Shun

I open the door, and there she is—

Cercis.

Wearing that golden dress.

Jerry’s dress.

For a second, I just stand there, gripping the doorframe like it’s the only thing keeping me steady. The sight of her in that dress... it burns in a place the alcohol couldn’t reach. I swallow it down, though. No way I’m giving her the satisfaction of seeing that it stings.

She looks flustered, cheeks tinted pink, part embarrassment, part tipsiness, maybe.

“Uh… hey,” she starts, holding up a small paper bag. “Peace offering. Sort of.”

I raise a brow, leaning on the door. “Peace offering? For what?”

Her lips twitch into a nervous half-smile. “For the, uh… ‘bathroom incident.’”

She avoids my eyes. “You didn’t message me after that, so… I thought you were mad. Or… something.”

I take the bag from her, peeking inside, some food, a couple of canned drinks. Typical Cercis. Messy, thoughtless, yet oddly thoughtful.

I sigh and step aside. “You came all the way here in the middle of the night. You might as well come in.”

Her face lights up instantly. “You’re not gonna say no to a drinking buddy, right?”

Of course. Alcohol. Her one true love.

Inside, she immediately notices the open bottles on my table.

“Wait, you’re drinking alone?” she asks, genuine surprise in her tone. “Are you going through something?”

I can’t help but chuckle, pouring her a drink. “By that logic, shouldn’t you be going through something every night?”

She laughs, loud and unrestrained, like the sound alone could break the tension in the air.

God, I missed that.

We sit on the couch, side by side. The city lights paint her skin gold, the same hue as the damn dress.

We drink. We eat. We talk about stupid things.

We laugh.

And slowly, the bottles empty.

The room grows softer. Warmer.

Then my mind drifts, like it always does, to that memory I can’t scrub off.

“Cercis,” I start, voice lower than I intend, “you and Jerry… are you two back together?”

She bursts out laughing, nearly spilling her drink. “God, no! I’d rather die than be with that man again.”

Something in me unclenches at that. But I can’t stop there.

“Then what was that all about? In the bathroom.”

Her laughter fades, but she’s still smiling, like she knows it’s bothering me, and she enjoys it.

“Oh, that?” she tilts her head, smirking. “It was nothing. I just… haven’t kissed anyone in years.”

She shrugs. “Felt like doing it. He just happened to be there.”

I blink at her. “So… you just, what, kiss people out of boredom now?”

Cercis laughs again, low and teasing. Then she turns to me, her smile fading into something heavier, darker.

“My turn to ask a question,” she says, voice dipping.

The shift in her tone hits me instantly. The air thickens, her playful expression melting away. The light in her eyes changes, less sparkle, more shadow.

I set my drink down slowly, my pulse suddenly too loud in my ears.

Here it comes.

“Alright,” I say quietly, meeting her gaze. “Ask.”

She leans toward me, her breath warm against my cheek.

“Do you remember Iris?” Cercis asks, her voice slurred but sharp, cutting through the haze of alcohol like glass.

The name hits me like a slap.

I look away immediately, eyes fixed on the city lights beyond the window. Not now. I don’t want to think about Iris. 

But Cercis doesn’t back off. She never does.

“Hey…” she murmurs, moving closer, her arms slipping around my neck. “Look at me, Shun…”

Her hand finds my cheek, gently turning my head until our eyes meet.

And just like that, the room feels smaller.

“Am I as pretty as Iris?” she asks, voice trembling beneath the teasing tone she tries to fake.

I can’t answer at first. My throat’s dry.

She frowns, frustration building, her finger jabbing lightly at my chest.

“Am I really that unattractive?”

“Cercis…” I finally manage, my voice quieter than I intend. I reach up, brushing my fingers along her jaw. “You’re beautiful.”

Her eyes soften, glassy and uncertain. The look she gives me makes something twist in my chest, pain, nostalgia, longing, I can’t tell anymore.

“You’re beautiful too, Shun,” she whispers. “I feel… lucky to be here with you.”

Her words hit deeper than I expect. For a second, it feels like we’re both suspended in the same quiet, fragile space, like the world outside doesn’t exist. Our foreheads almost touch.

“Cercis…” I whisper.

Before I could get another word out, Cercis suddenly closed the distance between us. Her lips brushed mine... soft, hesitant, trembling with everything she wasn’t saying. For a heartbeat, I froze. Then I melted into it, cupping her face gently as I kissed her back, deepening it until warmth flooded through my chest and out to my fingertips.

For a few precious moments, the world just… stopped. It was only her and me, wrapped around each other like we were the only two people left alive. When we finally broke apart, our breaths tangled between us. She smiled, a real, unguarded smile that hit me harder than the kiss.

“I guess… this isn’t just the alcohol talking,” she murmured, mischief and honesty glittering in her eyes.

I let out a soft laugh, brushing my thumb across her cheek. “No,” I whispered. “It’s not just the alcohol.”

She kissed me again, hungry this time, and everything else fell away. Our mouths moved together with growing urgency, our hands roaming, seeking more. Her golden gown, Jerry’s damn golden gown, slipped away under my touch. Somehow that felt poetic, freeing, like I’d been waiting forever to peel that thing off her.

Every brush of her fingers against me, every kiss we traded, stoked the fire between us higher.

My lips drifted from her mouth down to her neck, tasting her skin, lingering where she shivered the most. She gasped softly, her fingers threading into my hair as she leaned into me. My hands slid along her back, tracing the elegant line of her spine. Feeling her react to my touch sent a sharp, intoxicating thrill through me.

“Cercis…” I murmured against her throat, my voice rough with need. “You drive me wild.”

She answered with a soft moan, her hands exploring my shoulders, my chest, everywhere she could reach. She pulled me closer, and I felt my restraint start to unravel.

I eased her down onto the couch, lowering her gently into the cushions. Our eyes locked—God, the way she looked at me then. Desire. Trust. Want. I leaned over her, trailing kisses from her neck down to her chest. Her gown lay discarded, revealing the curves I had imagined far too many times. I touched her reverently, tracing her sides, her waist, eliciting shivers from her trembling breath.

My kisses moved lower, to her stomach, each one pulling soft gasps from her parted lips. I took my time with her, savoring her reactions, learning the rhythm of her body beneath mine.

Her fingers tightened in my hair as she arched into me, heat radiating from her and pulling me deeper into the moment. Her scent, her voice, her warmth... it overwhelmed me in the best way.

I worshipped her with my mouth and hands, drinking in every moan, every sigh she offered me. When she tugged harder, pulling me closer between her thighs, something inside me broke free. The need to make her feel good, to lose myself in her, surged through me.

Eventually, she pulled me up for a bruising, breathless kiss. Our bodies tangled again, hungry and wild.

Then, with sudden boldness, she pushed me back into the couch. A teasing smile curved her lips as she straddled me, running her hands along my body before kissing me deeply again. Electricity shot down my spine. I gripped her waist, pulling her close as she moved against me with deliberate, seductive intent.

She shifted then, slow, playful, lowering herself until she hovered near my face. Her grin turned wicked. The next moment, her lips wrapped around my throbbing length, and I couldn’t help the groan that escaped me. I answered by guiding her hips down to me, my tongue sliding against her heat as she gasped above me.

We moved together like that, tasting, teasing, building each other higher with every passing second. Pleasure tangled between us, thick and overwhelming.

When I finally pulled back, breathing hard, she looked at me with half-lidded eyes full of hunger and satisfaction. Without breaking eye contact, I eased her onto her back and positioned myself above her. Slowly, deliberately, I pushed into her. Her warmth enveloped me, and we both moaned at the same time.

We moved in rhythm, slow at first, savoring each other, then faster as the tension coiled tighter between us. My hands ran along her body, drinking in every tremor, every breathless sound she made. She arched into me, nails scraping lightly along my back, urging me closer, deeper.

I lifted one of her legs, angling her hips toward mine, and the pleasure sharpened into something almost unbearable. Sweat slicked our skin as we moved in perfect, frantic harmony.

Her moans mixed with mine, filling the room as we climbed toward our peak. I thrust harder, deeper, each movement tightening the coil inside me until I was hanging by a thread.

And then, together... we shattered.

I pulled out just in time, my release spilling warm across her torso as she cried out beneath me, trembling through her own climax. We collapsed into each other, breathless, hearts racing in sync.

For a while, we simply lay there, tangled together. I kissed her softly, her lips, her cheek, her forehead—as our breathing slowed and warmth settled around us like a blanket.

The quiet after was peaceful. Sated. Intimate.

But as she shifted beneath me... eyes still dark, still wanting... it was clear…

Cercis isn't  done.

And then, when the storm quiets, she looks down at me with that same piercing gaze, only now darker. Calculating.

Her hands find my shoulders, then my neck. The air shifts.

“Shun,” she whispers, her voice low, dangerous. “I have a couple more questions to ask you.”

My pulse spikes. “Cercis?”

Her fingers tighten slightly, her hips still, her eyes locked on mine. “Sean Kornblume,” she says, using the name I hate... the one I’ve buried. “Where were you the night Iris disappeared?”

My mind goes blank. “W-what?”

She tilts her head, eyes narrowing. “You snap when people cross the line, don’t you? I saw it before. I saw you kill someone, Sean.”

Her words dig into me like claws.

“Cercis, I—”

“Do you remember Iris?” she cuts me off again, whispering like a curse.

Her grip on my throat tightens—not enough to hurt, but enough to command my attention.

“Iris Aragon,” she presses. “She was obsessed with you, wasn’t she?”

My breath falters. Memories flash, her eyes, her voice, her obsession.

“She was,” I rasp. “She… wouldn’t stop.”

Cercis leans closer until her lips nearly brush my ear. “Then tell me, Shun. What did you do to her?”

I shake my head, panic and anger mixing with the alcohol in my veins. “Nothing! I didn’t do anything! She invited me, but I didn’t go. I swear I didn’t—”

Her hand tightens again, not out of rage but to force the truth out. My vision starts to blur, heart pounding, the edges of the room flickering like dying light.

“Please…” I manage, my voice cracking. “Believe me, Cercis. I don’t know what happened to her.”

Something in my tone must reach her, because her fingers loosen. Her expression softens, confusion and exhaustion flickering across her face. She leans forward until her forehead rests against my chest.

I can feel her shaking. Or maybe it’s me.

“Cercis…” I whisper, but the world is spinning too fast now. My breath comes shallow. The alcohol, the exhaustion, the choke of emotions I’ve tried to bury, it all catches up.

The last thing I feel is her weight collapsing against me as everything fades to black.