The morning light seeped slowly into the room, pale and muted—as if even the sun feared disturbing the fragile peace between them. Seo Jin stayed curled against Li Ran, listening to the steady, grounding rhythm of his heartbeat. The world felt distant. Quiet. Suspended.
But beneath that quiet… something else stirred.
A faint vibration rippled through Seo Jin's bones, subtle but unmistakable—a soft pulse from the Core deep beneath the city, calling gently, insistently, like a distant whisper tugging at the edges of his awareness.
Li Ran felt it too.
He stiffened almost immediately, hands tightening on Seo Jin's back. "There it is again," he murmured, voice barely above a breath. "It's calling you."
Seo Jin exhaled slowly. "I know."
Li Ran swallowed, lifting his head slightly to look at him. "Does it hurt?"
Seo Jin hesitated. Then nodded. "Not physically. But… it feels like something is pulling at my insides. Like I'm being stretched between two worlds."
