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Kim Dokja was living a thoroughly exhausting life.

By day, he was an ordinary university student struggling to keep up with his classes.

By night, he worked the graveyard shift at a secluded 24-hour convenience store on the edge of Seoul to pay his rent.

His only escape from reality was tapping away on his smartphone during dead hours, completely absorbed in an obscure web novel called *Ways of Survival*.

The store was usually empty between 2:00 AM and 4:00 AM, which was exactly how Dokja liked it.

But everything changed the night the glass doors slid open with a cheerful *ding-dong*, and a man walked in who looked like he belonged in a high-stakes crime syndicate rather than a convenience store.

The stranger was impossibly tall, wearing a tailored black trench coat that seemed to absorb the bright fluorescent lighting of the store.

He had a sharp, devastatingly handsome face, but his eyes were so cold and intimidating that Dokja’s survival instincts instantly screamed.

The man walked straight to the back counter, grabbed a single pack of heavy-duty bandages, and dropped them in front of Dokja.

As he reached for his wallet, Dokja noticed a faint smear of blood on the man’s knuckles.

"That will be four thousand won, Joonghyuk-ah," Dokja blurted out automatically.

The stranger froze.

His dark eyes locked onto Dokja’s face with terrifying intensity.

"How do you know my name?"

Dokja internally panicked.

He couldn't exactly explain that he recognized the man's build, name, and dangerous aura from the detailed descriptions of the protagonist in his favorite web novel.

"Your... your nametag," Dokja lied smoothly, pointing randomly at the man's chest, even though Joonghyuk was wearing plain black fabric.

"Anyway, cash or card?"

Yoo Joonghyuk stared at him for a long, silent moment before tossing a ten-thousand-won bill onto the counter.

"Keep the change."

He grabbed the bandages and walked out into the stormy night without another word.

From that night on, Joonghyuk became a regular.

Every single night at exactly 3:15 AM, the store doors would chime, and Joonghyuk would walk in.

He never bought much—usually just standard medical supplies, a black coffee, or occasionally, a specific brand of high-protein meal prep containers.

Dokja quickly realized that despite his terrifying, mafia-like appearance, Joonghyuk was actually just a fiercely protective, incredibly brooding guy who seemed to constantly get into fights defending his neighborhood.

"You're bleeding again," Dokja sighed one rainy Tuesday, leaning over the counter as Joonghyuk placed a bottle of antiseptic in front of him.

"For a guy who looks like a supreme king, you really don't know how to duck."

"Shut up, Dokja," Joonghyuk muttered, though there was no real venom in his voice.

He sat down on a plastic stool by the window, opening the bottle with one hand.

Dokja rolled his eyes, grabbed a box of cotton pads from the shelf, and walked out from behind the counter.

He walked over to Joonghyuk's table, gently taking the bottle out of his hands.

"Let me do it. You're just going to pour the whole thing on your face and look like a tragic main character."

Joonghyuk went completely still as Dokja leaned in close.

Dokja carefully dabbed the antiseptic onto a small cut near Joonghyuk’s cheekbone.

Up close, the scent of rain, expensive cologne, and tobacco enveloped Dokja completely.

"Why do you work here?" Joonghyuk asked suddenly, his deep voice vibrating in the quiet store.

His eyes were fixed entirely on Dokja’s face, tracing the way his messy black hair fell over his forehead.

"It's dangerous at night. The neighborhood isn't safe."

"I have to pay for my premium web novel subscriptions somehow," Dokja joked, flashing a breezy, soft smile.

"Besides, I'm safe enough. I have a giant, scary bodyguard who visits me every night."

Joonghyuk’s jaw clenched slightly, a sudden wave of intense heat radiating off him.

[The exclusive skill 'Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint' is activating!]

Because they were standing so close in the empty, quiet store, Dokja’s brain suddenly caught a massive wave of Joonghyuk’s internal thoughts.

It wasn't the thoughts of a cold, dangerous gangster at all:

*He's too thin. Why does he only eat leftover convenience store kimbap? If anyone comes near this store to cause trouble, I'll break their legs. I don't want him working where I can't protect him.*

Dokja froze, his hand pausing against Joonghyuk's cheek.

His ears turned bright red as the sheer intensity of Joonghyuk's protective, possessive thoughts flooded his mind.

"Joonghyuk-ah..."

"Kim Dokja," Joonghyuk whispered.

He reached up, his large, warm hand wrapping firmly around Dokja’s wrist, stopping him from pulling away.

He rose from the plastic stool, completely towering over Dokja and crowding him against the glass window.

The rain slammed against the glass behind them, but inside, the air was suffocatingly hot.

"Don't look at other customers the way you look at me," Joonghyuk growled softly, his dark eyes dropping to Dokja’s lips before locking back onto his eyes.

"And stop smiling at everyone who walks through that door."

"I'm a cashier, Joonghyuk-ah, it's literally my job to be polite—"

"I don't care," Joonghyuk interrupted, his voice thick and possessive.

He leaned down, his face closing the distance until his breath brushed against Dokja’s skin.

"Quit this job. Come work for me. I'll pay you double."

"Doing what?" Dokja breathed, his heart hammering wildly against his ribs.

"This," Joonghyuk said smoothly.

Before Dokja could calculate the logic of the situation, Joonghyuk closed the remaining distance, pressing his lips firmly and warmly against Dokja's.

Dokja’s smartphone, which had been resting safely in his apron pocket, was completely forgotten as he let go of the counter, wrapping his arms around his chaotic, dangerous regular's neck and letting the convenience store's rules completely break down.

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