Author's Note: Set prior to Luli Zeng's death.

People were vulnerable when they ate. The utopia of rich flavors and pleasurable textures often dulled down their senses, making them less cautious. An easy prey.

He was in the midst of chewing a bite of what he classified as an acceptable croissant when she asked him that question. The muscles in his jaw lost their rhythm and he forced himself to swallow. "What's the essence of your relationship with Luli?" she'd asked him, her timing perfect, and secretly cruel.

He allowed himself another handful of precious, silent seconds by taking a sip of his orange juice. They were seated in a secluded booth at Lizzie's favorite pastry shop. She was the one to ask him out for a bite. He could tell she was becoming a lot more receptive towards his strange feelings for her.

He was relishing in watching her as she stuffed her face with pastry, washing it all down with black coffee, any hint at grace long gone. He knew questions were an inevitable part of their ordeal. He simply didn't anticipate his relationship with Luli to be the focal point of their breakfast.

"I know you're sleeping together. That much is obvious," she announced matter-of-factly and took another sip of her coffee, raising her eyebrows at him in what seemed like a good-natured challenge.

"Oh, yeah? How so?" he was onto her. He needed to figure out her angle.

"The physical proximity you two are comfortable with sharing suggests you're intimate," she justified, feigning professionalism.

"Have you been observing us long, Lizzie?" it was his turn to be challenging, yet good-natured. And oddly uncomfortable with the prospect of revealing too much.

"You could say that," she smiled. She knew. She knew admitting to being interested in him would get her places; secretive places. "So?" she prompted.

"She and I are intimate. We don't sleep together on a regular basis, but yes, there is an aspect of our relationship that is sexual," he answered calmly. Present tense could be a cruel thing. They were sexual to this day. It bothered her, she had to admit.

"But why is she so special?" she decided to continue probing. She was bracing herself for more blows to her newly-found attraction to him.

"She was very young when she came to me, to us. Truly pure," he was being truthful. His teeth were performing their usual duties, biting at the inside of his cheek. She knew she'd touched a nerve.

"If you were cherishing her purity so much, why did you allow for the relationship to become sexual," she tried her hardest not to sound judgmental. She feared she'd failed.

"Don't ask questions you don't want the answers to, Lizzie," he warned her.

She was not backing down. Insistence was written all over her face. It made her cheekbones appear higher and her jawline – sharper.

If he could trigger her jealousy, all the while being honest, he would.

"She asked me to be intimate with her. To be her first," he said, hoping the truth won't ruin what was beginning to emerge between them.

She took another sip of her coffee. It was her turn to swallow.