Chapter 5

I quickly pushed myself outside and partially closed the door. Diamond raised an eyebrow skeptically and examined me.

"Oh, hey, what are you doing here?" I tried to sound calm, but it wasn't easy. I just hoped that Diamond wouldn't notice my nervousness.

"I need to know exactly what Saphir wanted from you. Can we go inside for a moment?" He seemed tense, as if something was weighing heavily on his mind. He didn't look at me with his usual lustful gaze but appeared absent and distant. Something was definitely going on. I hurriedly closed the door even further.

"I... um... I haven't tidied up. If you're entering my apartment for the first time, it should at least be clean... it looks like a bomb went off in there... oh, and Saphir... yeah... that... that was really strange. He arranged a meeting with me through my boss. At first, I thought it was you coming, as he only mentioned the last name. I was quite surprised when your brother suddenly stood in front of me. Saphir just wanted to know if you're important to me, ordered something, and then left. It was really weird," the words gushed out of me like a waterfall. I didn't let him get a word in.

Diamond clenched his jaw. "What did you answer him?"

"That it's none of his business and if he has such questions, he should talk to you. After all, you're his brother." Diamond sighed and let his gaze wander through the hallway. "I'm sorry you got dragged into this. Saphir can sometimes be more curious than is good for him."

I placed a hand on his arm and tried to catch his gaze. "What do you mean? How am I getting dragged into this? What's going on with you? You're so different from usual." He hesitated for a moment before responding.

"I still have some important things to take care of. See you on Saturday," he said. In the next moment, he pulled me close and gave me a long, intoxicating kiss, and then he disappeared as quickly as he had come. I let out a deep sigh of relief. That was a close call. I wouldn't have known how to explain to him why Seiya was in my shower. Oh damn, I almost forgot about Seiya.

When I entered the bathroom, Seiya was already finished showering and was putting on his black shirt. I let my clothes drop to the floor and noticed him looking at me. His gaze was somewhat dreamy. "Who was at the door just now?" he asked casually. Damn it, he heard me.

"Just the neighbor, wanted to know if his package was delivered here," I quickly replied, hopping into the shower. I heard him closing the door and let out a deep breath. That was damn close on both fronts. Both of them wanted to take the next step. Diamond wanted me to leave some things at his place and accompany him to the exhibition. That wouldn't be a problem. We just had to hold ourselves together during the exhibition, and if having a few clothes in his closet made him happy, so be it. I would bring something next time.

The bigger problem was Seiya. If he were to make our relationship public, it would be all over the media. I could already see the headline:

-Internationally acclaimed singer taken, who is the woman by his side?-

I couldn't explain something like that, neither to Mamoru nor to Diamond. How could I? Lost in thought, I stepped out of the shower and towel-dried my hair.

I liked having Seiya here. We were already a well-coordinated team. I loved how he always made me laugh with his crazy ideas. He was even the first person I lived with, and we had never had an argument so far. But I had to somehow make it clear to him that I wasn't ready for a public step yet. He would surely understand. Hopefully.

When I entered the bedroom, he had lit candles and was sitting on the bed with a notepad. He chewed on the end of the pen, deep in thought. "What are you doing?" I asked curiously and took the notepad from his hand. Before I could react, he had jumped up and tried to snatch it back from me. But I held onto the notepad with both hands, which made him look pensive. "Give it back! It's not finished yet!" he exclaimed and started tickling me. That was really unfair. Unintentionally, I burst into laughter, and he took the notepad back from me. Triumphantly, he stuck out his tongue. "You'll hear it when it's finished. Not before that."

"You're mean. Let me at least take a little peek at it," I said, placing the notepad upside down on the bed, and he wrapped his arms around my waist. Then he began humming a melody. It sounded beautiful and soothing. I rested my head against his chest, and we swayed together to his gentle tunes. "That sounded wonderful. Is that the melody for a new song?" I asked when he stopped. He smiled at me and nodded. "Like I said, you can hear it when it's finished," he explained, giving me a gentle kiss on the forehead. But I wanted to know what was written there. Damn curiosity. He noticed my gaze drifting back to the notepad and started tickling me again. "Don't even think about it, sweetheart, or you'll be in trouble," he laughed into my ear. After he finally let go of me, I gasped for air. This was almost as exhausting as the sex with Diamond yesterday. I lay on the bed and looked at Seiya. He reached out his hand to help me up. "I'll just grab a bottle of water real quick. Do you need anything from the kitchen?" I asked him. Seiya shook his head and took off his pants and shirt. I bit my lip. That six-pack. It seemed like he had started his training again in Europe. My phone blinked on the kitchen table. No calls, no messages. Still no sign of life from Mamoru.

Mamo, it's not funny anymore. What's going on? I typed and sent the message.

A sense of unease spread through me. I grabbed the water bottle and made my way back to the bedroom. Seiya was already lying in bed, lifting the covers slightly for me. I nestled myself in his arms. Now or never, don't be a coward. You have to bring it up before it's too late. I pressed my head against his chest.

"Seiya... I've been thinking about this for a while now... uh... I don't think I'm ready yet to make our relationship public. Not because of you, but I can see how the press tears people apart, and honestly, I'm afraid of that," I finally said. I felt him tighten his arm around me and then he kissed the back of my head.

"That's not a problem. I had a feeling it would be something like that. I'm glad you brought it up. But I don't want to hide all the time. I want to be able to walk hand in hand with my girlfriend to the nearest ice cream stand or give you a kiss in public. It's time for us to break out of this little bubble."

"Little bubble?" What did he mean by that?

"Darling, your apartment is our bubble."

"I understand where you're coming from, but can we start by keeping it low-key? It would quickly become public if we were to go to crowded places in the city... I mean, we don't have to provoke it right away."

Of course, I could understand him to some extent. If he were an ordinary man who wasn't in the spotlight of the press, I wouldn't have any issues with it. But it was what it was. So we had to make the best of it. Carefully, I turned my head and sought his gaze. There was a kind smile on his lips. "Of course, just let me know when you're ready for it." He planted a kiss on my forehead and then held me in his arms.

In the middle of the night, I suddenly became wide awake. Seiya's arm still encircled me, and his soft snoring filled the silence. I untangled myself from his embrace and stood by the window for a moment. Full moon. Great, now I knew why I couldn't sleep. My gaze fell upon the notepad that Seiya made such a mystery out of. Curiosity burned beneath my skin. While he continued to produce peaceful snoring sounds, I turned the notepad around. There were many lines written and crossed out, but relatively far down, he had compiled all the lines that weren't crossed out.

Endless love, forever and ever,

Our relationship so alive and clever,

Darling, I'm here for you,

I love you so much, that's true.

Darling, you mean everything to me,

I'll always be there, you'll see,

That's a promise I make, my dear.

My heart skipped a beat. He was writing a love song. For me. I beamed with joy. No wonder he didn't want me to read it. Could this be the surprise for Friday? Quickly, I turned the notepad back around, and my heart pounded stronger. I hummed the melody he had started earlier and snuggled back into his arms. With a smile, I hummed myself back to sleep.