Chapter 4: Half Man
"You're acting so cocky today," Julius murmured, his voice low and smooth. "What gave you the confidence?"
Riven tilted his head, utterly unbothered. "No one gave me confidence," he said with a smirk. "I simply possess it."
Julius' fingers curled slightly against his shirt.
"Is it provoking you?" Riven teased. "Good."
Julius' jaw clenched.
A slow smirk stretched across his lips, dark amusement flickering in his black eyes. "Hah... So you do have claws after all. I forget that you're still half a wolf."
Riven let out a slow breath, gaze trailing lazily over Julius' face. "And you're half a man."
The air between them tightened.
Julius' grip on him changed, fingers pressing harder against his chest for a moment before suddenly yanking him forward. Before Riven could react, Julius turned him, pressing him against the cold wall, one strong hand pinning his wrists behind his back.
Oh.
Oh, this was... Interesting.
His breathing hitched, but he recovered quickly, biting back the amusement threatening to spill out of him. He twisted slightly, testing the hold.
Julius leaned in, breath warm against his ear. "What do you think?"
Riven bit the inside of his cheek to stop the grin from spreading across his face.
"Is this supposed to intimidate me?" he murmured.
Julius exhaled a quiet laugh, his grip shifting. His fingers brushed against Riven's wrist, slow, deliberate. "No. It's supposed to put you in your place."
Riven's heart did something odd in his chest.
He should be mad. He should be irritated, or at the very least, annoyed.
But he wasn't.
Instead, a thrill curled low in his stomach.
Julius' hold wasn't bruising, wasn't painful—just firm, unyielding. The kind of grip that demanded submission but left room for something else.
A challenge.
A slow, heated sort of game.
Riven shifted again, just enough to brush back against Julius, his smirk widening when he felt the sharp inhale behind him.
"Let me guess," Riven murmured. "You're going to say something cliché now. Something like 'I could break you if I wanted to' or 'Do you like being manhandled?'"
Julius was silent for a moment.
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Then, instead of a verbal response, he pressed closer.
Riven sucked in a sharp breath, heat blooming up his neck.
Julius hummed, his voice quieter now, almost thoughtful. "Would you let me?"
Riven's stomach twisted, breath catching.
He turned his head just enough to glance over his shoulder. Julius was watching him with unreadable eyes, expression a mix of something amused and dark.
"You're joking," Riven said, voice dry.
Julius smiled slightly. "Am I?"
His gaze was intense, the weight of it pressing into him more than the hold on his wrists.
Riven licked his lips, heart hammering against his ribs. The tension between them felt thick, like a wire stretched to its limit, ready to snap.
Then, without thinking, Riven moved.
He twisted sharply, bringing his foot down onto Julius' with just enough force to make him shift back, and in that split second of distraction, Riven broke free.
Julius' grip loosened just enough for him to turn, and the next thing he knew—
He had Julius pressed back against the wall.
Julius stared at him, eyebrows raised, looking almost...Impressed.
Riven smirked, his hands now braced against Julius' chest, keeping him in place. He leaned in slightly, voice dropping. "You're not the only one who knows how to turn the tables."
Julius let out a slow breath, black eyes gleaming.
"Oh?" he murmured, tilting his head slightly. "And here I thought you liked being pinned down."
Riven huffed a laugh, fingers curling against the fabric of Julius' shirt.
"If I did," he said, voice dangerously close to a purr, "You would be the last person I allow to do it."
Julius exhaled through his nose, something sharp and pleased flickering across his face.
Riven's grip flexed against his chest before he finally stepped back, giving Julius his space again.
Julius didn't move.
He simply watched Riven with an expression Riven wasn't sure he liked. It was speculative. Amused. Like he had just found something very, very interesting.
Riven rolled his shoulders, shaking off the tension still clinging to his spine.
"Anyway," he said, voice deliberately light. "I have places to be, people to see. If you'll excuse me."
"You keep saying you would make me your secret lover," Riven mused, his voice lilting with amusement as he took a step back. His emerald eyes gleamed with something unreadable, a knowing smirk tugging at his lips. "Well, I look forward to that day."
Julius' brows lifted, surprise flickering across his sharp features.
"But," Riven continued, tilting his head as if considering, "become a full man by then. Otherwise, I will be very disappointed."
The words landed between them like a challenge, one that made the air feel thick with something neither of them acknowledged just yet.
Julius' smirk twitched, he was a big man, he towered over Riven and yet this half-breed managed to push him against a wall.
And then, just as smoothly as he had been cornered, Riven turned on his heel and walked away.
Julius stared after him, expression unreadable. His amusement remained, but irritation simmered beneath it. That damn half-breed had always been meek, always accepted his place in the household, always avoided eye contact like a beaten dog.
Now?
Now, he had fangs.
It was unexpected.
And intriguing.
Looking at his tail swaying as he walked away in 'victory', Julius sneered.
Julius exhaled slowly, rolling his shoulders as he leaned against the wall, watching the way Riven's figure disappeared down the corridor.
"Little Riven," he murmured under his breath, eyes darkening, "you should learn to never provoke me."
A slow, lazy smirk curved his lips.
"Otherwise, you will learn the consequences."
He wasn't the type to let things slide, especially when it came to matters of control. That boy—no, that half-breed—was suddenly acting as if he had free will, as if he could slip from Julius' grasp so easily.
That wouldn't do.