When the Clock Strikes|Pi Han Ul x Reader|

(S02) Chapter 31

“For?”

He turned his head to me, eyes sharp. “Minhwan.”

I stilled.

“My friend there said they might be able to get him out, but it’s going to take time,” he continued. “I need to stall things here.”

I swallowed, watching his expression. His smirk was gone, replaced with something more serious, more calculating.

“I hope everything works out,” I said softly.

His fingers pressed slightly against my inner thigh. “You always say that.”

“Because I mean it.”

Han Wool smiled, but it didn’t quite reach his eyes. “You’re too sweet.”

I snorted. “I’m really not.”

“So,” I said, voice steady, “how exactly do you plan on making Harin hate you?”

“Haven’t decided. Maybe I’ll start acting completely unbearable.”

“You already are.”

He chuckled. “Rude.”

I can feel his hand slowly going further.

“Han Wool,” I murmured, gripping his wrist more firmly this time. “You can’t go further.”

He stilled, his breath warm against my shoulder. “Why not?” His voice was low, teasing, but I could hear the amusement in it.

I swallowed, my cheeks burning. “Because… I can’t take it anymore.”

For a second, he was silent. Then, a deep laugh rumbled through his chest, shaking both of us as he finally pulled his hand away, surrendering. “Alright, alright. I’ll stop… for now.”

I turned my head slightly, catching the smirk on his face. “You’re so annoying.”

He only grinned, shifting closer again, his arms tightening around me. “I know you love my fingers between your legs.”

I swallowed. Is he serious?

I shot him a glare, but the effect was completely ruined by the warmth still lingering in my body. “Do you always have to be this shameless?”

Han Wool leaned his head against the seat, watching me with that infuriatingly smug grin. “Only when it comes to you.”

I rolled my eyes, shifting slightly to straighten my skirt, trying to gather the last bits of my dignity. “You should really learn when to shut up.”

He hummed in amusement. “You didn’t seem to mind when my mouth was otherwise occupied.”

My cheeks flamed. “Han Wool.”

He laughed, the sound low and pleased. “Alright, alright. No more teasing.”

A comfortable silence settled between us, only the low hum of the car filling the space. I glanced out the window, the city lights flickering past as he drove. The night felt… different. Maybe it was just the afterglow, or maybe it was the way he was still holding my hand, his thumb absentmindedly tracing patterns over my skin.

“So,” he finally said, breaking the silence, “how was your day? Aside from getting stuck at a table full of people who apparently don’t know you exist.”

I scoffed. “I don’t even remember half of them, but they seem to remember everything about me. It’s weird.”

"You are hard to be ignored with your beauty".

I blinked at him, caught off guard. “What?”

Han Wool smirked, turning the key in the ignition as the car rumbled to life. “You heard me.”

I huffed, crossing my arms as I leaned back against the seat. “Flattery won’t get you anywhere.”

“Oh, I’m not trying to get anywhere,” he said smoothly, steering the car onto the road. “I’m just stating facts.”

I shook my head, staring out the window as the city lights blurred past. The cool night air seeped in through the slight crack in the window, bringing a strange sense of calm after everything that had happened tonight.

“You always do that,” I muttered.

“Do what?”

“Say things like that out of nowhere.”

Han Wool chuckled, one hand lazily gripping the wheel while the other reached for mine, his fingers curling around mine easily. “Does it bother you?”

I hesitated. “No.”

“Then what’s the problem?”

I glanced at him, at the easy way he smiled like everything was just that simple. Maybe for him, it was. For me, it never had been.

“Nothing,” I murmured instead, squeezing his hand lightly before looking away again.

The car rolled down quieter streets now, the hum of traffic fading into the distance. The warmth of his palm in mine was oddly comforting, a silent reassurance that I wasn’t alone in all this.