VELVET CHAINS REVIVE

Ayden leaned against the hotel balcony rail, the chilled Parisian wind brushing over his cheek. His shirt was still undone from earlier, chest rising and falling with the weight of words he hadn't yet said. Behind him, inside the suite, Luca stirred.

"You didn't run," Luca said softly, his voice smoky from sleep.

Ayden didn't turn. "I wanted to."

Silence passed between them, then the soft thud of bare feet. Luca's arms circled his waist from behind, warm and grounding.

"But you didn't," Luca whispered into his neck.

Ayden closed his eyes. "I'm scared, Luca."

"I know," he murmured. "So am I."

Ayden turned at last, catching Luca's eyes. They were vulnerable, wide open in a way that made Ayden's pulse thrum in his throat. He brushed Luca's cheek with the backs of his fingers. "You're not just a fling."

Luca kissed him then — slow, deep, anchoring.

"You're my fire," he said against Ayden's lips. "I just don't want to burn you."

Ayden's smile was bittersweet. "Then let's burn together."

They kissed again — hotter this time, with unspoken emotion unfurling between every gasp. The bed called to them like a secret — and they tumbled into it with urgency and reverence. Touches turned feverish. Moans melted into the sheets. There were no more barriers now. Only truth. And skin. And surrender.

Side Story: Eden × Ren

Meanwhile, downstairs in the dimly lit hotel café, Eden sat with a steaming cup of black tea, pretending to scroll through his phone.

He didn't even like tea. But Ren was working tonight.

And Eden had no idea what to do about that.

Ren moved behind the counter with the confidence of someone who knew he was being watched and didn't mind. When he finally noticed Eden (as if he hadn't known he was there all along), he sent him a teasing grin.

"Well, well. I thought you only drank battery acid disguised as espresso."

Eden didn't look up. "I was curious."

"About tea?"

"About why you keep flirting with me when I've made it clear I don't... respond."

Ren leaned over the counter, his voice low. "Because one day, Eden, I think you will."

That made Eden look at him — really look at him. And for the first time, he didn't scowl or deflect.

"You're persistent."

"I'm consistent," Ren said with a wink. "There's a difference."

Eden sipped his tea, hiding the faint smile that tugged at the corner of his mouth.

Back in the Suite

Hours later, Ayden lay with his head on Luca's chest, both of them tangled in soft linen and softer breaths.

"Do you think we'll survive the show?" Luca asked, voice thick with post-lovemaking haze.

Ayden's eyes closed. "If we do... I want to try being more than just partners on the runway."

Luca's chest rose with a deep inhale. "That sounds dangerously close to something real."

"It is," Ayden murmured. "Terrifyingly real."

And somewhere below them, in the warm scent of coffee and the flicker of risk, Eden realized he might just let someone in after all.