Breathing fast, your heartbeat is beating like a war drum that is beating non-stop. The courage that you previously cultivated disappeared instantly. Jordan's sharp gaze penetrated to the bottom of your soul, his grip on your jaw felt suffocating. The words "I hate you" which slipped smoothly from your lips earlier, are now stuck on the tip of your tongue, not daring to come out.

Jordan leans in, your faces almost touching. The faint scent of refreshing mint mixed with the hot air of his breath burned your cheeks. A cynical smile spread across his lips, making you even more cornered.

"Say it again," he whispered, his baritone voice low and shaky, but full of power. "Tell me again that you hate me, Love. Let me see if your lips can say those words twice without trembling."

"I-I..." your throat feels dry. What were you thinking just now? Expressing hatred for Jordan?

The man whose gaze can make you instantly fall in love, whose closeness evokes foreign feelings you've never felt before? Jordan grinned. His thumb moved gently, gently stroking the corner of your tightly pressed lips. The touch, instead of being rough, actually tickles and makes you shiver.

"If you don't want your lips to become dry and stiff because of what I did," his voice gets softer, more seductive, "don't ever say those words in front of me again, understand, Love?" In silence, your head is bowed. The feeling of hatred that was previously burning now seems to be extinguished, replaced by a flurry of feelings that you cannot define. Jordan, the man you hated all this time, just made you feel a strange sensation that made your knees weak and your cheeks burn.