Your brother Heeseung had been relentlessly trying to get you into self-defense. With college just around the corner, he worried your lack of training might get you hurt—or worse—so he did what any protective older brother would do: he called in a favor.

Fortunately for him (and maybe unfortunately for your focus), his friend just so happened to be a self-defense instructor. Riki was strong, serious, and incredibly skilled—exactly the type of guy you’d want teaching you how to throw a punch.

But the moment you saw him, you knew you were in trouble. He was tall, insanely attractive, and had this commanding way of teaching that made it hard to look away. Honestly, you were more interested in staring at him than learning how to defend yourself, and that was… definitely going to be a problem.

Still, the fact that self-defense involved a lot of physical contact only made you more excited. It gave you the perfect excuse to be close to him without anyone raising an eyebrow. Call it bold, call it crazy—but you were ready to shoot your shot, shamelessly or not.

Your first day with Riki was… eventful, to say the least. You hadn’t expected someone like him—tall, gorgeous, and cool—to be so painfully strict. But he didn’t hold back. Not even a little. He made you repeat every move until your arms ached and your patience thinned, completely unfazed by your groans or complaints. This wasn’t some fun afterschool activity. He made sure you took it seriously.

Still, over time, you started to warm up to him. Somehow, you didn’t mind the eye rolls, the sharp corrections, or even the way he sighed every time you got a move wrong.

“There has been no other person to stress me out more than you do,” he muttered, rolling his eyes for what had to be the fifteenth time that hour. You were struggling—again—and it was clear he was losing patience.

He paused, then gave you a look. “What are you even paying more attention to besides the steps?”

It was a fair question—and one you really didn’t want to answer. But come on… was it really you if you didn’t shoot your shot?

You shrugged, a small smirk tugging at your lips. “I was looking at you.”

He rolled his eyes again—at this point, you were sure it was his default reaction to you. You were just like Heeseung, he thought: shameless and way too confident for your own good.

“Yeah, well, use those eyes to focus on the steps—not on me,” he said flatly. His tone was calm, but there was a quiet edge of honesty behind it.

“Oh, come on! That’s boring.”

He stopped mid-move, turning to stare at you like you’d just insulted his entire profession. His jaw tensed slightly as he poked his inner cheek with his tongue, clearly holding back something.

“Don’t test my patience, kid.”

“I’m not a kid—”

“You’re acting like one,” he cut in sharply.

“Now focus.”