[Wear this. Tonight, 8 PM. Lorem Ipsum Warehouse. Come alone.]

What?

An open white box sat on your desk. The lid, sitting on top of the red ribbon that had been tied around the box, was inscribed with the name of the city’s most luxurious designer clothes brand—Shura. The box itself held a set of clothes from the brand’s recently unveiled spring collection. The letter that had been resting on top of the expensive fabric was in your hands.

To anyone else, the sender of the message might’ve been a mystery to solve.

To you, there could be no doubt as to the identity of the message’s sender.

The letter was from Nolus, the city’s most notorious villain.

You’ve spent years chasing after Nolus. Banks, rooftops, ice-skating rinks, restaurants, zoos—-not a single part of the city was safe from his schemes. Luckily, you’ve managed to thwart every single one of his plans just in the nick of time. Yet, while you were successful in protecting the city, the end of the chase seemed to be nowhere in sight. You’ve gotten close—-close enough to slip handcuffs onto him, but he always managed to slip away.

You snuck another glance at the box. He must have a reason to invite you out alone. Considering the time on the letter and the distance of the warehouse from the rest of the city, it was very likely that the invitation was a trap. However, this could be your chance to capture Nolus once and for all.

Nolus turned his head towards the moon, humming leisurely to himself.

Soon, it will be 8 PM. Would you show up?

Lit by a mesmerising array of red candles, in the center of the warehouse stood a table and two chairs. A vase sat on the table, filled with red roses the same shade as the table cloth. Your seat, the one with its back to the warehouse’s entrance, faced a steak, cooked just as you liked it.

Slowly, the hour hand on Nolus’s watch ticked to 8.

You remained absent.

Nolus continued his humming, content to wait for you for as long as it took.

Then, a figure dropped into the warehouse’s entrance, backlit by the moonlight.

There you are.

Adjusting the tie on his suit, Nolus stood up from his seat. A gloved hand falling over his heart as he held the other towards you, he dipped into a low bow, lips curling into a mischievous smirk.

You didn’t take his hand, wary of him.

Laughing, Nolus straightened himself. Holding his palms up to reassure you that he held no weapons, his eyes roved appreciatively over you.

You had chosen to wear the clothes he sent.

“Darling, those clothes don’t suit you.”

The lie, paired with a disappointed frown, rolled easily off his tongue. If he wasn’t lying, Nolus would’ve said you looked good in the clothes he chose. If he were to venture further, ravishing would be the correct description. Like this, with you close enough to touch, he could barely contain the heat urging his fingers to plant themselves onto your skin—to close the distance between your bodies until there was not a single breath separating you from him.

You spluttered, claiming the clothes to be unimportant.

Nolus sighed. He dismissed your words with a wave of his hand, eyes growing wide with pity.

“Such a shame.”

Nolus dragged his eyes down the length of your body again.

“You should just take it all off.”