I always thought Kevin was the kind of person who controlled everything.

  Situations. Conversations. Even the people around him.

  Every move he made was calcuted.

  Nothing ever happened by accident.

  But tonight…

  Tonight, I’m seeing something different.

  Lee Davis walked in.

  I’d never heard of him before, but from the way Kevin shifted ever so slightly, I knew he wasn’t just an “old friend.”

  Davis strolled into the penthouse like he owned it.

  He dropped onto the couch, picked up a gss of whiskey, and spun it slowly between his fingers.

  His smile was easy. Too easy.

  "Damn, Kevin. Word is, you’ve changed."

  His tone was light, amused.

  But there was something beneath it—

  Something that said this wasn’t just a casual conversation.

  Kevin leaned back against the sofa, crossing one leg over the other.

  His face remained impassive, but his eyes—

  His eyes were colder than usual.

  "And who the fuck is spreading that rumor?"

  Davis chuckled. "People who used to know you well."

  He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees.

  "I remember when you didn’t give a damn about the small stuff. But now..."

  He flicked a gnce at me. Just for a second.

  Then back to Kevin.

  "Seems like you care a little more these days."

  The air shifted.

  I understood exactly what was happening.

  I was being used as leverage.

  Davis kept pying with his whiskey gss, watching Kevin like he was waiting for something.

  Then, he changed the subject. Just like that.

  "Ah—almost forgot. You’re going to Carlo’s sister’s wedding, right?"

  Kevin’s brow twitched slightly. "Another one? Do these people get married every other week?"

  Davis ughed. "Jacklen isn’t going. So I need you to step in."

  Kevin exhaled sharply, unsurprised but visibly unamused.

  "You want me to go in Jacklen’s pce? No thanks. I like breathing."

  Davis raised an eyebrow. "The hell are you talking about? It’s a wedding, not a war zone."

  Kevin smirked. "With Jacklen and Carlo? What’s the difference?"

  I frowned slightly.

  Something told me this wasn’t a normal wedding.

  Davis stretched, draping an arm over the back of the couch.

  "So... taking a date?"

  Kevin kept scrolling on his phone, uninterested. "Do I need to?"

  "Of course. You’re Jacklen’s right hand. Gotta flex a little."

  Kevin sighed, lips twitching into something vaguely amused.

  "What the fuck do I need to prove? They already know where I stand."

  Davis ughed loudly, spping the armrest.

  "Damn, your ego is unreal. Want me to pick for you? What’s your type—cssy, elegant, or fiery?"

  Kevin finally looked up, tilting his head as if actually considering it.

  "Mm. If I had to choose... someone who doesn’t talk as much as you."

  Davis burst out ughing.

  And then—

  "Psyche, then. She’s yours, isn’t she?"

  My head snapped toward Kevin.

  And for a fraction of a second—

  Just one tiny second—

  Kevin hesitated.

  It was so brief it was almost invisible.

  But Davis saw it.

  And I saw that Davis saw it.

  "Not your type?" Davis’s voice was light, teasing. "Want me to take her instead?"

  I didn’t even see Kevin move.

  One moment, he was rexed.

  The next—

  He was leaning forward.

  Forearms braced on his knees. Eyes locked onto Davis.

  Cold. Sharp. Unsmiling.

  "Don’t even think about it."

  His voice wasn’t loud.

  But the room felt colder.

  Davis studied him for a second.

  Then he ughed, holding up his hands. "Alright, alright. I won’t touch what’s yours."

  Then he leaned back, a zy grin curling at his lips.

  "Speaking of old times... remember the ‘BBQ party’?"

  ...The what?

  I had never heard of this before.

  But from the way Davis said it, I knew—

  This wasn’t just some casual get-together.

  Kevin stayed still. Too still.

  But I could feel it.

  The room got just a little bit colder.

  "Davis, you really bringing that up again?"

  "Come on, man. That was a highlight. People say I went bigger than Jacklen that night."

  I saw Kevin gnce at me.

  It wasn’t something he did often.

  And that’s when I knew—

  He didn’t want me to hear this.

  Kevin shifted forward, resting an arm on his knee, smirking slightly.

  "You do realize you tell the same story when you’re drunk, right?"

  Davis studied him.

  Then grinned. "Fine. I’ll save it for when it’s just us."

  He pced his gss down on the table, tapping the rim lightly with his finger.

  Then—

  "But you know what happens if an outsider hears this, don’t you?"

  My entire body went cold.

  Davis turned to me.

  Smiling.

  A smile I couldn’t read.

  And I knew—

  This wasn’t a joke.

  Lee Davis was gone.

  But his words still hung in the air like a loaded gun.

  I was still standing where he left me.

  Kevin was still sitting on the couch, elbows resting on his knees, looking deep in thought.

  I didn’t know if he was thinking about Davis—

  Or just deciding what to eat for dinner.

  Because of course.

  He had lived through too much to care.

  But for me—this was a storm crashing through my life.

  I exhaled quietly, then asked the first question on my mind.

  "Do you really have to go to that wedding?"

  Kevin raised an eyebrow slightly, leaning back against the couch.

  His arms folded loosely, as if he was actually considering his answer.

  "...Seems like it."

  I stared at him. "That necessary?"

  He tilted his head slightly, feigning deep thought for two whole seconds before shrugging.

  "Davis already said it."

  My frown deepened. "So if he hadn’t said anything, you wouldn’t go?"

  Kevin chuckled under his breath. But there was no humor in his eyes.

  "If I had the choice? No."

  I pressed my lips together.

  A strange feeling settled in my chest.

  A wedding was supposed to be something you attended because you wanted to—

  Not because you had no other option.

  "...Is this the kind of wedding I think it is?"

  Kevin smirked at me, like he was debating whether to humor me.

  In the end, he leaned back, sighing softly.

  "And what kind do you think it is?"

  "The normal kind."

  He chuckled. "No."

  I bit my lip. "...Then what kind is it?"

  Kevin rested his arm zily on the sofa, tilting his head ever so slightly.

  "...The kind where if you skip, they send a bck envelope instead of an invitation."

  Silence.

  A chill ran down my spine.

  "That’s… still a wedding?"

  He shrugged. "There’s a bride and a groom."

  I narrowed my eyes. "And… a body count?"

  Kevin’s ughter was quiet. "Hopefully not."

  I scowled. "That’s not a good answer."

  What the hell?

  Was this the mafia or a goddamn Netflix crime drama?

  I exhaled, choosing to move on.

  "...Who is Lee Davis?"

  Kevin stilled for a second.

  Just a second.

  Then, he turned to look at me.

  He knew he had to say something.

  In the end, he went with—

  "Jacklen’s little brother."

  I blinked. "...What?"

  "Davis is Jacklen’s actual brother."

  My brain stalled for a good two seconds

  I tried picturing Jacklen and Davis as siblings.

  It didn’t fit.

  At all.

  "But… they’re nothing alike."

  Kevin smirked. "Do they need to be?"

  I almost argued—

  But stopped myself.

  Okay. Fine. That was a fair point.

  But there was something else I needed to know.

  "...And the BBQ party?"

  Kevin hesitated.

  Only for a second.

  Just one second.

  But that was all I needed to know—

  He didn’t want to answer.

  Kevin exhaled quietly, sitting up just a little.

  "...You don’t want to know."

  I clenched my teeth. "But you don’t want me to know."

  He smirked. "Exactly."

  I stared at him. "Does it have to do with Jacklen?"

  Kevin chuckled. "It has to do with everyone we went to school with."

  "...Then tell me."

  "No."

  "Why not?"

  Kevin turned to me.

  His gaze wasn’t cold—

  But it was filled with something heavy.

  Something I wasn’t sure I wanted to hear.

  "...Because I still want you to be alive."

  I froze.

  His voice wasn’t soft.

  But somehow—

  It still felt like protection.

  Was he warning me?

  Or threatening me?

  If it was that dangerous—

  Then why not just tell me?

  Or was he afraid of something, too?

  Kevin shifted.

  He was done with this conversation.

  "But—" he said, smoothly changing the subject, "you’re coming to that wedding."

  I frowned. "Excuse me?"

  "Davis already said it."

  I felt like my brain was buffering.

  "So I don’t get a choice?"

  Kevin chuckled under his breath.

  "You think you’ve had a choice since the night you saved me?"

  I clenched my fists—

  Not because I was angry at him.

  Because I was angry at myself.

  Because I knew he was right.

  "...Then what do I do?"

  Kevin studied me for a moment.

  Then, he leaned back, closed his eyes just slightly, and said—

  "I’ll tell you when it’s time."