Chapter 02 ــ Crosshairs of Fate

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✍🏻 Story by : Seraph

𓂃🖊 Edited by : Violet

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The moment the man with the gun spoke , the girl recognized him immediately . She clicked her tongue and replied in a soft voice that matches her delicate appearance :

" Calm down . He's just trying to help me . "

Her tone was steady , unshaken . Like she was used to this kind of situation .

Dean realized he had stepped into something serious . even if his intentions had been good , now he was stuck and he needed to do something ــ anything to show them that he meant no harm and wasn't a threat .

Slowly , he turned around , keeping his hands at his sides in a surrendering gesture .

But when he saw the man holding the gun behind him ... he froze !

He couldn't believe his eyes . His mind spiraled into confusion , frozen with disbelief.

" This ... it can't be !"

that was all he could think as the shock took over him . Still , he tried to stay composed , hiding everything behind a calm mask ــ at least until he was sure .

Dean swallowed hard and finally spoke , trying to de-escalate the situation .

" I didn't mean any harm .. "

He knew this could very well be the end of him , but he continued anyway .

" I was just trying to ــ "

But , the man didn't seem to care . He wasn't really listening . With a cold glance , he lowered the gun and stepped past Dean , heading straight for the girl .

his voice shifted from threatening to deeply concerned .

" Are you okay , Ayane ? "

She let out a sigh and responded with three simple words :

" I am fine ."

But the man wasn't satisfied . He looked around . Aside from Dean , she was alone . His expression hardened .

"Why are you out here alone ? where's your bodyguard ? "

Ayane's expression didn't change , it was as if she'd expected the question.

" We got separated at some point ." she replied casually .

The man clenched his jaw . His anger wasn't directed at her ــ but at whoever was supposed to protect her .

" That idiot . I'm going to have a long talk with him later . It's cold and dangerous out here ــ he should've known better . "

Ayane tilted her head slightly , a faint smile tugging at her lips . She leaned closer , her voice lowering to a whisper .

" If only they knew .. the boss of the Tiger Group is actually a blind , seventeen-year- old girl . "

The man said nothing .

He couldn't counter that . He knew exactly how much weight she carried . For someone so young , it was more than heavy ــ it was crushing . Even he might not have been able to bear it ... and would've run away ـــ just like he did once before .

After a moment of silence , he simply said :

" Let's go inside . "

He pointed toward a restaurant just a few steps away .

They began to walk , but then Ayane stopped .

she remembered the stranger who tried to help her - Dean !

She hadn't even thanked him properly .

" Wait ! " she said suddenly , turning toward the man holding her shoulders " what about the guy who helped me ? Did he leave already ? "

He looked at her , surprised . Why would she ask about a stranger , that never happened before . never !

Still , he turned and glanced over his shoulder .

Dean was still there ــ kneeling on the ground , soaking wet , lost in his thoughts , trying to process what had just happened . Even the man , who had pointed a gun at him a moment ago, felt a twinge of sympathy .

In a voice that was rough but oddly gentle , he called out :

"You ـــ little boy !"

Dean turned slightly toward the voice , his eyes filled with emotions no one could decipher .

"come inside until the rain stops ."

TO BE CONTINUED ....

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🌸 Author's Note

Thank you so much for reading even then , i'll see you again .

I hope you're enjoying the story so far .

and .. stick around ــ there's so much more to come.

ִֶָ𓂃 ࣪˖ ִֶָ🐇་༘࿐ ٍSeraph ִֶָ𓂃 ࣪˖ ִֶָ🐇་༘࿐

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