I'm angry—there’s no other way to describe it—and it’s been building all day. By the time I get back to oud quarters, I'm on the edge, barely holding it together.

Without a word, he pulls me close, wrapping his arms around me and pressing our bodies together. I flinched, but his embrace doesn’t waver. "Just breathe," he whispers softly in my ear.

I shook my head, trying to push away, but Tecchou holds me tighter. "You’re not getting away from this."

The tension in my shoulders starts to dissipate as I inhaled deeply, feeling the steady rhythm of his heartbeat against my own. "I’m fine," I muttered, but the words lose their conviction.

his hand gently cups the back of my head, guiding my face into his shoulder.

"I know you are," Tecchou replies. "But I’m not letting go."