hidingwriter

Elian Volkov, a world-renowned model and actor with striking emerald-green eyes, has everything-fame, fortune, and admirers across the globe. But beneath the glitz and glamour, he longs for the one person who once made his world feel real: Taro Fujimura, his childhood best friend from Japan. Years have passed without contact, but Elian never forgot their bond. Determined to reunite, he travels to Japan unannounced, showing up at Taro's doorstep with nothing but memories and a hopeful heart.

Taro, now a hardworking manager at a small branch of an international company, has built a modest but stable life with his mother and sister. The sudden reappearance of Elian-a man who now belongs to an entirely different world-shakes him to his core. As he struggles to process their reunion, lingering emotions and unspoken words from the past resurface, challenging everything he thought he had moved on from.

However, Elian's return does not go unnoticed. A powerful billionaire with haunting ruby-red eyes, obsessed with claiming Elian as his own, watches from the shadows. With wealth, influence, and a dangerous level of obsession, he is willing to do whatever it takes to keep Elian by his side-even if it means tearing him away from Taro once again.

As love, desire, and obsession intertwine, Elian finds himself caught between two forces: the warmth of a long-lost friendship that could bloom into something more and the intoxicating pull of a man who refuses to let him go. In a world where love can be both a treasure and a curse, will Elian follow his heart, or will the past and present collide, leading to a fate neither of them expected?

Toxic Gems is a story of rekindled bonds, dangerous attraction, and the fine line between love and possession.

TOXIC GEMS (BL)

Taro exhaled slowly, staring at the untouched wine in front of him. His fingers hovered over the stem of the glass, hesitating.

"You look conflicted," Rylan observed, resting his chin against his hand.

Taro forced a small laugh. "I guess I just never expected any of this."

Rylan tilted his head slightly, his crimson gaze unreadable. "Why?"

"Why is it so hard for you to believe that you deserve this?" Rylan's voice was calm, measured. "You work hard. You're competent. You're loyal. Isn't that enough?"

Taro shifted in his seat. It should be. But something about the way things had fallen into place felt too… controlled.

Rylan's smirk was subtle, but his presence was overpowering. "Or do you think good things only happen to certain people?"

Rylan leaned forward. "Let me tell you something, Taro."

The way he said his name sent a shiver down Taro's spine.

"There's no such thing as coincidence in success. The world isn't fair—it never has been. The only thing that matters is whether or not someone chooses you."

Rylan swirled his wine lazily. "I choose people. I build them up, give them the tools to grow." He took a slow sip, his lips curving slightly as he set the glass down. "And you? You were chosen."

Taro swallowed. The weight of Rylan's words pressed down on him. The way he spoke, the way he carried himself—it was like listening to a king, someone who made fate rather than followed it.

Rylan leaned back. "Tell me, what do you want?"

Rylan's gaze didn't waver. "I'm giving you an opportunity. But I can't lead someone who doesn't even know what they want."

Taro hesitated. What did he want? More money to support his family, yes. Stability, of course. But beyond that? He had never thought about ambition before.

Rylan's smirk didn't fade. If anything, it deepened.

The words sent an unexplainable chill through Taro's spine.

And without realizing it, he had already taken a step deeper into Rylan's web.

As they left the restaurant, Rylan's personal car was already waiting. A sleek, black luxury vehicle—nothing like the trains and buses Taro was used to.

The driver opened the door for Rylan, who turned slightly, looking at Taro expectantly.

Rylan's voice was smooth, almost teasing. "Are you afraid of me, Mr. Fujimura?"

As the car pulled away from the restaurant, the city lights blurred past the tinted windows. The silence inside the vehicle wasn't uncomfortable, but it was thick—charged with something he couldn't define.

"You'll understand in time, Taro."

Taro turned to him, confused. "Understand what?"

Rylan's ruby-red eyes gleamed under the dim lighting.

"That I'm the best thing that's ever happened to you."

But the words stayed with him long after he got home.

Chapter 16 – A Devil’s Offer