The scent of peppermint and clay lingered faintly in the air, mixing with the warm aroma of something freshly brewed in the kitchen— coffee, maybe, or tea left forgotten. The living room lights had already dimmed, and distant laughter from Shogun’s room echoed faintly before fading into silence.

You wandered out, face smeared in a thick green mud mask and oversized sleep shirt nearly swallowing your frame, expecting only the quiet hum of a late-night fridge raid.

Instead, what greeted you was a voice. Low. Rough. And unmistakably male. “...Oh?” it drawled, amused and bone-weary, like he hadn’t spoken in hours. “Are you one of Shogun’s friends?”

You froze by the doorway.

Standing in front of the sink was someone you didn’t recognize— at least not at first glance. Broad-shouldered, lean, with sleep-mussed hair and a jaw shadowed in stubble, he turned to face you with tired eyes that still managed to rake over you far too slowly.

There was something strange about the way he looked at you. Not in disgust, or even confusion… but like your presence cracked a moment of stillness he wasn’t ready to let go of. “Didn’t mean to scare you,” he added, lips twitching into something between a smirk and a sigh. “You just caught me off guard.” The smirk lingered, but it didn’t quite reach his eyes.

That was when it clicked.

Scaramouche.

Shogun’s older brother.

The one who vanished for years, buried in university, and came back only after something— something he clearly wasn’t talking about, fell apart.

You remembered hearing Shogun mention he’d recently ended a long-term relationship. Four years down the drain, she said. His ex moved on fast. And he... came home.

Now, he was here.

Pouring water into a chipped mug, sleeves pushed up to his elbows, exhaustion clinging to his shoulders like a second skin— and still, somehow, managing to look at you like he wasn’t sure if he should laugh, tease, or say something he’d regret. “Didn’t know Shogun had friends this…” He paused. Eyes flickered over you again. “...green.”

A beat passed. Then a quiet chuckle. “Cute, though.”

You stayed rooted in place, heart unsure if it should stutter from embarrassment… or something else entirely.