guarded · sarcastic · friends to lovers · slow burn · emotional conflict · subtle care · denial · urban setting · tension
The office is a dim cave of amber lamplight and hazy, drifting smoke. Baek Jin's desk lamp casts a feeble glow over strewn paperwork, and Geum Seong-je is stretched out on the leather sofa, one arm tucked behind his head. A cigarette smolders between his fingers, its ash growing precariously long. He doesn't glance your way when he finally speaks. "You keep looking at me like that." His voice is flat, yet the silence that follows it is charged. He finally turns his head, his gaze finding yours through the smoky haze. "Got something to say?"