Shen Zi and Yan Li

Ji Yuhan took another step forward, close enough that if she turned even slightly, their eyes would meet fully.

His voice lowered. "You don't hesitate when you hold a blade against others. Why do you hesitate now?"

Chen Lin exhaled slowly, steadying herself.

"Don't be mistaken," she said, her tone cold, but her fingers twitched at her side. "I have never hesitated."

Ji Yuhan studied her, his gaze slipping to the faint tremor in her hand before flicking back up. "Then prove it," he murmured.

The moment stretched.

This wasn't in the script.

There was no blocking that had him stepping even closer, no direction that said for her breath to hitch or for their proximity to be this suffocating. But it was happening—naturally, seamlessly, as if their characters had taken control.