last minute

Next day Yoongi go at midnight for a reason. Midnight was a seam in the world a time when the city held its breath and people didn't look too closely at the man in the expensive coat.

He stood in the shadows of the alley across from the store for ten minutes, his eyes fixed on Yn.

She was a whirlwind of movement behind the glass, wiping down counters and checking the clock every thirty seconds.

She was frantic, tired, and entirely real. To a man who lived in a world of masks, her raw transparency was a magnetic disturbance.

He stepped from the darkness and pushed open

the door.

The Encounter

Ticks. Tick. Tick.

The clock above the counter was mocking Y/N.

11:55 p.m.

Five minutes. Just five measly minutes until and she could lock this door, go home, and pretend the world didn't exist.

Her feet were throbbing in her cheap sneakers, and all she wanted was a bowl of ramen and a dreamless sleep.

Ding!

The bell rang like a death knell. her heart sank into her stomach.

She looked up, ready to give a "we’re closed" glare, but the words died in her throat. The man standing near the end of the aisle didn't look like a late-night snicker. He was quiet. Unhurried. He moved with a heavy, deliberate grace, as if he owned the air he was breathing.

"Sir," she said, her voice tight with forced politeness.

"Please hurry up. It’s closing time."

He didn't flinch. He didn't even check his watch. He just stood there, looking at a shelf of canned peaches as if they held the secrets to the universe.

"Five minutes still remain,"

he replied.

His voice was a low, steady hum deep enough to vibrate in my chest. It was way too calm for her peace of mind.

Y/N clenched her jaw so hard it ached. Seriously? This guy? She wanted to snap at him. She wanted to tell him that her shift started at 6:00 a.m. and his "five minutes" felt like five hours of torture.

But she stayed silent, burning a hole in his back with her eyes as he drifted through the aisles.

Finally, he stepped up to the counter. He didn't have a basket. He didn't have a handful of snacks.

He placed one. single. egg. on the counter.

Y/N stared at it. "Only one?"

she blurted out. "You stayed until the final second for one egg?"

He didn't explain. He didn't even blink. Those cold, dark eyes just settled on mine for a fraction of a second-long enough to make the hair on my arms stand up.

BEEP.

The scanner sound felt like a gunshot in the quiet store. He paid in cash, gave me a single, imperceptible nod, and walked out. He didn't look back. He didn't look bothered. He just vanished into the night as if he hadn't just ruined my sanity.

Y/N locked the door the second he cleared the frame, flipping the 'CLOSED' sign with enough force to rattle the glass. "Freak," she whispered to the empty room.

The Aftermath

By the time Y/N reached her apartment, she was a walking zombie. She kicked off her shoes, flopped onto her bed without even changing, and dialed Yoonha.

"Hi bro, you home?" She chirped, sounding far too awake for 12:30 a.m.

"Yeah, just now," Y/N groaned into her pillow.

"Why so late? Everything okay? Did a Shelf fall on you?"

"That man," Y/N sighed, the frustration bubbling over.

"He came in right at closing. He was so... blank. Like a statue. He stayed until the last second just to buy an egg, Yoonha. An egg! He didn't even care that I was waiting on him."

"Ooh," Yoonha’s tone shifted instantly. Y/n could practically hear her eyebrows wiggling through the phone.

"Is he handsome? Tall? Dark? Mysterious?"

Y/n rolled her eyes at the ceiling.

"Not again, Yoonha. I didn’t even notice his face. I was too busy wishing him into a black hole."

"Liar! You're so foolish. How can you not notice a man who has that kind of 'main character' energy? One egg? That’s a move, Yn. That’s a power move."

"I’m not interested," Y/n said firmly, closing her eyes. "Men are just a walking pile of disappointment and late-night chores. You know that."

"Ohh, is that the trauma speaking?" she teased.

"One day, that 'disappointment' is going to be your whole life, and I’m going to laugh at your wedding.

"Whatever. I’m never getting married anyway," I muttered.

Y/N hung up before she could start planning the flower arrangements. she was too tired to argue. But as she drifted off to sleep, the image of those cold, steady eyes wouldn't leave her.

Across town, in a mansion that felt like a fortress, Min Yoongi sat at a mahogany desk. In front of him sat a single, white egg.

He wasn't hungry. He was just curious.

***Download NovelToon to enjoy a better reading experience!***