"You are standing here complaining to me, and yet the moment he comes near you, you become speechless." The reaper’s voice remained calm, though every word landed with an uncomfortable winter chill. "You keep saying he does whatever he wants, and still you enjoy it when he challenges you."

Cixi frowned faintly.

"What exactly are you afraid of, Cixi?" the reaper asked. "From where I stand, you are not afraid of him. You are terrified of falling for him before he falls for you. He laid his obsession at your feet... You are afraid... he will treat you the same way he treated the other women in his life... Even though he confessed his obsession with you, you continue to carry doubt in your heart. Doubt of being hurt... You hoard your fear of abandonment because it is the only thing you still know how to control. You construct walls of ice around your chest to keep him out. But I see your soul, Cixi. No matter how high you build your defences, your heart bends toward Cassian Crown a little more every single day."

"He was obsessed with his cat, too," Cixi cut in at once, irritation flashing across her face. "And where is the cat now? Is it still with him?"

"Are you comparing yourself to a cat?"

The question struck her harder than it should have, perhaps because Cassian himself had once asked her the very same thing.

The reaper tilted its head slightly. "Do you believe he kissed his cat the way he kisses you? Cixi, no matter what I tell you, unless you feel it, unless you realise no one can make you see it or make you feel it."

Heat rushed to Cixi’s cheeks so quickly that she turned her face away in annoyance.

"I don’t know what you are talking about. And why are you keeping it up that I am falling for him? What I know is that because of the coin, he is protecting me. About his obsession, it can change any day.... He could still be playing with me," she argued stubbornly. "He likes playing with people’s lives..."

Her life had never been perfect, and she feared it never would be because of her own insecurities. Her parents made her feel abandoned, so how can she expect anything from Cassian? It could be just a fleeting moment which might pass one day.

She only needs to make him fall for him. And once he utters those words, she will vanish from his life before he tries to hurt her... She doesn’t want to allow anyone to hurt her anymore. She has been hurt enough....

That was the safest belief to hold onto. The more she convinced herself that Cassian was incapable of sincerity, the easier it became to guard her own heart from him.

"If that is what you wish to believe, then you are welcome to continue believing it." The reaper’s figure had already begun to fade at the edges like smoke dissolving into darkness. "I should leave now."

Before vanishing completely, the reaper spoke one final time.

"The longer you remain in the spirit world, the more exposed you will become to the land of the dead. Hurry, Cixi."

The words echoed through her mind even after the reaper disappeared.

With a gasp, Cixi’s eyes flew open.

Her chest rose and fell unevenly while her gaze locked onto a silhouette standing in the darkness of her room. It looked human, but impossibly tall, broad enough that it almost swallowed the corner where it stood.

Fear jolted through her body. She at once sat on the bed. Her hand immediately slammed against the bedside lamp, flooding the room with warm light only to find it was empty and the only person in the room was she.

Cixi stared at it for several long seconds before slowly lowering her trembling hand. Eventually, she convinced herself that the darkness and the curse were beginning to affect her imagination.

Still, her chest continued to heave from the shock of seeing something standing there.

And the reaper’s final words did not help.

She fell back against the pillow and glanced toward the mirror on the ceiling, only to avert her eyes almost instantly.

"What did the reaper mean... exposed to the land of the dead?" She murmured quietly to herself.

A deep breath left her lips. There was no point in overthinking it now. She told herself.

When she looked at the clock beside her bed, the glowing numbers read two in the morning. Cixi pulled the blanket closer around herself and decided to sleep again, though this time she kept the bedside lamp on.

Yet sleep refused to come easily. Her mind kept circling back to the reaper’s words.

Was she truly afraid of Cassian? Or was she afraid that she would become just another woman in his life, forgotten after a week like the rest?

The thoughts followed her endlessly while she turned from one side of the bed to the other without noticing how much time had passed. Eventually, exhaustion dragged her eyes shut. That’s when her phone buzzed.

Cixi frowned and reached toward the bedside table before checking the time.

Three in the morning.

Who would message her at this hour?

Still half asleep, she unlocked her phone and opened the notification.

Unknown Number.

The message read:

Be ready at seven. Come downstairs. We will have breakfast together. I will be waiting for you at seven, so do not make me come upstairs.

Cixi scratched her head in confusion, genuinely wondering if someone had accidentally sent the message to the wrong person.

So she typed back.

[Cixi]: Who is this?

Three dots appeared at the bottom of the screen. Almost immediately, an image appeared in the chat.

When it fully loaded, she saw Rafael holding a beer bottle while a woman beside him stuck her tongue out at the camera during the selfie. Below the picture, he had written only two words.

A second message arrived immediately after the photo.

[Rafael]: It’s me.

Cixi shook her head in disbelief.

[Cixi]: It is 3 AM. You are awake, drinking with a girl, and you want me to come down for breakfast at 7. Do you ever sleep? Or have you officially sworn off sleep altogether? And why are you disturbing me at this late hour?

The reply came instantaneously.

[Rafael]: I have renounced my sleep for you tomorrow.

Cixi stared at the text for a second, but decided not to reply. She pressed the side button, locking the screen, and placed the phone face down on the nightstand.

A second later, it vibrated again.

[Rafael]: If you won’t come downstairs, I will come upstairs and carry you to the breakfast table.

After reading the message, she immediately put the phone on silent and tossed it onto the bedside table before burying herself beneath the blanket again.

This time, sleep finally claimed her.

The bedside lamp continued glowing softly beside her sleeping figure.

Then, little by little, the light dimmed on its own.

And in the corner of the room, the silhouette that had vanished earlier slowly emerged once more, tall and motionless, silently watching Cixi sleep.

*

*

*

Cixi had barely slept for a few hours, and yet by seven in the morning she was already downstairs, standing near the lift with her scarf wrapped carefully around her hair while the fake pregnancy belly sat beneath her loose clothes.

A part of her genuinely believed Rafael would come upstairs himself if she failed to appear.

What she still didn’t understand was why he had suddenly taken such an interest in her.

The lift doors slid open to show Rafael standing, waiting for her.

The moment Cixi saw his eyes, her brows knitted together. They were red, slightly bloodshot, and paired terribly with the careless grin resting on his face.

"Are you sure you can even walk to the dining room without collapsing on the floor?" She asked immediately while stepping outside the lift. "Because let me make this clear beforehand—I am not catching you if you fall."

Rafael chuckled under his breath.

"Good morning to you too, Cixi." His voice sounded suspiciously energetic for someone who looked like he hadn’t rested in days. "And yes, I can walk perfectly fine. This is nothing. I once survived three days without sleep."

Cixi stared at him with open disbelief.

Rafael immediately raised both hands in surrender. "Relax. There are drugs that keep people awake." Then he laughed lightly. "Let’s go."

"You take drugs?" The question escaped her more sharply than intended.

The word itself made something unpleasant stir inside her chest because memories of the drug addicts near her neighbourhood instantly resurfaced in her mind. Men with bloodshot eyes and trembling hands who laughed while beating her for entertainment.

Rafael shoved one hand into his pocket as they started walking toward the dining hall.

"Who doesn’t?" he replied with a shrug.

"I don’t."

Rafael glanced sideways at her. "Try it once. I’ll make sure you get the good kind one once you are done with pregnancy. It feels amazing."

"No, thanks." Cixi’s expression sour immediately. "Hearing you say that only makes me think I should keep my distance from you."

Rafael laughed again. "I was joking."

"I didn’t like the joke."

Cassian’s warning returned to her mind at once.

Stay away from Rafael.

At first, she had thought Cassian was merely being controlling again, but now she found herself wondering if perhaps there had been an actual reason behind it.

Rafael suddenly tilted his head toward her. "What are you thinking?" he asked lazily. "Whether you should cut me out of your life already?"

Cixi gave him a pointed look. "I do not remember us ever becoming important enough in each other’s lives for that sentence to make sense."

Rafael looked offended for exactly two seconds before grinning again. "Ofcourse we are close." He started counting on his fingers dramatically. "I drove you to work yesterday. Then you replied to my messages at three in the morning. That clearly means I am becoming an important person in your life."

Cixi almost rolled her eyes.

For one irritating moment, Rafael reminded her of Cassian. The same shameless self-confidence. The same habit of speaking as though the world naturally revolved around them.

"You are not getting replies from me anymore," she informed him flatly.

"Don’t be cruel, Cixi," Rafael pressed a hand dramatically over his chest. "Who is going to drive you to work from here then?"

That question reminded her of something far more important. Cixi stopped walking abruptly and narrowed her eyes at him suspiciously. "How did you even get my number?"

Rafael looked entirely unapologetic.

"From Emily."