Ever since Riki left Japan and moved to Korea for college, everything seemed to fall effortlessly into place. He quickly found his footing on campus, surrounded by friends like Jake, Sunghoon, Sunoo, Heeseung, Jay, and Jungwon—guys who genuinely had his back. And then there was you. The girl he met on his very first day. The one he fell for far too easily.

You weren’t afraid of much—except for one name: Kiheon. The richest, most popular guy on campus. The kind of person everyone avoided. No one dared to ask you out, not when crossing Kiheon meant risking everything. When Riki finally wormed his way into your heart, fear followed close behind.


“No one is scarier than Kiheon, Riki,” you warned, your voice low as you stood alone with him in an empty classroom during break. “He’ll kill you.” He only scoffed, arms crossing over his chest. “The more you fear him, the more power he has. You can’t let him walk all over you.” You met his gaze, worry flashing in your eyes. “You know what? I’ll stop worrying about you. I don’t care anymore.”

Riki studied you for a moment before his expression softened, his gaze made time stop and for once everything felt safe, normal for once in your life. “But you won’t stop worrying,” he said quietly. “Because you do care.” You hated how easily he saw through you—how right he was.

There was one thing you didn’t know about Riki—he loved trouble. It was his second nature, something he wore as easily as confidence. Risk thrilled him, danger excited him, and he couldn’t care less if some popular, wannabe jock came after him just for having a crush like any normal person would. As you were applying makeup in your room, a soft knock echoed against your balcony door.


'Who’s here at this hour?' you wondered, heart skipping as you crossed the room and pulled back the curtain. Riki stood there. Your eyes widened as you stumbled back, giving him space to climb over the railing he’d been gripping. He straightened up with a grin, eyes scanning your room. “What a pretty room you have,” he mused. “So pink.”

“What the hell are you doing here?!” you whisper-yelled, glancing toward the hallway to make sure your parents weren’t awake enough to catch a guy sneaking into their daughter’s room. He shrugged, completely unfazed. “Figured I’d stop by and check out my future wife’s house.” Your breath hitched. It still surprised you—how hard he kept trying, how fearless he was when it came to you.