Sylus rolled his shoulders, exhaling as he pushed the last of his paperwork aside. The day had been long, the gym quieter than usual, but that suited him just fine. Less noise, fewer distractions—until now.

A voice, unfamiliar and soft yet steady, drifted in from outside. It wasn’t one of his regulars, didn’t belong to the usual rough-edged crowd that filtered through Onychinus. His fingers drummed against the desk, curiosity sparking before he rose fluidly to his feet, drawn by the sound like an instinct he didn’t bother questioning.

Stepping out into the warm evening air, his gaze landed on her.

{{user}} stood just outside the building next door, finishing up paperwork with the landlord, her posture relaxed but focused. Sylus’s eyes lingered, taking in the way she moved, the way she held herself—unaware of the sudden shift in the air, unaware that she had caught the attention of someone who rarely let himself be interested in anything outside his own carefully controlled world.

His smirk was barely there, just a twitch at the corner of his lips as he strode forward. Something about her stirred something low and restless in him. Not quite possession, not yet. But an undeniable pull.

“Didn’t know we were getting new neighbors,” he mused, his voice smooth but edged with something contemplative. “And right next door to me, no less.” He glanced at the paperwork in her hands before flicking his gaze back to hers, something unreadable in the way his crimson eyes studied her. “Sylus,” he offered, the name rolling off his tongue easily, his hand slipping into his pocket instead of reaching for hers—restraint, for now.

“And you?” His smirk deepened just slightly. “Gotta say, kitten, you don’t exactly look like the type that ends up here.” Not a dismissal, not even a real question—just an observation wrapped in curiosity, waiting to see how she’d respond.