#hope this is okay i figured for her mafia verse <333< /div> Explore tagged Tumblr posts

[okkanai]

adrian had been in this world long enough to recognize the careful balancing act that was nunnally’s life. a daughter raised in luxury but kept at arm’s length, surrounded by opulence yet starved of affection. a girl who was meant to be a symbol, a bargaining chip, a carefully placed move in a game she never asked to play.

yet, there was something else beneath all of that. something sharper.

" you navigate this world well, " adrian remarked, his tone even, unreadable as he swirled the dark liquid in his glass. " better than most would expect. " his gaze flicked to her, keen & assessing — not with the eyes of a man looking at a pawn, but an equal.

he leaned back in his chair, resting one arm along the table's edge. " i imagine you've had no shortage of people trying to use you. some subtle, some not. " his lips curled, not quite a smirk, but something knowing. " — & yet, here you are. not just playing along — but learning the rules yourself. "

adrian let the words settle between them, watching her for a reaction. he wasn’t here to coddle, nor to underestimate. he simply acknowledged what was.

" you strike me as someone who's deciding whether to play the part they wrote for you . . . or rewrite the script entirely. " he lifted his glass slightly in her direction. " whichever path you choose, i have no doubt you'll make it your own. " / @lured-into-wonderland.