CHAPTER 015.
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The sun was already setting by the time the car had arrived at its destination.

When you made your exit from your captor's sports car, your gaze couldn't help but observe its rays pouring out their aesthetic shades of purples and oranges into the cloudless skies.

It is a picturesque scene that is truly worthy of praise.

However, until the moment you are given the opportunity to be actually graced by its utmost beauty, you had always ignored it prior.

But now, standing before it as a witness, you stared at it as if your breath were stolen away.

The seemingly still waters at bay that had reflected the rich colors made the image more evocative, so evocative that a thought couldn't help but drift by. The thought that compared to this sunset, your present life have always been so awfully dull and measly.

And yet, this brief moment of wonder also felt so strikingly real.

While you initially received a feeling that everything that you had ever gone through felt like a wind that just blew by, this glorious sight then eventually made an emphasis on you that your life had actually and considerably shifted since a few days ago.

To the point of being unreal. Like how you can never land a touch on the sun, and yet the impossible happened with a strange entity suddenly barging in your life and a dubious curse disguised as a gratifying luck.

You sigh.

You wonder if the sight of sunsets has always been this beautiful or if maybe the impact that has been delivered to you just now was only reserved for this very moment, as after all you have only been woken up by your quite handsome captor.

You could have only been dazed just now.

"Are you really that amazed by it?" Dark questions, tugging the black mask up to the bridge of his nose for the privacy protection of his famed identity.

You tilt your head to his direction and perceive that Dark was already in his disguised form. His attire for the show is, in all honesty, very simple.

To elaborate, he is currently donned of: a black face mask to cover half of his ethereal beauty, a black baseball cap to slightly obscure his striking celestial gaze, and a black overcoat to perfect the look by concealing his beautiful stature.

All in all, a cliche for all celebrities under cover from the public's eye, but it does serve its purpose well, which still greatly astounds you.

Unless you're a super major fan or someone gifted with a very keen vision, you doubt that anyone can recognize his identity right now.

Right now, even when you're in the face of him, you can't exactly match his present appearance to the crazed idol that has kidnapped you so politely earlier.

You squeeze out a smile to his stupid question, never really putting in any effort to make it as genuine as you can because you were never happy to be there in the first place.

"Are you not?"

Dark throws a quick glance at the sunset.

For a second, he was reminded of something but then he had already reflected before that the image of that day's sunset had never been the cause of his emotions at that time.

He shakes his head. "I never was."

Dark returns his attention to you and it's as if something mischievous lights up within him, his gray eyes slightly curved like the crescents of the moon, and you can somehow picture an idle smile slipping off the lips behind his mask.

"But you know, (Y/N), there's actually a saying that seems to state that it might not be the place that you're so amazed right now, but maybe it's the company you are with. So, I wonder..."

His gray eyes have the touch of tease as it narrows in the meaning of query. "..if you're subtly implying something?"
From his implication, you force out a cough and give him an incredulous look.

"You know what, Dark. What you should probably care about right now is that I'm actually starting to consider screaming," you warn the dyed-haired man who mainly chuckles in the face of your irritated expression.

At his shameless reaction toward your innocuous-sounding threat, the tip of your ears redden.

Feigning nonchalance, you roll your eyes and secure the gray bag on your back. "But I'm really really famished right now, so let's get this over."

"Alright," he says and extends an arm to wave over a waiter that had been patiently waiting from a distance to assist them to the restaurant.

In an instant, the young man with a classic black bowtie and a black waistcoat immediately rushes over to their position as he then begins to utter out the necessary, memorized fancy lines as a required greeting to all the esteemed guests that visited their premise.

You listen until you unconsciously begin to zone out.

Is hearing the history of the restaurant really that important for you to process? You doubt that you'll ever come back here again anyways as it's just a one-time thing.

A one-time dinner with this psycho over here.

"Let me then lead you to your reserved room."

It is by the time that the waiter ends his speech when he finally begins to move.

You and Dark instinctively trail after his slow, gracious steps—with you constantly sneaking a glance or stare in every few second toward your companion, just to keep an eye over any of his suspicious behavior.

Somehow Dark mistakes your wariness as inquisitiveness as he leans closer to you. His voice, deep and alluring, as he answers your assumed thoughts.

"If you're wondering whether the staff know my identity, then yes they do. The restaurant is already secured as they can be, but I still prefer to put on a cover, as to not provide any gossip for any hidden paparazzi that might be out here pretending to dine as customers."

"You wouldn't want us to be displayed on the news headlines tomorrow morning, right?"

You shake your head multiple times in aggressive refusal.

Of course not. You wouldn't want to. Not only you don't want to be associated with the likes of Dark, but you'd also prefer to maintain the little peace you have in your life.

Isn't this exactly one of the few reasons that you turned down Star's offers? And so, considering that, you are to diligently uphold to your reason and not let any media and fanatics destroy this peace that you desperately try to cling onto.

Dark tilts his head, grinning in amusement at your quite spirited will.

"I wouldn't like that too."

Before the young idol can even realize it, he has extended a hand and placed it on your hair, shuffling it, which immediately stops the brash movement of your head.

You eye him, almost warily.

Dark immediately retreats his hand and tucks it inside the pocket of his black overcoat.

"Oh, I guess we're here." His voice seems to slightly crack as he then hastily enters the reserved VIP room that the waiter just presented to the both of them.

You didn't dare make a move.

For a moment, you were occupied processing the gestures that happened just a few seconds earlier. But you couldn't feign ignorance, nor you couldn't feign that that didn't happen.

As you blink your eyes at the dazzled waiter, it is clear that the head pat really occurred.

Is the fuck luck happening again?

You blink your eyes, and you notice that Dark came for you again, tugging your arm as he gently pulled you into into the room. He then made you settle over a seat that is parallel to his.

You drop your gray backpack on your side while letting your absent gaze drift around the pretty room, unconsciously taking in all the minor details that it contains.

For a room of two, it is pretty large. There is a tv, a couch, and even a queen-sized bed. What? Is this a hotel or something? You never imagined a restaurant's VIP room to be looking like this at all.

You nervously glance at Dark who is in the other arc of the circular table. He is already in the midst of taking out his mask and cap, revealing the angelic beauty that he has concealed for a moment.

"Make yourself comfortable," Dark says as he happens to your gaze linger on him; and in response you slightly flinch at his words—the word comfortable being unconsciously processed as "at home" in your mind.

Did he really dared to deceive you and is now planning to make you live here for the rest of your days? He's really a psycho; a psycho!

You press your lips, glaring at him.

Dark furrows his brows, of course taking note of your sudden hostility.

He throws his hands up as if to surrender to your anger and proclaim his innocence. "Wait? Why are you suddenly mad, (Y/N)? Is there something wrong? Is it because of earlier—"

His hands quickly fly to his mouth as his porcelain white skin is instantly flushed pink from the humiliation when he followed your gaze towards the bed in one side of the room.

"— oh, the VIP rooms here are really designed like that. Very practical as you can see. You and your buddies and flings can—"

You place a palm over your temple in relief, not letting him proceed with whatever ridiculous nonsense he is about to utter. "So you don't plan to make me stay here for the rest of my days," you cautiously question.

He roars out a laughter. "No, of course not. Even when I'm a part of a famous idol group, I don't have that large amount of money to afford the everyday reservation of this room."

You eye him; and when you can assure the sincerity of his words, you can't help but release a tiny hint of a smile.

A helpless smile to your foolish self, for how you always constantly unnerves yourself with a lot of your overthinking.

Dark observes you, and he can't help but release a smile too. The longer he spends time with you; the further he cannot deny your fascinating personality.

But of course—his smile fades—he cannot let that distract him from seeing you as someone to be wary of.

He takes a black menu from the table. "Is there something you want to order?" he asks as he flips the page to the next.

While his gaze scans all the food available, his attention is certainly on the girl that managed to capture his friend's attention.

"Coffee?" you murmur.

Your eyes rest on the extra menu before you, but you do not dare to take it with your hands as the feeling of shyness and insecurity cascade over you again.

That very same feeling you felt back then when dining with Star's parents, when you realized that you were in an environment that you're not supposed to step onto.

"And?" He quirks a brow.

"[Favorite Coffee flavor]?" you murmur yet again; the inflection of your voice becoming smaller and smaller, until only the sound of your breathing can be heard.

And maybe also the rising rate of your heartbeat, that is why Dark may have suddenly paused from skimming the menu and laid his eyes on you.

"Did you suddenly decide to become modest despite loudly announcing to me earlier that you're really really famished?"

He cracks a smile; a light seemed to break through the gaps of his dark cloudy gaze for a moment, and you gulp in choking embarrassment.

"I—"

"Or are you scared that you might suddenly empty my bank accounts, after hearing my confession that I'm not so rich like I appeared to be?" he adds another assumption, and you quickly aggressively shake your head to stomp out everything he imparted.

Okay, fine. At that moment, you decide that you're gonna be honest. I mean, he did should have realized from the start that you never wanted to be here.

"Can't you just bring my coffee over here, so we can get this over?" you force the words out of your throat as you feign calmness from the sight of luxury surrounding your broke self.

"Ah" is what he said.

Dark doesn't say any words to you after that.

Or any more words that might have convinced you to order more heavy meals to satisfy your growling stomach. To your surprise, he was actually listening to you right now unlike earlier.

You only watch him quietly and elegantly read the menu before him. Then when he shuts it close, he takes the golden bell beside his plate and rings it.

Their assigned waiter is immediately beside him.

Maybe it's because you're used to watching dramas and reading novels that you have actually expected Dark to order meals for you.

So you keep your lips pursed, and your eyes gleamed with an expectant spark as you observe the two before you engage in a conversation.

You heard Dark utter the coffee you ordered, and you heard him utter more fancy-sounding meals.

"And that will be all," he says and gives that beautiful closed-eye smile to the waiter.

"Your order, Sir, will take forty-five minutes for preparation," the waiter politely responds, taking both menus from the table, and off he goes to inform the kitchen management.

The door finally closed to the own privacy of you two, and Dark finally allowed himself to settle his attention on you.

The edge of his lips seem to curve up as if he perceives you as something of a source of amusement. But as he stares at you more, his head betrays a shaking movement. He sighs as if he eventually finds you a fool instead.

"So you don't like Star," he finally decides to break the stillness of the room.

You give him a perplexed look.

Question arises, hearing the name of the man that you were planning to avoid. Anyways, what are you even supposed to answer to that? What does he mean? And why is he suddenly asking about Star?

"He is a good actor," you mutter, not choosing to confront his question directly in fear of what his reaction will be if you give him an answer that he doesn't like.

Dark drops a dazed smile, and it is beautiful like the stars in the night sky. He almost seems heavenly, just like the first time you personally encountered him back at Star's mansion.

"He is."

You tilt your head, and something about his expression just feels so familiar to you.

But before you can place a finger on it, his awareness is dragged back from those distant memories; and he focuses his cloudy gaze on you again.

"You're not delusional," he suddenly comments like it's a matter of fact; and you gape at him, wondering if you should take that as a compliment and thank him. But you can't force yourself to, not when you don't understand where this strange conversation is going.

The longer you stay here; the more you realize that his intentions are not something related to fuck luck. It's something else, and maybe this something else is already being hinted by his questions right now.

"Dark, can you be honest with me? Why did you bring me here? I'm sure it's not because you're lonely. I don't think people would kidnap someone just because they're lonely."

He laughs.

He laughs, and you curl the hands that were resting on your lap. You see him grab a knife and watch him observe his own celestial reflection that was casted by its silver blade.

You bite the insides of your mouth as fear suddenly grips you. You wonder if he's doing this intentionally to scare you.

"Kidnap? You are here out of your own volition," Dark corrected you, and you gave him an incredulous look and a mental F score for his gaslighting attempt.

You are about to open your mouth to retort and correct his ridiculous wrong statement, but he quickly silences you by dropping the knife in his hold.

It falls, reverberating a terribly clanging noise.

You nearly gasp from the shock.

"I'm going to be straight to the point with you, (Y/N)." He smiles, as if nothing just happened.

You blink your eyes at him, somehow also realizing at that moment that you actually have your back right now deeply pressed against the backrest of your chair.

"You're not delusional, but I'm going to give you the chance to get to know one of my friends."

If you were in a rom-com comic, then you might have already been drawn with your eyes rolling out its sockets from the stupid proposal he just offered you.

"W—what are you saying?"

Dark moves his gaze to the right. Walls of glass divide the outside from the inside, revealing the scenery outside. It wasn't as beautiful as before with all the blending of different shades gone.

You can barely see the ball of light from the horizon, but you have noted how the skies were already slowly being shrouded with darkness.

You observe that it will only take a matter of time before the stars and moon swoop in and paint the dark void with their dazzling beauty.

"Do you want to get the Nyx's autograph?" he asks, which causes you to tilt your head at him— still not grasping any of his intentions.

But Dark doesn't need you to understand him nor his intentions; he only needs your permission.

Actually, scratch that.

He doesn't need your permission. For the sake of keeping Star away from you, he will do anything—anything, to the point that he's even willing to become a matchmaker between you and his co-idol.

"No." He shakes his head, chuckling to himself. "I shouldn't ask you that. Of course. You're my friend. And as a celebratory gift to our new friendship, I should get you Nyx's autograph."

From his words, you cannot help but stand up to protest and question what he is really up to. "W—wait?! Nyx? Why are we talking about Nyx?!"

Sure, you guys did have a small conversation about his idol group, but you never really wanted to get an autograph from them or what.

It was only supposed to be a small talk. Small talk to ease the awkwardness, and that's all!

Dark ignored your inquiries and laid out his hand as if to retrieve something from you. "Your number?" he gently asks, and you shake your head.

"We're not friends."

He grins at you, pleased with your perceptiveness.

Of course you guys are not. Love rivals better suit the terms of your relationship, but he cannot bother to say that to you when you don't even know how deep his feelings are for Star.

Dark stands up from his chair and snatches your gray backpack from the floor. Paying no heed to your cries of complaints, he searches for that gadget of yours. Finally, it doesn't take awhile before he spots it.

Battery is at 5%, but it will serve.

He doesn't really have a hard time using your phone as he is able to unlock it with ease just by facing its screen at your horrified face for a few seconds.

At one moment you hear a beep and the next he is quickly typing down his number in your contacts. He dials, and his phone correspondingly rings.

"There you go. Thanks," he happily says.

"Dark, you know you're really starting to get into the bottom of my list of people that I like," you angrily respond as you harshly snatch your backpack and phone from his hold.

"So you do like me," he taunts.

You merely grant him a harsh glare.

You don't really have any plans to further acquaint yourself with this crazed idol; so the moment you got your phone in your hands, your first plan is to block his number before it stays longer in your contacts.

However, the concept called perfect timing sets in, and your phone screen goes completely black.

You groan. Frustration, evident.

"Can't you see? Fate is definitely telling us that we're destined to be friends," Dark's voice vainly calls out in the sidelines while you're mentally cursing the heavens and everything for this luck you have.

Fate? Fate, my ass.

You shove your phone to the pocket of your bag, and then you squeeze your eyes shut for a second to compose yourself and remind yourself that this is only for just one time.

After this, you'll never meet him.

Right? Right.

The waiter finally arrives with your order, and a cup of coffee is placed on your plate and nothing more. You spy Dark's, and he has all the rest of the delicious meals to himself.

His cloudy gray gaze meets yours; and suddenly, to your vexation, a corner of his lips is pulled up in the semblance of a very smug smirk.

Luck—One of your eyes slightly twitch. I now think that you're not the most irritating creature I have ever met in my whole lifetime.