Maisara's pov
I swear everything feels better after a complete shower of at least one hour. And yes, a complete shower includes everything; haircare, skincare, exfoliating, shaving, and whatever left is there. When your skin feels soft and smooth and you smell good, nothing can make you feel bad. Absolutely nothing, I swear.
It was hard to do that in my new apartment but I managed somehow. Now I'm sitting on the bed humming the tune of 'Russian Girl' by Jenia Lubich while dangling my feet and feeling the best I have ever felt in a long time. I probably would even light a scented candle from Lydia if I was in my old apartment. But-
Whatever, let's not think about anything upsetting now. Let's just enjoy the beauty of happy feeling.
Memories from earlier in the taco stand come flooding in my mind and I feel the satisfied smile on my face widening until I'm grinning like a fool. I can still hear his steady heartbeat against my ear, still feel the rumbling of his chest and the warmth of his arms, and still smell his intoxicating rich cologne. I look over the clothes that I dumped in the laundry basket. I'm pretty sure I can still smell his scent in them if I try a sniff.
That would normally sound like a creepy thing to do but right now that doesn't sound that bad. I pull the basket closer using my leg and pull out the shirt I was wearing. Pulling it closer to my nose, I sniff and let out a gagging sound instinctively. My shirt is reeking of sweat. Please don't tell me I was smelling like this while hugging him!
Unfortunately, I know I was smelling like that. Throwing the shirt back in the basket, I fall back on the bed. That was an awful realization and I probably could have lived without it. But whatever.
The sound of an incoming notification from my phone snatches my attention. Extending my hand, I grab it from the nightstand and bring it to my eyes. A new message from 'Gossip Queen👸' aka Chloé Sinclair. At first, I thought about skipping it thinking it's maybe some funny video or memes. Then I remembered what happened the last time I ignored her text. I decide to open it.
Gossip Queen👸 sent a link.
Gossip Queen👸: I know you don't care but OMG HIS NEW POST FSHDJDKDKSBSU
I know who it is even before opening the link. It's that moonlight guy with double zero. His new post which was posted 34 minutes ago with 3,468 likes and 756 comments is the front view from the driver seat of a car. It seems like a busy road with passing cars. He has used flash which is why the inside of the car is lit up in the picture. And like every other picture, his hand is shown here resting on the steering wheel. The caption says, "Late night, long drives and music. The only thing missing is you beside me."
I roll my eyes. The post isn't the thirst trap this time but the caption is surely a flirty one. I can imagine the comments without even opening them. This guy has nothing better to do, does he?
Well, I have better things to do than analyzing his weird ass posts.
Just as I'm about to leave it, a weirdly familiar thing catches my eyes. There is a golden replica of a horse placed at the center of the dashboard. That's a simple one, not really something extraordinary. But I feel like I have seen it just hours ago.
More specifically, I have seen it in Felix's car.
I sit up instantly as the realization hits me. Is moonlight Felix? No, how is that even possible? Why would he-
But weirdly, that makes sense. God, even thinking about it feels weird. How in the hell-
Okay, I can check his previous posts to find out if he is actually Felix or not. I mean he has to have other familiar things, right? Even if he doesn't show his face, there are other ways to confirm it.
I click on the profile and start scrolling down. Tons of posts and reels. Posts of having a meal, driving, exercising, working, and stuffs like that. None of them has anything significant like that last post that might give him away. I keep checking and scrolling. At one point, I even start believing that this might be a coincidence of both Moonlight and Felix having the same horse replica in their car. Until I come across a post of a mirror selfie.
It's captured in a fancy washroom, my random guess is that it's in a restaurant. The lighting and the stalls in the background are saying so. The man, or moonlight, is standing in front of the mirror wearing a blue button-up shirt and black pants. The top buttons of his shirt are undone and the sleeves are rolled up to his elbows revealing the veins running up his forearms. The phone is covering his face but what actually gives him away is his hair. The messy golden-brown highlighted locks that I'm too familiar with.
Moonlight is, without a doubt, Felix Reyes.
I just sit there with the phone in my hands, staring at his mirror selfie. What do I do with this information? I'm just surprised that I didn't find it out sooner or that it didn't catch my eyes. Now that I see his other posts knowing it's Felix, it's pretty obvious that it's him. Those veiny arms and long legs and broad strong body and-
How in the hell I didn't notice it earlier?
I........seriously don't know what to feel about this. I'm kinda thrilled to find it out but also not really happy about it. I mean, he seems.........different, mature, and older, and things like that in these posts. And I like it. But at the same time, he is showing himself off in a sexy way and flirting with millions of girls with only one post. I am not even seeing the comment. I don't know if he is doing that in the comments as well. And I don't like it at all.
I feel a weird kind of squeezing in my chest, almost a painful one. A sudden thought crosses my mind. Did he want me to not know that he is actually a famous person on Instagram?
Maybe it's the case or maybe it's not. Because the Instagram topic was never brought into our conversation actually.
But if he actually thought of hiding it then I should let him know that I already found it out.
Finding out his number, I send him a message saying, "How did I never know you are an Instagram Influencer?"
I wait a few seconds for his reply. When it doesn't come, I throw the phone on the bed and get up. I actually have a lot of other things to do than these silly things. My project for tomorrow is still not completed and I have to do my Isha prayer as well. It's not like-
The phone starts ringing and I swear I have never answered any call this quickly in my entire life. Assuming it's Felix who called me, I don't even bother to check the caller ID before answering. And I instantly regret it the second the person on the opposite side of the phone greets me, "Hello, Maisara. I have something important to talk to you about. When are you free?"
That's none other than my ex-roommate, Lydia.
Felix: Do we talk about it in person or virtually?
Maisara: In person.
Felix: Got it.
That was the last conversation we had through texts. He didn't explain what 'in person' implies and I didn't ask either. So, imagine my surprise when I open the front door of my apartment the next morning to leave for my office and find him standing just outside the door with a smile as bright as the sun.
Of course, my eyes do a quick scan of him. He looks like he has put effort into getting ready before coming here. He always looks like he puts effort into getting ready. But today it's more visible.
His highlighted locks look fluffy like he has just washed and blow-dried them. They are still messy yet somehow look neat. He has a lavender button-down shirt tucked into black formal pants. The clothes fit him perfectly, not too tight or too loose, but they give a perfect visual to imagine what is underneath them. He has his hands crossed behind him which makes the fabric press dangerously tight around his chest area. My eyes travel up his neck and his face to finally get locked with his eyes.
I stifle the urge to clear my throat. He has caught me shamelessly checking him out. If I do anything now to cover it up, I will embarrass myself more.
"You almost gave me a heart attack." I intend to sound neutral but unfortunately, my happy tone gives it away. And there is this smile on my face that I can't seem to fight back. I'm pretty sure I'm looking like a giddy high school girl right now who has suddenly seen her crush in the school hallway.
Of course, Felix notices that. His grin only widens. "But I made you happy."
"You wish," I mumble tearing my eyes away from him and looking down the hallway. No one is there. Even if there was anyone, it's not like they would know me. I look back at Felix, stepping out of the doorway.
"Wanna come in?" Though I say that to him, I'm desperately wishing he would say no. As much as I would like him to come inside, I have a meeting in the morning and I'm already running late.
"Trust me, I would really love to." My heart sinks with his words. "But not now. I'm here to escort you to your office."
I raise my eyebrows. My smile turns into a lopsided grin. "Really? That's a new one." Seeing him shrugging, I turn around to lock the door. When I turn back to him, I find a small bouquet of maroon roses in front of me.
"Everything about me is new." Felix's voice brings my eyes back to him. Though he still has a smile planted on his lips, his eyes hold something dangerously close to nervousness. He is nervous to see my reaction to him giving me flowers.
I look down at the bouquet. Ten roses with a shade of red so deep that it will look black in the absence of proper light are wrapped in a simple black velvet paper and a red bow. They look so simple yet so beautiful and so elegant.
"I got these for you," Felix says quietly when I make no attempt to grab the bouquet. I look back at him. I don't know what my expression is but it is enough for him to look taken aback. I slowly pull my hand up and wrap my fingers around his that is holding the bouquet. I swear I feel him twitching beneath my fingers.
"They are my favorite," I whisper as he slips his hand out of my grip. I pull the bouquet close to my nose and sniff. The sickeningly sweet scent fills up the entity of my soul.
"I know." I look up to find him smiling sheepishly at me, hands tucked back into his pockets. Not 'I thought so' or 'I assumed it'. It's 'I know'. It's the confidence and certainty in his tone. Of course, he has to know it. Otherwise, it would be too crazy for him to bring the exact same flower that's my favorite.
"I don't know whether it sounds stupid or not but how did you know?" I ask falling into step beside him on our way to the elevator and bringing the roses to my nose again to take another sniff. As cheesy as it sounds, I really love the smell of roses over any other flowers. I would live the rest of my life with my nose attached to them if possible. Roses are considered overrated but I genuinely think they are underrated.
"I saw the same roses in your room," he answers, pressing the down button of the elevator. When he looks back at me, I raise my eyebrows. He mimics my action with a slight smile on his lips which somewhat looks like a smirk.
"What else?" I glance up at the screen to check where the elevator currently is. "The flowers simply being in my room doesn't mean that they are my favorite."
A soft 'ting' sound indicates the arrival of the elevator. Luckily, no one is inside. We step in. Felix presses the button for the ground floor. The door closes before us.
Now the elevator is not that spacious. My shoulder is almost brushing his biceps if we are standing side by side. Luckily (or unluckily?), he turns his body to face me and leans against the left side of the steel wall. "Nope, it doesn't."
Damn, the way his voice echoes in here! I turn my back to the opposite wall and face him. But I don't lean against it like him. And damn, that teasing smile he is wearing!
"What is it then?" I prompt, running my fingertips over the velvety petals of the flowers, never taking my eyes off of him. He shrugs and then looks up at the small screen attached to the elevator wall that is showing the sign for the ground floor and the bell chimes again.
"I can easily tell you that. But," he pauses, gesturing me to get out first when the door opens. I step into the busy lobby with him following behind me. "It would ruin the fun. So, I would rather let you guess." With two or three steps, he is walking beside me.
"That's........" I pause to find the right word. "challenging," I barely manage to utter the word when I feel his hand sliding around my waist. Of course, my first reaction would be to jump out in surprise. But before I can do that, he pushes me to the other side of him. His other hand secures the other side of my waist preventing me from falling flat on my butt.
I whip my head in his direction, ready to snap at him for what the hell that was. But my eyes slide past him and lock on the girl who flies past Felix and drops to the ground next to him, where I was standing moments ago. She had a suitcase and a duffel bag which land beside her. She would have collided with me if Felix hadn't pulled me away at the right time.
I walk past Felix to get to her and extend a hand when she pushes herself up to sit on her butt. She looks up at the hand first, then at me. Her almond-shaped eyes crinkle around the edge as she flashes a shy smile and takes my hand.
"Than-" She starts to say something as I pull her up to her feet but I cut her off like I always do with people, "It's probably better to not rush in a busy lobby and watch where you are going."
She blinks at me, her eyes take an irritating doe shape when she does that. Then she bows a little with an embarrassed look on her face. "I'm sorry. Yes, I will do just that. Thank you for helping me."
"I think you should take care of that first," Felix says, handing her the duffel bag and pointing to her bare knees. I look down to see that she has scraped her knees. An audible gasp leaves her mouth when she notices that before she glances back at us.
"I gotta go. Thanks again, you two." She bows again before hurrying down the other side of the lobby. I watch her retreating figure and then look back at Felix feeling his gaze on me.
"What?" I ask, noticing the half-surprised, half-amused glance he is giving me as we start making our way towards the huge glass door again.
He shrugs nonchalantly, pushing the door open with his right hand. "Thought you were ruthless." He waves his other hand in a gesture for me to go first.
I walk out of the door and then turn around to give him a confused look though I'm sure that's actually a glare. "And where is that coming from?"
He jerks his thumb in the direction of the lobby behind us. "You just helped that girl."
I roll my eyes in response. "Well, I don't know what you think about me but I'm not that ruthless. I do help people."
He shrugs, flashing me another grin. "Or maybe I'm rubbing off on you."
"Yeah, of course," I say that to him sarcastically but I can't shake the thought off entirely.
No matter what I say to him but am I the person who would help that random girl? Or the exact question should be was I the person who would help a girl like her if that doesn't benefit me in any way? Even I know the answer is no. I would never do that. I have never done that. Even when I helped Felix for the first time in that restaurant, I never intended to help him at all. I simply planned to get back at Leila for her attempt to humiliate me in front of her friends and my colleagues at a party months ago. She didn’t succeed but I did.
Helping people is pretty much a natural trait for Felix. He would do that without even blinking an eye and of course, without thinking of any further consequences. Heck, he would even risk his life to help others.
That's something I did just now. Well, I didn’t exactly risk my life. But I helped that girl without thinking about anything else. Undoubtedly, Felix is rubbing off on me.
And to make things worse, that's not frightening me at all when it's actually supposed to be.
"So did you guess?" Felix pulls my attention back to him. I blink at him in confusion. Whatever he said before that, I didn't hear. Shit.
"How I know your favorite flower," he says in an explanatory tone when I don’t say anything in reply and pulls the car key out of his pocket. That's when I notice we are in the parking lot standing in front of his black Civic.
A click sound and then he pulls open the passenger side door. His eyes meet mine and he tilts his head a little in the direction of his car. I get into the passenger seat and immediately the familiar floral scent of his car hits my nostrils.
"I already said that's challenging," I reply, looking back at him. He leans forward putting one of his elbows over the roof of the car and the other gripping the door. A taunting smile paints his lips. "And I thought you liked challenges. Or am I wrong about that too?"
His posture and his facial expression are so distractingly attractive that my mind starts taking me to places I haven't visited in a long time. I try my best to keep my hand to myself and refuse the urge to reach out and touch him. As a reply to his teasing question, I try to glare at him but I doubt the look in my eyes is anything near glaring. Whatever it is, it makes him laugh out loud. He pushes himself off of the car and shuts the door before rounding the car and reaching the driver's side all the while laughing to himself and shaking his head.
Meanwhile, I lose a deep breath. He is gonna be the death of me.
I rack my brain, trying to find the answer. How do you know about someone's favorite flower other than asking them that? By asking their friends and family? Family is out of the question for me. Lydia is the closest thing I can call a friend. But I doubt she actually knows what my favorite flower is. So, roughly, if you want to know about my favorite flower you have to ask Lydia or.............
There is another person who knows exactly what my favorite flower is. Not only that, he knows almost every favorite thing of mine.
I look at Felix when he gets in the driver's seat, shuts the door, and puts on his seatbelt. Then he turns to me and raises his eyebrows at my undivided gaze on him.
"Did you ask Ryker?" I voice out my thoughts. The way his expression hardens instantly gives me the answer. He starts the engine and moves the gear stick with a little more force than necessary. Rolling the steering wheel, he replies gruffly, "Haven't talked to him yet."
The air in the car suddenly starts feeling thick. I look at the dashboard to check if the AC is on even though I know it's nothing about the AC. Rubbing my fingers against the petals again, I refuse the urge to look in Felix's direction and turn my head in the opposite direction. We have exited the parking lot and are heading for the street.
"Then it's from my Instagram," I mumble, seeing the starting of the roadside trees, the thought suddenly blooming in my mind. Another thought follows just as I voice out this one. I voice out that one too. "You stalked me."
I decide to look at him this time. With relief, I notice the change in his expression. His expression has softened and he has that small satisfied smile at the corner of his lips. My heart doesn’t forget to do a flip.
"Says the one who stalked me first," he says with laughter hanging in his tone. I roll my eyes trying to find an appropriate reply. It doesn’t take long. "Says the one who gave me a reason to stalk in the first place."
He glances at me this time, eyes twinkling with amusement. "Well, maybe I actually wanted you to stalk me."
The low tone he uses to utter the next words and the way he says it manage to make me shiver out of nowhere. I suck in a deep breath and tore my eyes from him. This is dangerous. Moments like this, when he looks at me that way and when he talks that way is too dangerous.
The air feels thick again but this time with a different kind of tension. I clear my throat.
"Speaking of Instagram," I say, simply changing the topic. "Are we gonna discuss what we are supposed to discuss?"
He lets out a chuckle, the rich sound seems to vibrate the entire car. "Oh, we are so gonna discuss everything we are supposed to discuss."
The hidden meaning behind his words gives a twist in my heart. His eyes meet mine again before he asks, "But what exactly are we discussing right now?"
I squint my eyes at him. "It would be much better if you stop feigning innocence now."
"I'm not doing that." He lifts the shoulder that's on my side in an attempt to shrug, keeping his eyes on the road and his hands on the wheel. "I would like you to enlighten me."
I roll my eyes and turn my head to the side to glance out of the window to check if we are going in the right direction. It's not like I don’t trust him but more like it's a personal trait of mine. "Yeah, of course. You meant to say you were at my doorstep today and picked me up for no reason?"
The long moment of silence from his side makes me look back at him. And like always, his eyes are already on me. They held an uncharacteristically serious look. "Why would you even question that? I would do that any day, any moment, without a doubt. I would do that just to find an excuse to see your face or hear your voice. You have that kind of power over me, Maisara."
My heart stops with his words. His last words to be exact and their meaning. They are no normal words. Even a fool can understand that. They sound a lot more like a confession.
I keep staring at him. He is no longer looking at me. After dropping a bomb like that, he goes back to keep his eyes on the road. And nothing changes in his expression after he says that. He doesn’t necessarily have a poker face right now. But the features on his face remain the same unlike the inside of me.
"What are you talking about?" My voice cracks a little as I ask that and I don’t bother hiding that. Whatever he is saying, he better make it clear or-
"Not yet." He shakes his head, still staring ahead but now I start noticing the changes on his face. The smile drops from his lips and his eyes turn serious. "Like I said, you already have too much power over me. I'm not giving you more than that any time soon by saying it out loud."
I sit still holding my breath. My voice is barely a whisper when I ask, "Saying what out loud?"
"You will know when the right time comes." He finally glances at me and flashes a quick smile. "And on a completely unrelated note, you were right. I was feigning innocence." I realize he is smoothly changing the topic.
I release the breath I have been holding and look out of the window of my side. "Then stop doing so."
"But it's so much fun." His whiny voice reaches my ear. I fight back a smile. "You're an idiot."
"I'm your-" He abruptly stops with a cough. It requires a second for me to catch up on what he was about to say. I wipe my head in his direction with wide eyes. Seeing the look on my face, he starts coughing more.
"Do you need water?" I ask, knowing that he's fake coughing. He shakes his head with a final cough. "No, thanks."
We fall silent for a few seconds. I notice that we are near my office meaning the ride is about to end. The realization fills me with sudden sadness. I have to wave him bye for now. It’s not the first time nor is it the last time. Then what's the reason for this sadness?
"Anyway, back to the topic." Felix decides to break the silence earning my attention once again. "Firstly, me being an influencer. Yes, I'm an Instagram influencer but it's not my main job. I kinda do that for fun. And secondly, not telling you that. Well, our conversation never turned that way. So it never crossed my mind to specifically tell you that. I apologize if that made you upset."
He turns the corner and the familiar skyscraper comes into our view. He kills the engine just as we reach in front of it and turns to me. I let his words sink in the meantime. To be honest, it wasn’t as much of a big deal for me as it sounds. I was surprised that I didn’t know that about him but it wasn’t something that would make me upset. Still, the fact that he thought it made me upset and apologized for that is somewhat flattering.
The horse replica on the dashboard catches my eyes as if it's trying to convey a secret message. It’s surely the same one from that post.
"It didn’t make me upset, so don't apologize. I was just surprised to find it out," I reply in a much softer tone.
Movement catches in my peripheral view and I turn my head again at Felix's direction. He rests the side of his head against the headrest with his eyes focused on me. He has a serene, almost dreamy look in his eyes with his lips tilted upwards slightly. The look on his face reminds me of that night in the bathroom where I was treating his wounds after that fight with Ryker. My face suddenly starts feeling warm.
"Anything that makes you surprised," he says, his voice barely above a whisper. "Or anything that makes you sad, you can talk to me about it. I will always be there to listen." He flashes a bigger smile at the end.
Of course, my stupid heartbeats decide to skyrocket. I'm pretty sure he can hear it in the pin-drop silence inside the car. I clear my throat to make myself ready for a reply.
"That's.........encouraging. I will keep that in mind. Now if you will excuse me, I have to go to-" He stops me by grabbing my forearm when I go for the door. I gulp down the yelp threatening to leave my mouth and look back at him.
"Not yet," he says with a weird look in his eyes. My eyes widen as far as possible and my heart jumps up in my throat when I see him moving closer. The weird look in his eyes turns into a mischievous one when he notices the look on my face.
What the actual fuck is he doing?
When his face is centimeters away from mine and his heated gaze drops to my mouth, he mumbles, "Done." And then he abruptly pulls away.
I'm so in a daze that it requires a few seconds to get what actually has happened. And of course, I find him with a stupid smirk.
"What did you do?" My voice comes out too hoarse than I intended. His grin widens and he waves his right hand with a rose dangling from the gap between his index and middle fingers.
"What did you expect?" His teasing tone makes me want to smack him. I'm pretty sure my face resembles a tomato now.
"Why did you take that?" I ask instead, looking down at the bouquet on my lap and finding the rose at the very center missing.
"So that I know when to buy you the next one," he replies with a shrug.
A small laugh escapes my mouth. I shake my head at him. "Idiot."
When I grasp the door this time and get out, he doesn’t stop me. Only his shouting follows me when I close the door. "See you soon, Maisara!"
His waving hand and smiling face catch my eyes through the glass window and I flash him a quick smile before turning around to my office building.
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