Chapter 32: The Trap is Set

The apartment went silent after midnight.

But none of them slept.

Daniel sat on the edge of the bed, assembling a portable surveillance system he borrowed from a contact at the university’s journalism department under the table, unofficial tech.

Chris paced near the window, eyes fixed on the opposite high rise, scanning each balcony, each flicker of movement.

Ryan sat curled on the couch, arms wrapped around his knees, the glow of the city washing over his pale skin. He hadn’t spoken since the photo arrived. He was too aware of his own breath, his heartbeat, the gaze he could feel crawling over his skin like a thousand tiny needles.

“I’m done hiding,” Daniel said. “We set a trap, but this time it’s on our terms. He wants to believe he’s the only one playing the game.”

Chris nodded, voice low. “So we’ll give him a show.”

Daniel glanced over at Ryan. “You okay to do this?”

Ryan’s throat felt dry. But he nodded. “If I don’t fight back now, he’ll never stop.”

Chris sat beside him. “We’ll be right there. Every second. He so much as breathes too close, he’s done.”

Ryan didn’t say it, but he wasn’t afraid of Adrien hurting him anymore.

He was afraid of what would happen if Adrien didn’t.

Because that would mean he’d never stop chasing him. Never let go.

They planned the setup: Ryan would go to the rooftop café of the building alone, pretending to be isolated, vulnerable. He’d wear something Adrien couldn’t resist soft, delicate, his vulnerability weaponized. The message would be clear: I’m alone. I’m yours.

Daniel and Chris would be waiting on the floor below, cameras in place, phones recording, every exit covered. If Adrien showed, they’d have the proof they needed and a clear shot at finally ending this.

But Ryan couldn’t shake the dread gnawing at his stomach.

What if Adrien didn’t show up?

What if he had already changed the game again?

At 2:04 AM, Ryan stood on the rooftop.

The café was closed. The tables empty, metal chairs glinting beneath the city lights. The wind tugged at his sweater, making him look even smaller. More breakable.

He paced once. Let his fingers trail the railing. Then stopped and stared over the city like he wasn’t afraid.

But he was.

He was terrified.

Somewhere, far below, Chris whispered through the earpiece. “Still no sign. Stay calm.”

Ryan didn’t respond. He closed his eyes.

Come on, Adrien. Take the bait.

A second passed.

Then a footstep.

It came from behind him. Soft. Almost gentle.

Ryan froze.

The air shifted.

He didn’t turn around, but he felt it. That presence. Cold, calculating, watching him like a painter studying a canvas.

“I almost thought you wouldn’t do it,” Adrien’s voice murmured from the shadows. “But here you are… looking just like I imagined. Fragile. Beautiful. Mine.”

Ryan swallowed hard. “You’ve been following me. Breaking into places. Sending messages. You think this is love?”

“It is love,” Adrien whispered, stepping closer. “You just don’t understand it yet.”

Ryan dared a glance over his shoulder.

Adrien was dressed in black. Slim. Impossibly calm. His eyes gleamed under the city’s haze, and for a moment, he didn’t look like a student or a man.

He looked like a ghost.

“I see you,” Adrien said. “The real you. The one who doesn’t pretend. You think Daniel can handle that? Or Chris? They want the version of you that fits their little world. I want the version that hurts.”

Ryan’s hand shook slightly. “You don’t know me.”

Adrien smiled. “I know you better than you know yourself.”

Downstairs, Daniel’s voice crackled in the earpiece. “We’ve got visual. He’s here. Keep him talking.”

Ryan took a shaky breath. “You think if you break me, I’ll be yours?”

Adrien stepped closer. “I don’t want to break you. I want to rebuild you. Piece by piece. In my image.”

He reached out just an inch from touching Ryan’s face.

That’s when everything shattered.

The rooftop door burst open.

Daniel and Chris stormed in, Chris holding a taser, Daniel armed with a metal baton from the security desk.

Adrien froze, his eyes wide but not with fear. With delight.

“Oh,” he whispered. “You brought them. How intimate.”

“Get away from him,” Daniel said, his voice lethal.

Adrien didn’t move.

Chris raised the taser. “Final warning.”

“I already got what I came for,” Adrien murmured.

And then he turned, fast, like smoke slipping through fingers vaulted over the edge of the rooftop.

“Ryan!” Daniel ran to the railing, peering over.

But Adrien wasn’t dead.

He was gone.

Vanished into the night.

Back inside, Chris locked every door. Daniel wrapped a blanket around Ryan, holding him close.

“I almost had him,” Ryan said quietly. “He was right there.”

“And he won’t be again,” Daniel replied. “Not if we can stop him.”

Ryan whispered, “He looked at me like I was his creation. Like I owed him something.”

Chris looked out the window. “He’s not finished.”

Daniel nodded grimly. “Neither are we.”

Later, when Ryan finally slipped into bed, he found something resting on his pillow.

Another note.

No one had opened the bedroom door. No one had seen it get placed.

But it was there.

“You’re still mine, even if you don’t sleep like it.”

And beneath the message was a photo.

Ryan.

Sleeping.

Taken just minutes ago.