(Lisa's POV)
I was sleeping soundly until I felt a presence near my bed. It had been almost three months since I last saw Valin, so I was taken aback when I opened my eyes and saw him standing at my bedside. It could've been his security system watching me, or just another dream. Regardless, I smiled and closed my eyes.
"Oh… I thought you'd be happier to see me," he muttered sulkingly.
That's when my eyes shot back open and I sat up in bed. The first thing I did was pinch my cheek and check my phone. 3 A.M.
"Is it really you?" I asked, looking up at him from the bed. He squatted low to meet my face, then kissed me—pressing his lips to mine until I opened my mouth wider and allowed the kiss to deepen. After that, he pulled away and smiled.
"That depends on who you think I am."
I stifled a laugh—and then I felt myself start to cry. I wrapped my arms around him to hide my face.
"Valin… welcome home."
He climbed into bed on top of me and whispered, "I'm glad to be back."
Earlier that day...
I had started going to work regularly again, mostly at Dite's request. She wanted to meet me in person to discuss critiques on a song I'd written for her. She also had requests for revisions, but it seemed like no matter what I did, she was never satisfied.
"Hey, I know we just have a work relationship, but I happened to see your profile," she said casually. "I sent you a friend request because I thought maybe we could be friends. It would be good for both of us if we got along, right? Plus, I can recommend you to some music artists I know."
I knew she was lying—at least partially. Should I tell her Valin already told me about their past relationship… or play dumb like Aluma suggested?
"I don't add people I don't know very well... so maybe we should hang out in a less professional setting first?"
She frowned and tapped the table with her perfectly manicured pink nails.
"That might be hard, since I'm so famous... Oh, but one of my friends is having a party this weekend! You should stop by."
I used to enjoy big parties, but now I prefer small gatherings with close friends.
"Is it okay if I invite some friends?"
She stared at me in silence for a full five seconds before replying, "Is one of those friends your boyfriend?"
My heart clenched. Just being here was stressful—mainly because I kept thinking Valin would come home and I wouldn't be there to welcome him. It's not a big deal… but it's important to me.
"No, my boyfriend is out of town attending to family matters."
Her expression flickered with emotion.
"Well… that's fine, then. No more than three friends though. I'll text you the address."
She pulled out her phone to share the details immediately. I updated Aluma and Innoccence in our group chat.
"Of course we'll come!" Aluma replied.
"I'll bring my brass knuckles just in case some faces need to be rearranged," Innoccence added.
Their replies made me laugh.
The party was at a mansion. The music wasn't as loud as I was used to—I could still hear people speak—and the rooms were spacious enough that twenty people could stand around comfortably. When we arrived, Dite offered to show us around. She led Aluma and Innoccence to the pool, mentioning they could rent bikinis in the lounge.
"I actually wanted to talk to you alone for a bit," she whispered to me.
I knew the other two could hear. Their hearing was sensitive enough that this whole environment was probably annoying, but they didn't let it show.
"That's fine… hey, guys, I'll be back soon!" I called.
They both eyed Dite and nodded while browsing bathing suit options. Dite led me into a back room with a bar. Once the door closed, the room fell silent—it was like we were the only ones in the house.
"Would you like a drink? I can mix something up for you. I'm actually pretty good at it," Dite offered while preparing a drink for herself.
"Um… no, thank you."
She shrugged, then delicately sipped from her glass.
"Okay... I should get straight to the point. I like you. You've written twelve songs for me while I had writer's block, and five were big hits. You're agreeable and cute. So I don't want to drop a bomb on you like this, but… it looks like we're dating the same guy."
I stared at her blankly, so she continued.
"Valin Walker, right? I'm so busy with my career that I'm never home, and we had to keep our relationship private—"
"Aren't you with Michael?" I interrupted.
"That's just for publicity," Dite explained.
I rolled my eyes.
"It's the truth!" she snapped.
"You wouldn't know this… but Valin already told me about you."
Her eyes widened. She looked away and bit her lip.
"According to him, you weren't even dating."
"He's lying!" she shouted, throwing her glass at the wall behind me. "Think about it—I'm rich, beautiful, famous. Between the two of us, who do you think would be the real girlfriend?"
"This is Valin we're talking about. He has investments, his own business—he doesn't need your money. I can barely get him to let me buy him anything. He hates attention, so dating someone famous, like you? No way. It's laughable that you think I'd fall for such a crappy lie."
"...What did he say about me?" she mumbled.
"He said he couldn't be serious about you because you liked his brother—and that he didn't have any lingering feelings."
"That's not true! I mean... I did like Zai, but that's only because I met him first! If I'd met Valin first… I would've… I would have noticed him properly."
So she's basically confessing to lying now.
"Do you really want to be friends?" I asked.
She scoffed. "Of course not. How about this—make it so I can meet Valin. I want to talk to him face to face. Or I'll make sure you can't work in this town anymore. I'll ruin your reputation so badly your parents will disown you."
It was my turn to scoff.
"If he's your boyfriend, why do you need my help to meet him?"
She bit her lip.
"Fine! Okay, I lied…" She flopped onto the couch across the room. "But… I think he was being dishonest, too. We had a deep connection, and now he's implying it meant nothing. I blew it. And I don't want to steal him from you… Okay, that's another lie, but I don't think I can. Valin isn't easily persuaded. I just want to talk to him. Please."
She looked sincere now, but I was so irritated by how she'd approached me that I didn't know if I wanted to do her any favors.
"You must think I'm stupid if you believe I'd willingly help you meet with my boyfriend when you're clearly still pining over him."
Her eyes widened. She stared me down.
"I wasn't planning on asking. You were supposed to bring him today. I said you could bring a guest, but you brought two women I've never met."
Oh. That's why she looked disappointed earlier when I mentioned he was out of town.
"He's visiting family right now."
She groaned. "Yeah, you told me… my luck just sucks. Honestly, I want to destroy your career. Make you cry. But I know if I do, he'll hate me forever."
She's really hung up on Valin… Maybe Valin downplayed it more than he realized.
"I'll talk to him for you. Maybe you two can talk and get closure. But you better not try anything, or mess with my career. I mean it."
She gasped and took a step toward me.
"Stop! Don't come near me." I warned, backing away, "You threw a glass at me and have been crazy and erratic since we met. It's up to him if he wants to talk."
Her face twisted again, and she scowled.
"Fine. But if he doesn't want to talk… You might reap the consequences," she said—like I'd be unprotected if he turned her down.
She stormed out first, revealing Aluma and Innoccence waiting outside like silent bodyguards. Dite shot them both a venomous glare—but neither flinched.I exhaled slowly. Round one was over.
I came out to join them and began explaining what happened, but they shook their heads and whispered that they'd heard everything. We left about an hour later—Aluma carrying the sleeping Innoccence on her back. As we neared the exit, a man I didn't recognize stopped me at the door.
"Hey, I don't think we've met—but this is my house," he said.
Maybe he had something to say about Dite...
"Oh, I'm sorry for not greeting you. Dite invited me and said it would be fine."
He laughed. "Oh no, it's fine. I just didn't want you to leave without us becoming acquainted. Could we exchange numbers? I'll invite you myself next time, miss…?"
"I'm Lisa, and um… no thanks. I don't give my number to strangers."
He pouted. "I'm Marc. If we see each other in the future, I'll ask again."
I gave him a half smile and followed after Aluma and Innoccence, who were already headed to the car.
It was that very night that Valin finally returned home. His hair was still long, and his attire looked foreign, yet regal. He didn't stay dressed long enough for me to admire the clothes properly, though, and I was too sleepy to focus on anything other than him.