Chapter 2

Every day feels stranger than ever like someone is watching my every move. Shadows follow me, lurking in the corners of my mind, like eyes tracing my every step, unblinking and invisible. The feeling leaves an icy trail down my spine, creeping into every nerve. I may have a weirdo stacker. 

"Hi."

"You're weird. Stop following me." My voice was flat, my steps unhurried. I didn't have the energy to entertain unnecessary drama or forced politeness. I'm well aware—I'm a bit childish. Snobbish? Sure. A goddess? Absolutely.

"You're quite interesting," he said with a smirk and a dark glint in his eyes. My lips curled up slightly as I glanced at him. His gaze was unyielding, his presence both annoying and magnetic.

"Can you just quit it?" I stopped abruptly, turning to face him, catching the hint of an amused expression on his face. His gaze was calm, almost as if he took pleasure in my irritation. I saw how his Argentine eyes stared at me.

The thought of the anonymous letters and their threats tightened my chest. Each note was disturbing in its own way. A cryptic symbol signed each word that unsettled me. I hated how it worked.

"Why, aren't you the least bit curious about me?" he asked, voice low, an edge of provocation slipping through. I nearly gasped at his audacity.

"Excuse me, Mr. Anthony Kiel Cruise—Aki, right? You don't belong here. Why don't you return to your gang: the guy with broad shoulders, the big-nosed one, the weirdo, Mr. Long Chin, Mr. Shines-Like-a-Diamond, and the alien?" I raised a challenging eyebrow. "You're just wasting my precious time."

"And you think I'm the stalker?" His tone was light and mocking, but there was an edge of danger beneath it. It made me cringe, and I'm not lying.

I sighed out of frustration. Who wouldn't when it's pretty obvious he is a stalker? That's it. Period.

"Please. If anything, I'd be a beautiful stalker." I stared at him, daring him, but something in his gaze didn't falter. For a split second, I felt something stir in my chest. Perhaps excitement? Who knows, but for a split second, this guy is different. 

"Tinnie!" A familiar voice called from the distance, and I spun around, relieved yet unnerved.

"Tinnie?" Aki chuckled, his voice dripping with amusement.

"KING—" I barely got the name out before he stepped forward, close enough for his breath to mingle with mine. His lips found mine, warm and unexpected, a collision that left me reeling.

It lasted no more than ten seconds, but time stilled, and the heat of his lips lingered long after he pulled away. As he stepped back, he smiled softly, his dark eyes scanning my stunned expression.

"I've marked you as mine. Remember that. Mine. No one else gets that privilege." He smirked, then brushed past me, leaving a shivering thrill in his wake.

I lifted my fingers to my lips, still tingling from his touch. The warmth of his kiss was maddening, impossible to ignore.

Oh my god—my first kiss. And he just… stole it as if it was always his to take. It's so rude of him, which I cannot fathom, but his lips tasted like cherries, sweet and addicting. 

And it hits me. The embarrassment he caused me, and I wished the earth would devour me.