Chapter 26

Time itself seemed to be moving at a snail's pace. I didn't know how stressful it would be not having Zai within view. I wonder what he's doing… He said he had business today, so I didn't press, but… I miss his stupid, beautiful face. I actually thought I'd be okay alone, but it's hard. I must've gotten addicted to his company because I'm already feeling the withdrawals.

Lisa and Richard were good to be around, though. I recorded the first song Richard and Lisa made for me several times, then Richard saved and edited the audio, stitching together the best takes until he had a final version.

"We're going to upload this song first to help advertise your album," Richard informed me. "Also, it seems you haven't been paying attention to your social media. Please log in—you need to stay somewhat active. You're new. People need a reason to be interested in you."

"I understand."I'd been so distracted with life, I totally forgot about my cyber life! I tried working hard so we could finish early, but that only made me rush and mess up more. We still wrapped around 8, so I called Zai.

"We just finished… are you nearby?" I asked.

"Of course I am," he replied snarkily.

"What's your problem?" I asked, and he laughed.

"Nothing. I just wanted to annoy you. See you soon."With that, he hung up. I pouted at my phone, but relaxed when not even a minute later Zai showed up on foot.

"You walked here?" I asked.

"I left my car here and walked everywhere else," he corrected.

I squinted at him. "Where have you been?"He kissed my forehead, and all the tension in my body dissolved. Then his silver eyes locked onto mine and he said:

"Let's go home."My brain shut off at that moment—I don't even remember getting in the car or coming home. My consciousness only returned when we were sitting on his bed together.

"Snowe…"

"Yes?!" I answered, maybe a bit too eagerly.He gently took my hand.

"Do you work tomorrow?"I nodded. He sighed and got up.

"I'm going to take a shower."…What? Knowing him, I really thought that was leading to something more. I waited for him to return. His hair was still wet and he smelled faintly of pine when he sat beside me. This time he met my expectations and kissed me. Our lips parted and reconnected many times, several seconds passing before I realized I had been holding my breath. I turned away, panting heavily. Zai licked his lips and laughed.

"You should shower too," he advised.I can't lie—I was disappointed that things ended there. But it's okay, because I was sure things would go as I hoped once I came back. I grabbed a nightgown from my room, rushed to the bathroom, and showered. I finished in 15 minutes and hurried back to Zai... but he was already asleep. Well... that's weird.

"Oh yeah," I said aloud, remembering to check social media.My video was close to one million views! I decided not to look at the comments. Richard had emailed me the link to my official page, and the song we'd recorded earlier was already uploaded there. So I made a post, explaining that the song was an original inspired by my "boyfriend." I mentioned the label, included a link to another track from the upcoming album—that's two posts. Then I looked at Zai and took a picture of his sleeping face. I uploaded it too, with the caption:

"So cute when he's sleeping! I'm in love ♥!"I don't know if that was a mistake… I just wanted to make some strangers on the internet jealous.

After that, I lay down next to him and stared at his face until I eventually fell asleep.

Zai was acting strange the next day—very quiet, with blank expressions, like his mind was elsewhere.

"Thank you for driving me again," I said, trying to break the silence. He didn't even hold my hand this time.

"What's your favorite color?" Zai asked instead, ignoring my statement.

"I… I like pastel pink."

He smiled, then asked another question. "What's your favorite flower?"Was he making small talk?

"I like… geraniums."He nodded, then parked outside the studio. The ride felt shorter than usual.

"Call me when you're done," Zai said.

"Okay…" I replied, reluctantly. But as I reached for the door, I turned to him.

"No, stay! I missed you so much yesterday. I'm sorry… I didn't realize I'd feel this way when I asked to be alone."God, I'm rambling. "I just wanted you to have some freedom. It seemed like your life was revolving around me and I… felt guilty. I take up so much of your time."

I was panting and blushing after my confession. Zai gently lifted my chin and leaned over to kiss me.

"I'm going to miss you too… but I already have plans," he whispered.My heart sank.

Zai tilted his head and smiled mischievously, his eyes flicking from mine to my lips. But then he simply pulled away and sat back in his seat.

"Th-then tomorrow?" I asked.

"I'm busy tomorrow too… You should go before you're late."When I'm with Zai, it always feels like I'm his whole world. The thought of him seeing someone else had never crossed my mind… until now.

"Before I go… can we take a picture together?" I asked. Before he could answer, I laid my head on his shoulder and lifted my phone to get the angle.Zai laughed.

"Just make sure to send it to me."Because of that, his smile in the photo was genuine. My heart warmed just looking at it—I made it my lock screen.

"I love you," I said, hoping that would be the last thing on his mind when he left. If he was looking at another woman, I wanted him to feel guilty.

"I love you too… Let's go out after work today. I'll make it happen."He stroked my cheek and finally I felt calm enough to leave the car.

"I'd love that," I replied, then waved as I closed the door.I was a minute late, but no one gave me a hard time.

After reviewing a new composition and lyrics with Lisa for about an hour, we took a break. She handed me a water bottle and sat beside me.

"Your boyfriend's not here again. Did you guys have a fight?"She's blunt.

"He's not my boyfriend—and no, we didn't fight," I said.

She gasped. "So… he's single?"

I glared at her. "Absolutely not! He's my fiancé!"

She laughed. "I figured, with the way he looked at you. If he wasn't with you, he wanted to be."I kept glaring so she added,

"I'm just chatting to pass time, not trying to steal your man—I promise."I relaxed a little and asked:

"So… how does he look at me?"

"Like… nothing else matters to him."That made me smile.

As I drank my water, I checked my page. There were new comments under the photo of Zai.

"Did you have his consent to post this?!"

"I'd never forgive you if I was him."

"He still looks hot when he's sleeping, wow."

"Wow, he has tattoos? I've never seen his arms before!"

That last one made my heart race. I completely forgot—Zai never shows his arms or chest, even in real life. He always keeps them covered.

Maybe he will be upset with me.My heart panicked. But the photo already had 5K likes and over 200 shares…Maybe it's already too late.