16.

Chapter 16

Sunoo wasn’t going to let Riki win this time.

His skin still crawled from the way Riki had looked at him—like he knew, like he could see right through him. But Sunoo was done playing defenseless. If Riki wanted to get under his skin, Sunoo would make sure he paid for it.

So when he leaned forward, resting his arms on the interrogation table, his lips curled into something that was almost a smirk.

“I had a dream about you last night.”

Riki blinked.

Then, slowly, a grin stretched across his face, sharp and intrigued. “Oh?”

Sunoo hummed, tilting his head. “Mm. You were on your knees.”

Riki’s eyes darkened, something unreadable flashing across them. The chains rattled as he shifted, his fingers curling slightly against the cuffs.

“Careful, doc,” he murmured, his voice low, dangerous. “You’re starting to sound like me.”

Sunoo leaned closer, letting his gaze flicker over Riki’s face, the way his pupils dilated just slightly.

“I don’t think you mind,” he mused, his voice just barely above a whisper.

Riki let out a slow breath through his nose, and then—

He smiled.

Not just any smile.

A wild one.

A dangerous one.

Teeth bared, eyes gleaming—like he was seconds away from tearing into him, like he wanted to grab Sunoo by the throat and drag him across the table.

Sunoo’s pulse quickened.

Riki was enjoying this.

No—he was thriving in it.

“That’s a new look on you,” Riki murmured, tilting his head. “Flirting with a serial killer. Naughty, doc.”

Sunoo rolled his eyes, leaning back just enough to keep the upper hand. “Oh, please. Like you don’t love the attention.”

Riki let out a short, amused laugh, his head tilting further. “You know what’s funny?”

Sunoo arched a brow. “Enlighten me.”

Riki’s grin didn’t falter. “You keep acting like you’re playing a game.” He leaned forward, the chains clinking softly. “But I think you’re forgetting something, doc.”

Sunoo crossed his arms, feigning boredom. “And what’s that?”

Riki’s gaze locked onto his.

“I never lose.”

Sunoo’s breath hitched.

Because Riki wasn’t smirking anymore.

He wasn’t joking anymore.

The weight of his words settled between them, thick and heavy, wrapping around Sunoo’s throat like invisible hands.

His heart pounded, but he refused to let Riki see him waver.

Instead, he chuckled—light, teasing, just to piss him off.

“Well,” Sunoo murmured, voice smooth as silk. “There’s a first time for everything.”

Riki stilled.

Then—

He laughed.

A full-bodied, maniac laugh.

It echoed through the room, bouncing off the walls, rattling in Sunoo’s ears.

Pure, unfiltered amusement.

Riki tilted his head back slightly, his shoulders shaking as he let it out—sharp, unhinged, like he loved this.

Like he loved him.

Not in a way that was romantic.

No.

In a way that said: You are mine, and I will ruin you.

Sunoo should have been scared.

But instead—

He smiled.

Because if he was going to lose, he was going to make sure Riki remembered it.