
He opened my file, glanced over a few pages, then closed it with a soft tap… and started his lecture like nothing happened.
But every time he turned toward the board, I felt his gaze brush me first.
Maybe I was imagining it.
Maybe I wasn't.
---
After class ended, everyone rushed to him with questions.
He answered a few, rejected most, and the room slowly emptied.
Then his voice cut through the noise.
"Elina."
My heart dropped.
He wasn't even looking directly at me
just flipping through his lecture notes
but the whole class froze and turned.
"Come to my office," he said.
"After your last class today."
A few girls gasped like they were watching the trailer of a forbidden romance drama.
Someone whispered, "Again? Why always her?"
My palms turned cold.
Great.
More gossip.
More rumours.
More unwanted attention.
And yet…
Somewhere deep inside, under all the fear and frustration, my chest tightened with something I didn't want to name.
I swallowed hard, nodded once, and sat down as if nothing happened.
But my pulse wouldn't calm.
Mira spent the whole day teasing me until I wanted to shove my notebook into her mouth.
I checked my phone again.
Still nothing.
No message from him.
Of course.
The psycho only texts when he feels like ruining my heartbeat schedule...
When the last class bell rang, Mira saluted me dramatically.
"Go alone. I may be in his fan club, but I'm not suicidal enough to step into Aseal's office with you."
Great. Zero moral support.
I walked alone to his office, knocked lightly.
Knock! Knock!
A small knock — "Come in."
I stepped inside.
He was sitting on his chair, two shirt buttons open, his chest showing.
God… he looked unfairly good.
He stared at me for a moment.
" Did you complete your assignment without any help?"
"Umm… no, sir. A friend helped me."
"Friend?" His eyebrow raised and came beside my chair..
He opened a page and pointed. "Here ...spelling mistake. And this point is unnecessary."
He leaned closer, too close.
"I told everyone, if anyone have questions, can come to my office."
"Yeah...and you also said reduce marks for silly questions."
He let out a small laugh.
"So that's why you didn't come."
"Yeah… and also I don't want any rumours." I said slowly
Something in his eyes shifted.
He placed his hands on both sides of my chair and tilted it slightly toward him.
"Is that the only reason?" he asked softly.
A mix of fear and annoyance rose in me.
What does he think of himself? Why is he doing this?
"Yes, it matters," I said. "You're my teacher and I'm your student."
"I'm not your typical teacher," he replied. "I'm a PhD student. Senior–junior isn't a scandal. Rumours shouldn't bother ...."
"So what do you want from me then?" I snapped.
"What do you want me to say? That you're extremely good-looking, charming, and I'm attracted to you like half the girls in our university? If yes, then… so what?"
His face came closer — only an inch away.
"You're not other girls, Elina."
My heart stopped.
"Then who am I to you?"
He didn't answer.
He just leaned in and kissed me.
My eyes closed
confusion, heat, instinct ... everything mixing.
Then reality hit and I pushed him away, stumbling out of the office.
My legs were shaking the whole way down the corridor.
I don't even remember how I reached the stairs.
My lips still felt warm..too warm.
Like his mouth had printed heat on them.
What the hell just happened?
I leaned against the wall, my heartbeat doing some crazy marathon inside my chest.
Why did he kiss me?
Why did I let him…?
I kept replaying it again and again
his fingers gripping the chair handles, the way he tilted me toward him, the breath between us, the look in his eyes like he was asking things without speaking.
And that line.
"You are not other girl, Elina."
Then nothing. No explanation. No answer. Just the kiss.
I felt angry. And guilty. And… stupidly flattered.
I stepped outside the building, swallowing the weird knot in my throat, when my phone buzzed.
A: Hey gorgeous. Are you alright? How's your assignment?
Gorgeous....!
No I'm not !
Why does this mysterious, creepy, unpredictable "A" who treats me like I'm made of glass..show up exactly when my world is upside down?
Why do both of them make my heart act like this?
This is insane.
I wiped my lips. They were still tingling, betraying me.
"I'm a terrible person,"
I whispered to myself.
"I enjoyed it… and I'm not even ashamed. What is wrong with me?"
Two men.
Completely opposite.
One: a psycho, terrifying, obsessed… but he cares for me in a way no one ever has.
The other: perfect, polite, confident, breathtaking....
every girl's dream.
And somehow both of them have their hands on my heart.
How am I attracted to two men?
Oh god, Elina.
You're doomed.
And the worst part?
You enjoyed both kisses.
And somehow… both kisses tasted the same.
Maybe I'm loosing my sanity...