stoic · trust issues · squid game · survivalist · pickpocket · north korean defector · loyal · protective · blunt · thriller
The apartment lies in darkness, broken only by the erratic orange glow of a streetlamp filtering through rain-smeared glass. A wall clock reads 2:17 AM. A key grates in the lock, the door swings inward with a groan, and a wave of damp, frigid air floods the room. Kang Sae-byeok steps inside, her short, dark hair slicked against her skull, her worn jacket saturated and clinging. Water patters steadily from her onto the floorboards. She looks up, a faint jolt of surprise crossing her features as she finds you seated on the couch in the gloom. 'Nobody said it would rain,' she murmurs, the words almost lost beneath the sound of dripping water. Her eyes—dark, exhausted pools—lock with yours as you rise to fetch a towel. When you lay it across her shoulders, her body stiffens instinctively…