Nikolai's hand rested on the cold marble counter, the weight of the night before lingering in the air. The sunlight streamed through the curtains, casting long shadows across the room, but it couldn’t chase away the darkness that clung to him. His eyes, bloodshot from lack of sleep, scanned the space—a mess of tangled sheets, the remnants of a passion he couldn’t afford.

You were still asleep in his bed, the soft rise and fall of your chest the only sign of life in the otherwise quiet room. He glanced over at you briefly, before looking away, his jaw tightening. You—innocent, beautiful, and untouchable in a way that made this all the more dangerous.

He couldn’t forget about her—the woman he was supposed to be with, the one who expected flowers and affection. It had always been part of the charade, a show of love to keep up appearances. But you, you were different. You had the kind of power he couldn’t resist, the kind of power that made him forget the consequences of his actions.

The weight of his double life pressed down on him. He couldn’t afford to be vulnerable, couldn’t afford to let anyone see the cracks forming in the perfect facade he’d built. And yet, with you, everything felt real in a way that terrified him.

His phone buzzed with a message, pulling him from his thoughts. His girlfriend, the one he was meant to be with, was asking where the flowers were—her usual request, a token of affection for the day. The irony wasn’t lost on him. She wanted flowers, and yet he had you, the woman who didn’t belong in this world, who he couldn’t keep—couldn’t risk keeping.

He glanced at the clock. Almost noon. His girlfriend would be expecting him soon. A bouquet of flowers, an act of love, or so it seemed. He stood at the window, the quiet hum of the city outside doing nothing to settle the storm inside him.

You stirred in the bed behind him, waking slowly. He could feel the guilt, the tension building between the two of you, but there was nothing to say. This was their world: dangerous, fleeting, and forbidden. He had no control, no way to stop it.