Elena Black walked down the quiet hospital corridor with unhurried steps.
The afternoon sunlight streamed through the windows, casting long shadows across the polished floor.
Behind her, conversations slowly resumed inside the hospital room she had just left.
She found herself smiling.
A genuine smile.
Not the practiced one she usually wore.
Not the carefully measured expression she had learned produced the best results.
A real one.
"...He's like a cat."
The comparison appeared in her mind naturally.
The moment she thought about Rin, that was the first image that surfaced.
A small cat with its fur standing on end.
Cute.
Suspicious.
Ready to scratch anyone who got too close.
The more she thought about it, the more fitting it seemed.
His appearance certainly contributed to the comparison.
The soft features.
The deceptively harmless face.
The sort of appearance that naturally lowered people's guard.
Yet the moment someone approached—
Claws.
Suspicion.
Hostility.
