.Down
“Stairwell? Oh you, tease. I did no such thing. Can you imagine me in my designer heels walking up and down a stairwell? That would be too tragic and unkind. No, I simply waited for another elevator. I’m a very patient woman.” Riah remarked in front of her audience, mainly for the cocky male to hear. “I can stand to wait a moment or two until I complete my goal. I know no such thing as failure. And look, I reap my rewards.” She pointed to her party which was in full effect. “No one, dear. The whole school is here. Even you.” Riah’s eyes narrowed in a moment of scrutiny before widening in excitement once more. “I hope this party will be one to remember. For everyone.”
“Darling, do you honestly believe that I’m the type to girl to acquaint herself with violence?” Riah asked, eyebrow raised at his reply. It was cute and if she weren’t so comfortable in her skin and esteem, it would have hurt—slightly. “Martial arts. How lovely and as you said, common.” She commented in a borish tone. Her hands clasped together in an gleeful gesture to make it appear as if she weren’t really looking down on the competitive sport. “Hello? Haven’t you ever heard of something called ambiance? Then again, since you did ask I will assume you haven’t. At least try to humor the rest of us who bask in the spirit of Halloween.” Riah then shook her head back and forth. “Oh you do. You’re a special breed of brute. Quite handsome and majestic indeed.” The heiress tapped one of his cheeks, laughing in sarcastic mirth. She had to give it to him. Riah had walked into that one. Of course, she would sashay right out. He may win a battle but Riah will win the war. The heiress raising another eyebrow at his remark. Honestly, just when he was starting to impress her, he let her down. “Oh dear, I guess you were too busy fighting to brush up on literature and pop culture. It’s okay I’ve give you the brief answer. For this most cherished Halloween—“ Riah began, addressing her small audience. “—I’ve chosen to be Malecifent. Also known as the mistress of evil. She’s a woman after my own heart.” Riah concluded, grinning widely. “I do wonder what poor unfortunate soul will prick themselves on my enchanted needle and fall into a deep sleep. Will it be you?” She asked Hyuk, eyes gleaming with mischief. Riah was clearly up to no good. But the male did bring it upon himself.
“I’m glad there’s no hard feelings about the closed door in your face then, miss. I was rather tired after practice, I couldn’t wait to go up,” In all honestly, Hyuk tried not to sound sarcastic, but there were hints of it in his tone anyway - he failed to keep in in considering the way she chose to direct her attention to him. “Oh, it will definitely be something to remember,” he retorted without anything particular in mind, going simply by the fact that the push and pull the pair seemed to engross themselves in was amusing enough to recall once every tenth full moon. Especially since he ended up hanging around a party - something far from his usual character, that seemed to slip past his peers. Apparently, all athletes needed to be brainless party animals.
A stable smile sat on his face as he took in her words slowly, nodding in understanding. “You most likely aren’t, miss. Therefore you shouldn’t acquaint yourself with me either, should you? You never know exactly how violent a, quote on quote, brute like I may be.” His tone ran deep, undertones carrying implications that could have been taken in a lot of ways. There was no wavering - no lie in his words, as he did hold a darkness within him that no one had exploited simply because he had too much to lose if they did. The shame of it pushed the deal even further. “Oh?” Hyuk quirked a brow, the endearing poke of his cheek mixing with the sarcastic vibe of hers amusing. He pretended not to hear the later, though, the smile almost too painful for the way she kept pushing him. It shined anyway, as he modestly (and very much exaggeratedly) bowed his head down. “I’m flattered. Thank you,” the appreciation he portrayed was almost too honey-coated. Yet, he couldn’t help himself. “My choice of career is pretty time consuming, I have to admit, I have no clue what’s happening in the Korean entertainment industry. Even more so, Hollywood.” It was most likely the first genuine chain of thought he openly shared that evening as his eyes peeled away from the woman to look in front of him. He listened to her closely, nodding a few times while watching his classmates watch them. “Sounds like an evil witch to me, but what does my beaten head know? I’m glad you get to live out your dream of an evil mistress, then. You come off as prideful woman, it’s very fitting, miss,” never looking back at her, Hyuk hummed in subtle approval. His eyes didn’t even go up when her further words caught his attention, an obvious, light threat in her words that seemed to pass every other person but him. “Oh, are those her powers? I see. And what would I need next to wake up? A kiss from the love of my life?” His tone was teasing, as the movie she retorted seemed too far from reality to him. Fairy tales weren'r his thing. Laughing lightly, he shook his hair once more. “I’m rather surprised I’m on the list to fall into deep sleep under that spell of yours. Unless you carry petty grudges over silly elevators, miss.” He turned his eyes on the woman again, a rather straightforward observation out in the open, and he poked her shoulder a few times just like she’d done to him on his cheek. “Do you?”
