Morning arrived quietly over Jin Corp.
After nights of rain, tension, warmth, and slowly intertwining hearts, the day that had silently waited in the distance finally stood before them.
25th October, 3027.
The answer day.
The day that would decide whether Lily merely passed through Jin’s life… or became part of it forever.
Soft golden sunlight streamed through the giant floor-to-ceiling windows of Jin’s bedroom, washing the luxurious room in calm amber light.
The city outside looked unusually peaceful this morning.
Clean skies stretched over distant towers while the streets far below moved lazily beneath the warmth of autumn sunlight.
Yesterday’s rain had vanished completely.
But inside the room, another storm quietly remained.
Jin sat calmly atop the massive bed, cross-legged near the center.
Crisp white shirt.
Black pants.
Dark hair slightly messy from the morning.
His posture looked composed as always, steady and controlled like nothing in the world could truly shake him.
Yet his eyes rested on only one person.
Lily.
She sat opposite him on the same bed, also cross-legged beneath the soft morning light.
Her white off-shoulder dress revealed the delicate line of her collarbones while the black skirt spread gently around her legs across the blanket.
Silver hair flowed neatly over her shoulders today, glowing faintly where sunlight touched it.
Beautiful.
Nervous.
And painfully aware of what today meant.
Her fingers rested quietly together in her lap while a soft blush lingered across her cheeks.
Every few seconds she took another slow breath as though trying to calm the rapid rhythm inside her chest.
The room remained silent for a while.
Then Jin finally spoke.
“Hm…”
His voice came calm and low.
“Once mom comes…”
“…you say your final answer, okay?”
Lily swallowed softly before nodding.
“O-okay…”
Even her voice sounded smaller today.
She lowered her gaze again, trying to steady herself, but after several quiet seconds her silver eyes slowly lifted back toward him.
“Jin…”
“…um…”
“I am feeling nervous.”
The confession came almost shyly.
Jin watched her quietly for a moment before sighing softly through his nose.
“It’s normal to feel that.”
His tone stayed calm, grounding.
“It’s your life-changing decision.”
Those words only made the weight in Lily’s chest feel more real somehow.
Life-changing.
Permanent.
A choice that would shape everything after today.
She slowly turned her gaze toward the giant windows beside the bed, watching sunlight spill across the distant city skyline.
The world outside looked peaceful.
Safe.
Ordinary.
And for one brief second, Lily wondered if her life could remain like that too.
Simple.
Warm.
Quiet.
Then suddenly— her vision went black.
Lily froze.
The sunlight disappeared instantly.
The room vanished.
And in the next moment… she was somewhere else.
An endless dark space stretched around her in every direction.
No walls.
No sky.
No sound.
Only infinite blackness and a strange reflective floor beneath her feet like dark water made of glass.
Lily’s breath caught softly.
“…What…?”
Her own voice echoed unnaturally through the emptiness.
Then ahead of her, two pathways slowly emerged from the darkness.
The first path formed on the left.
Crimson and cyan energy flickered violently around it like unstable lightning.
The air itself looked distorted there.
Skulls littered the dark ground while strange pulses of unnatural light flashed across the pathway.
Above it, glowing words appeared:
“YES — DISASTERS.”
Lily’s heartbeat instantly sped up.
Then the second path appeared to the right.
Warm sunlight poured gently over a peaceful garden-like trail lined with green grass and soft golden leaves drifting quietly through calm air.
The atmosphere there felt serene.
Safe.
Untouched by pain.
Above it floated another name:
“NO — PEACE.”
Lily stared silently at both choices.
One path held love.
The other held safety.
And somehow… deep inside herself… she understood exactly what the vision meant.
Her fingers trembled slightly.
“Does that mean…” she thought shakily, “…I shouldn’t say yes…?”
Suddenly the darkness shattered.
Lily blinked hard.
And instantly she was back inside Jin’s bedroom again.
The sunlight returned.
The warmth returned.
The soft scent of the room returned.
Jin still sat across from her exactly where he had been moments earlier, completely unaware that her world had just split apart inside her mind.
Lily blinked repeatedly, trying to steady her breathing.
“What… was that…?”
Her thoughts spiraled nervously.
“Was it warning me…?”
“…about Jin?”
“…about the future?”
Before she could process further— the bedroom door softly opened.
Haruka entered with her usual warm graceful smile, morning sunlight catching softly across her dark hair as she walked toward the bed.
The atmosphere shifted instantly.
Gentler.
Lighter.
Yet somehow even more serious now.
Haruka’s eyes moved between the two sitting opposite each other on the bed.
Jin calm and unreadable.
Lily nervous and quiet.
A faint knowing smile touched Haruka’s lips.
“Hm…”
“…so?”
“Ready?”
Jin gave a calm nod immediately.
Lily nodded too, though much slower.
Her heart pounded louder.
Haruka finally turned fully toward her.
The room suddenly felt too quiet.
Too bright.
Too still.
Outside the windows, sunlight continued flooding peacefully across the city.
Inside the room, destiny waited.
Haruka smiled gently at her and asked softly:
“So tell me, Lily…”
“…do you choose Jin?”
And Lily froze there between two worlds.
Between love and fear.
Between warmth and warning.
Between the boy she had already fallen hopelessly in love with… and the terrifying vision still lingering inside her mind like a shadow that refused to disappear.
Too loud.
Too fast.
Haruka’s warm question still lingered in the air.
“Do you choose Jin?”
And suddenly…
The vision returned.
Not before her eyes this time.
Inside her mind.
That endless black space.
That reflective dark floor stretching forever.
Two paths.
Two futures.
YES — DISASTERS.
NO — PEACE.
Lily’s chest tightened.
“If I choose yes…” she thought nervously, “…there would be disasters…”
“…calamities…”
“What should I do…?”
For a moment, fear wrapped around her heart like invisible chains.
Then slowly…
She turned her eyes toward Jin.
He still sat calmly across from her, cross-legged atop the bed exactly as before.
Crisp white shirt.
Black pants.
Dark hair slightly messy from the morning light touching it.
Cold.
Composed.
Quiet.
Yet no longer distant.
Not anymore.
And then her memories began flooding back one after another like warm waves crashing through fear.
The fever night.
Her body weak and exhausted while resting against him for the first time.
Jin awkwardly pretending annoyance while still letting her cling tightly to his arm the entire night.
Staying beside her anyway.
Protecting her anyway.
Then the gala night.
Her arms wrapped around his neck.
His hand resting carefully against her waist.
Their faces slowly moving closer.
Eyes closing.
Breaths mixing.
Lips only inches away before interruption shattered the moment.
Then another memory.
Beneath the black blanket.
Rain outside.
Warm breaths.
Her forehead against his.
And finally…
That tiny accidental kiss.
The briefest touch of lips before her sneeze completely destroyed the atmosphere.
Even now the memory made her want to hide forever.
Then came the strawberry milkshake.
The ridiculous request.
His confused face.
And despite acting cold the entire time…
He still remembered it during work hours.
Still arranged it for her.
Still gave it to her personally with that tiny hidden smile he thought nobody noticed.
Every stubborn wish.
Every tiny need.
Every fear.
He fulfilled them all quietly.
Like someone who loved silently instead of loudly.
And now…
She looked at him again.
Still calm.
Still composed.
Still pretending nothing affected him.
Yet his hand rested quietly beside hers on the bed.
Not touching her.
Not forcing comfort.
Just there.
And somehow…
That alone steadied her heart more than anything else.
The fear slowly began fading.
Little by little.
A tiny smile appeared on Lily’s lips.
Soft.
Warm.
Certain.
The dark vision in her mind slowly lost power against the reality sitting beside her.
Because peace without him suddenly felt emptier than any disaster with him.
Lily finally lifted her eyes toward Haruka.
Her voice came out quiet.
Small.
But unwavering.
“Yes…”
The room fell completely silent.
Lily’s fingers curled softly together as she continued.
“I choose Jin…”
A faint blush spread across her cheeks.
“…I want to be his bride.”
Silence.
Just silence.
Even the distant city noises outside felt muted.
Jin froze completely.
His dark eyes widened slightly for the first time in what felt like forever.
Like even he hadn’t truly expected the answer despite already knowing it deep down.
Haruka blinked once.
Then suddenly smiled.
Brightly.
Warmly.
Genuinely.
“Wonderful!”
Her voice filled the room with happiness.
“That’s very much good news, Lily!”
Lily barely had time to react before Haruka leaned closer and gently patted her head lovingly.
“Awww…”
“…my soon-to-be daughter.”
Instantly, Lily’s entire face turned bright red.
Haruka laughed softly at her reaction before standing elegantly from the bed.
“I shall tell this news to your mother.”
And just like that, she exited the room happily.
The bedroom door closed softly behind her.
Leaving only two people behind.
Jin.
And Lily.
Silence immediately became dangerous.
Jin still sat frozen cross-legged on the bed, clearly processing everything that had just happened.
Future husband.
The words suddenly echoed inside Lily’s head.
Her future husband.
The realization hit like lightning.
Her entire body overheated instantly.
“Ah…”
Lily squeaked softly before immediately hiding her burning face behind both hands.
She turned away in complete embarrassment.
Meanwhile across from her, Jin himself looked away in the opposite direction, a faint blush visible across his cheeks despite his attempts to remain calm.
And somehow…
Everything felt different now.
Even the air between them.
Even sitting this close suddenly felt intimate.
Hand holding now sounded terrifying.
Eye contact felt heavier.
More meaningful.
More dangerous.
And for Lily…
Even imagining herself clinging to his arm again made her heart nearly combust.
Because now he wasn’t just Jin anymore.
Not just the cold CEO.
Not just the awkward boy she loved.
Now…
He was truly her future husband.
Morning sunlight covered both of them softly as silence filled the luxurious room once more.
Jin quietly blushing while pretending calm.
Lily hiding her burning face behind her hands.
Two awkward fiancés suddenly realizing at the exact same moment…
Their relationship had just become real.
And just after 2 minutes.
The bedroom fell quiet again after Haruka left.
Not uncomfortable quiet.
Not cold either.
Just… dangerously aware quiet.
Morning sunlight continued pouring softly through the massive floor-to-ceiling windows, covering the luxurious room in warm gold.
The black blanket still lay over both of them atop the enormous bed, though now the space between them somehow felt far smaller than before.
Because everything had changed.
Lily was no longer simply the girl staying in his room.
And Jin was no longer simply the man she loved quietly from beside him.
Now they were officially engaged.
Future husband.
Future wife.
The words alone were enough to destroy both of their composure.
Jin sat stiffly against the headboard, trying very hard to look unaffected.
Then finally:
“Ahem…”
He awkwardly cleared his throat.
The sound echoed strangely loudly in the silent room.
A second later, realization suddenly hit him.
Saturday.
His eyes narrowed faintly.
“…Tch.”
No work today.
Meaning he couldn’t even escape into the office to recover from this unbearable atmosphere.
Meanwhile beside him, Lily still hid her face behind both hands, though slowly…
Very slowly…
She peeked at him through the tiny gaps between her fingers.
Silver eyes shy.
Pink cheeks fully visible.
Her heart still racing wildly.
“Mhm…”
Her voice came out soft and tiny.
“Jin?”
Jin immediately tensed again.
Light blush touching his cheeks.
“W…what?”
He tried sounding calm.
Failed instantly.
Lily stared at him for another few seconds before gathering courage.
Then carefully, slowly, she shifted a little closer atop the bed.
The movement alone nearly killed his remaining composure.
She smiled softly behind her hands.
Then whispered:
“Can I…”
“…have full body cuddles now?”
Complete system failure.
Jin’s eyes widened immediately.
“…Uh…”
“…uh…”
He stared at her like she had just proposed global destruction.
“What?”
“I mean…”
“…n-no…”
His face became visibly pink now.
Then finally, after several painful seconds of resistance:
“Tch…”
“…alright.”
Lily instantly exploded into muffled giggles behind her hands.
“Yay…”
The happiness in her voice sounded far too victorious.
Jin exhaled slowly through his nose, trying desperately to recover his dignity.
Return to CEO mode.
Immediately.
He straightened his posture against the headboard, pulled his legs properly beneath the blanket again, then calmly grabbed his laptop and placed it onto his lap.
Company statistics appeared across the glowing screen.
Financial graphs.
Security reports.
Business projections.
Very serious things.
Very professional things.
Meanwhile beside him, Lily quietly took one nervous breath before slipping fully beneath the same black blanket beside him.
She settled against the headboard too, silver hair falling softly around her shoulders.
Her shoulder lightly touched his now.
Warm.
Soft.
Dangerous.
Jin continued pretending to work.
For exactly nine seconds.
Then suddenly paused.
Lily blinked curiously.
His cheeks were slowly turning pink again.
He stared at the screen another moment before finally sighing in defeat.
“…Tch.”
The laptop closed with a soft click.
He placed it aside completely and finally turned toward her fully.
Lily immediately blushed harder seeing his full attention focused entirely on her.
“What?” she whispered softly.
Jin hesitated.
Actually nervous.
Which somehow made Lily even more nervous too.
“Um…”
“Lily…”
He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.
“Since you’re my official fiancée now…”
“…actually…”
“…mom suggested that if you chose yes…”
“…I should give you something symbolic.”
Lily blinked softly.
Then Jin slowly reached into his pocket.
And pulled out a small elegant box.
The moment she saw it, her breathing stopped.
Jin opened it carefully.
Inside rested a beautiful ruby-diamond ring.
The gold band gleamed softly beneath the morning sunlight while the crimson ruby at its center shimmered like frozen red starlight.
Tiny diamonds surrounded it delicately, elegant without being overly flashy.
Expensive.
Beautiful.
And somehow…
Completely him.
Lily froze entirely.
“…Jin…”
Even her voice failed.
Jin avoided eye contact immediately after opening the box, clearly pretending this was not affecting him at all.
Failed again.
Quietly, carefully, he reached forward and took her trembling hand into his own.
Warm fingers.
Gentle grip.
No teasing now.
No awkward sarcasm.
Just sincerity.
Slowly…
Carefully…
He slid the ring onto her finger.
The moment it settled into place, Lily’s breath caught softly in her throat.
For a second she simply stared at it silently.
The ruby sparkled beneath the sunlight beautifully against her pale fingers.
Real.
Everything suddenly felt terrifyingly real.
She slowly brought her hand close against her chest like something precious.
“You didn’t have to…”
Her voice came out tiny.
“…but…”
A shy smile appeared across her lips.
“…I’m glad you did.”
Jin immediately leaned back against the headboard again afterward, clearly trying to recover his emotional stability.
“Homph…”
He pretended calmness with the confidence of a man currently losing a war against his own blush.
Then suddenly Lily shifted closer beneath the blanket again.
Before he could react, she buried her face softly into the side of his neck.
Warm breath touched his skin.
“Mmh…”
“…my future darling…”
Jin’s brain disconnected instantly.
His cheeks turned pink again almost immediately.
Without saying another word, he grabbed the laptop back onto his thighs and opened it with maximum seriousness.
Graphs reappeared.
Documents reappeared.
Numbers reappeared.
Absolutely none of them were being processed anymore.
Not a single one.
Because beside him, Lily remained happily nestled against his neck beneath the blanket, smiling softly while admiring the ring resting on her finger.
And despite pretending annoyance…
Jin never once told her to move away.
Morning sunlight covered both of them quietly.
The ruby ring shimmered softly between them like a promise.
Lily smiling peacefully against his shoulder.
Jin fake-working while blushing at terminal velocity.
And somewhere within the warmth of that quiet luxurious room, two awkward future spouses slowly began learning something neither of them had ever truly understood before.
How to belong to each other.
(EXTRA , Now)
The peaceful warmth of Jin’s bedroom slowly faded into darkness.
The soft sunlight.
The quiet blushes.
The ruby ring shining beneath the blanket.
All of it drifted away as the scene silently shifted elsewhere across the same towering thirteenth floor of Jin Corp.
Into another room.
Another silence.
Another truth.
Haruka’s bedroom carried a completely different atmosphere from Jin’s.
Elegant.
Calm.
Almost timeless.
Soft amber lighting glowed gently across the luxurious space while outside the giant windows, the last remnants of yesterday’s storm clouds slowly drifted across the morning sky.
The city below sparkled peacefully beneath sunlight, unaware of the invisible currents beginning to move above it.
Haruka sat comfortably atop her large bed, one leg folded gracefully beneath the other.
Her posture remained relaxed, refined, almost regal without effort.
A phone rested near her ear.
She was speaking quietly with Lily’s mother.
A soft smile rested on her lips at first.
Warm.
Gentle.
Motherly.
But little by little…
That smile began changing.
Not cruel.
Not sinister.
Just…
Knowing.
Like someone watching the first domino finally begin to fall exactly as predicted.
“Hm…”
Her voice lowered slightly.
“…it’s happening exactly as we thought.”
She looked toward the drifting clouds beyond the glass.
“Everything is in line.”
The room suddenly felt heavier after those words.
Not physically.
Something stranger than that.
As though the air itself had become older.
Ancient.
Hidden.
The warm atmosphere dimmed into something quieter.
More secretive.
Haruka’s eyes softened faintly as she continued speaking into the phone.
“We finally have the catalyst for the future.”
Silence followed.
Only the distant hum of the city remained beneath her words.
Far below, countless lives moved normally through the streets.
Cars.
People.
Lights.
Entire worlds unaware that somewhere above them, a conversation about fate was quietly unfolding behind closed doors.
Then suddenly—
A faint cyan glow flickered within Haruka’s eyes again.
Brief.
Unnatural.
Beautiful.
For only a second, her gaze no longer seemed entirely human.
It shimmered like ancient light beneath deep water.
Then vanished.
Haruka slowly turned her eyes toward the window once more.
The drifting clouds reflected softly across her calm expression.
“Because from now…”
Her smile deepened slightly.
Not wide.
Just enough to become dangerous.
“…things will get interesting.”
The cyan glow faded completely from her eyes.
And the room fell silent once more.
Elsewhere on the same floor, beneath a black blanket warmed by morning sunlight, Jin and Lily still sat together quietly.
The ruby ring resting on her finger.
His laptop forgotten again.
Two awkward future spouses slowly learning love one blush at a time.
Completely unaware…
That something far larger than either of them had already begun moving around them like invisible gears of destiny turning silently in the dark..