Note: Before someone wants to send me arena, keep in mind that English isn't my first language, and I could make mistakes or use wrong terms/expressions, but I don't do it on purpose, so if you see a mistake, please, be kind and let me know it, and I'll gladly correct it :D

Mine and yours

Some weeks had happened since they were "dating". And they started to get used to the idea of spend time together, but nothing really changed. For her, it was really disappointing that he wasn't talkative, and it exasperated her because she thought that he probably considered her a dumb girl.

What she didn't know was that he had to repress the laugh when she said something funny, not because he didn't want to do it, but because she probably thought he was making fun of her. He realized that being with her wasn't really bad, but apparently, she didn't think the same.

Almost every day, he sent her a present, sometimes flowers, sweets, or very expensive jewelry. Some of them arrived to her work, and her colleagues said she was "lucky" for having such a "romantic" boyfriend. She wanted him to stop; maybe he could think that she was that kind of girl, and she didn't feel fine with it.

"It's ok if you don't give me presents, especially jewelry. You don't have to spend so much money on me"

"I thought you liked them"

"I'm not being ungrateful. It's just that maybe you need things for you…"

"I don't need anything. If I give you that it's because I want you to use them. I don't care how much I spend, it's my money after all" he said angrily.

She got mad, he was so arrogant.

"You are so stubborn! It's not as if you had to court me, you know I'll marry you anyways!"

Then she got out of the room. He followed her.

"I'm sorry; I didn't want to say it that way"

"It's fine, just don't do it anymore" she said rejecting his hand.

With their families, the situation was another story. Their parents lived in other times in which a marriage of convenience was a very lovely idea. It was impossible to talk with them about other matters.

But Lars siblings were nice people. Emma was two years older than her, and Henri was her age. It didn't take them so much time to become friends. She couldn't believe Lars was their brother and that they admired him so much.

Lars couldn't say the same about Mei's brothers and that noisy cousin: Leon, the youngest, was always focused on his phone and wearing headphones, always together with Yong Soo who made lots of questions. Jiang was nice, but his treat was very formal and distant. And finally Yao, Lars had to admit that he intimidated him, and inspired him respect. He was sure they didn't agree with the idea of their sister being married just for money. And he understood why they always watched him.

As soon as her friends knew she was dating someone, they wondered when they'll meet him. Lars and Mei talked about it; it had to be before they'll get engaged, to not be so suspicious. It must be a secret that they were together just because of their family's interests, even if they had to lie to their best friends.

That weekend, she organized a party, so he could meet her friends. She didn't know what to expect, which opinion they'll have about Lars. She was nervous.

"Ok, they are there. Try to smile, and please, don't be so yourself" she told him.

He sighed and rolled his eyes. He got it, she disliked him, but she didn't have to be so blunt. Mei introduced him to her friends.

"This is Lars, my boyfriend". It felt awkward to say and hear those last two words.

"We haven't heard so much about you, I hope you are treating her well" Monique said.

"It's true, our Mei is a princess, but you have to treat her like a queen" Feliks joked.

"Yes, I do it. It's just that I asked her to be discreet" Lars said expressionless.

"Sometimes it's better taking your time" Lien commented.

"Yes, it is. We needed time to get to know each other better"

"And how did you two meet? Mei didn't tell us" Feliks asked.

Mei and Lars looked at each other, they didn't think about it. But then, he just said that they met because his father and hers are friends. Then, he talked with her and they liked each other. Simply like that. And he wasn't lying, except for the part about liking each other, of course.

"So, it was love at first sight?" Monique asked.

"Yes... maybe" then his phone rang. "Well, nice to meet you all, I need to answer. Enjoy the party. I'll be back in a minute" Lars said and left.

Mei looked at him, why he was so unfriendly? And not only he was arrogant and boring, he was such a workaholic too. Her friends probably hated him now, and that lame story, no one would believe that.

"Mei, you have such a good taste" Feliks winked.

"What?"

"Feliks is right. He looks pretty decent and very mature" Monique said.

"Really? Don't you think he is too serious?"

"It's the first time we meet him" Lien added.

"Besides, why we would dislike a friend's boyfriend? What matters is that you love him and he loves you. But seriously, was that way you fell in love?" Monique asked.

"Yes, it's just that he is so romantic and a total gentleman" she said sarcastically.

"Aww how lovely!"

"Now tell us more about him, is he a good kisser?" Feliks asked really curious.

Mei blushed, while the others were waiting for an answer.

"That's kind of private" she said. Her friends laughed and she changed the matter.

Was he a good kisser? Well, they had never tried it, and she was relieved to not have to do it, but they had to someday because it supposes they were in love. Lars approached and she blushed again.

The truth was that Lars felt uncomfortable when he met new people. He wasn't a very social person.

Next week, she had to go with him to a social event. She didn't meet anyone, but she had to be there as the perfect girlfriend. For that occasion, he sent her a dress, she amazed because it was beautiful and expensive.

When they arrived, she noticed that some women looked her up and down, but she tried to ignore them. He asked her to wait for him while he looked for his friends. Then she heard a conversation:

"Could you believe that's his girlfriend?", "I know, but I heard she is a writer for a fashion magazine. Her father and his have been friends for years, since both are important lawyers", "So, that'd be a very profitable marriage, if you know what I mean", "Do you think they are faking?", "I don't know… I was just saying"

Mei was upset, how they dared to talk about her in that way? It was none of their business. Even worst, they disliked her just because of him. Guess what? He was not the only man in the world. But at the same time, they probably were just interested on his money and his family's reputation.

Then three men and a woman approached. A man with glasses said:

"Hi, we finally meet you. I'm Matthew; this is my girlfriend Katya…"

"And I'm Mathias, just a coincidence our names are similar. And this is my boyfriend Lukas", he interrupted him.

"Hi, nice to meet you"

"You are as pretty as he said. We are really happy for him. I thought that he would be a bachelor for life" Mathias said laughing.

The other man just smiled, he probably thought the same, but he didn't say it. Mei was surprised with the comment; did he really tell them she was pretty? And even more curious, his friends seemed really nice.

"He told us you two have been dating for a couple of months, but we didn't know it. And it supposes we are best friends, since elementary school, by the way. Aren't we, Matt?"

"Yes, but we are not surprised, he tends to be really secretive" Matthew said.

Mathias nodded and both started remembering all those times he did the same. She imagined that their friends would be boring like him, or that maybe he didn't have friends, but both men were friendly.

"They are really happy for him" Katya told her and Lukas agreed.

Mei smiled. Lars was watching them at the distance; at least they were getting along well. He wondered what his friends thought about her. Also, he hoped they didn't say something embarrassing.

Moments later, she went out to get some fresh air. Then, she gave a jump when she realized he was there too, he was smoking.

"I didn't see you. You scared me!"

"I'm sorry"

"It's fine… thank you for the dress" she said.

"You're welcome. My sister chose it. Tell me when you want to go home"

"Sure"

"Guys, I was looking for you, but I see you need a moment" Mathias said laughing.

She was glad that it was a little dark, so he couldn't see she blushed. Lars didn't say anything, and both came back to the party. Emma was there too, she took Mei by the arm and they talk for a while. She wondered how a joyful girl like Emma was sister of a cold guy like Lars.

"Excuse my brother, he is very quiet, but I'm sure you'll see how kind he is"

Mei didn't want to believe it. Because if she had to answer with the truth, she'd say that being tied to an iceberg wasn't funny at all.

"And if you have heard dumb rumors from some of these girls, just ignore them. Besides, some of them have to be really disappointed because he isn't single anymore" Emma said serious.

Later, Emma's boyfriend, Antonio, joined to the conversation. Mei felt a little bit jealous, they looked genuinely happy, but she was glad, Emma was a nice person so she deserved to be loved.

Mei looked at Lars, at the other side of the room, he seemed so confident, talking with the other men. She thought that maybe, women were attracted to him because, besides being handsome (and rich), he had a mysterious aura, but in her opinion, he needed to smile more often. Then, she remembered Feliks' question: is he a good kisser? She couldn't imagine herself kissing him, that'd be horrible, but he was her boyfriend now.

Two days later, they had lunch together. She tried to forget the idea of kissing him. She thought it was ridiculous; it didn't have to be such a big deal. It was just a stupid kiss.

"Are you alright?" he asked her.

"Yes, I am" she said annoyed because she knew she blushed.

"Your face is red, are you feeling well? Do you want to go home?"

"No, I am fine, really. It's just that… no forget it. It's stupid"

"What? Tell me. Is there something wrong?"

"No, ok, listen. We are a couple now. Have you thought that someday we have to… you know… kiss… in front of everyone… because it supposes that we are in love and stuff" she said and rolled her eyes.

He blushed and looked away. To be honest, he never thought that she'd talk about it. Yes, they were a couple, but not really. Anyways, he thought that maybe it could be easy, since they didn't like each other in that way.

"And what will we do?" he asked her.

"Well, what if we practice, but just once"

"Sure. We could go to my apartment. No one would watch us there…"

Mei admired his apartment. It was really big considering he was living alone. Even bigger than the one where she lived before the piping ruined it. Then she saw a picture of him with his friends.

"Matthew and Mathias lived here when they were single. I didn't look for a roommate, I like silence" he said.

"It's hard to find one like this. I lost mine because of the piping. That's why I live with my brothers. I like silence too, but with them it's difficult"

They sat in the couch in an awkward silence. They thought they were acting like teenagers. It was embarrassing and ridiculous, it was just a kiss, they'll do it at the wedding, and they hoped never doing it again.

"So…" he said.

"Ah right. Let's do this"

Mei looked away, took a breath and closed her eyes. Lars put his hands on her shoulders. He noticed she was trembling, and when their lips made contact, he moved away.

"You are very tense. Are you sure you want to do this?"

"Shut up, and let's do it again" she said annoyed.

He sighed and put his hands on her shoulders again. This time the kiss wasn't forced. She perceived that he was kissing her gently, and even though he smoked, she hardly could notice it. He closed his eyes, while he felt the sweet touch of her lips against his and unintentionally, he moved his hand from her shoulder to her cheek. Then they separated slowly. They looked at each other in the eyes for a second.

"Well, it's done. Do you want to drink something? " He asked and went to the kitchen.

"Yes, please" she said as if she was waking up.

They tried to not make of this a big deal. He told her that his sister invited them to have breakfast together next Sunday. She was happy to see her again. When they were about to leave, he asked her:

"If you want, we could live here after, you know, we got married, of course" he said looking at his shoes.

"Ok, it's a nice place, anyways, we have to live together" she answered not giving it so much importance.

"Then, you can choose which bedroom you want"

She was surprised. At least, she hadn't had to share a bed with him.

He took her home, and gave her an awkward kiss on the cheek. That night, she couldn't sleep again, she just thought about that kiss, his warm hand on her cheek and his perfume mixed with tobacco. She felt so dumb and angry because she just closed her eyes and revived the moment.

He couldn't sleep either. He remembered her, her blushed face, her sweet scent, and above that, her soft lips. He wanted to protect her, and tell her that everything would be fine, he'll be a good husband and she would never have to worry about anything because he would give her the world if she wanted it.

Note #2: I've had some personal problems but this fic is like my happy place, so at least, I am writing. I'm sorry if this chapter went so fast, but I needed to put a kiss :'v Please, be kind with me if you comment, because, I love these two so much.