Up Until Now

7 years ago...

“Big brother...? Mom...? Dad...? \*hic\* \*sob\* where are you...?”

Atlisia was curled up in the corner of an abandoned factory. He was lost. It was raining heavily. Thunders rumbled. The flashes made him flinch.

He sobbed...cried...and screamed.

But no one heard him.

After staying in the dark for so long, he lost track of time.

He was busy being afraid of the loud sounds from the lightning.

A pair of hands touched him.

It wasn't his.

Warm, huge, and comforting...

It was sudden.

It was placed on top of his ears.

Blocking the sounds of the thunder.

Atlisia looked up.

Lightning struck again...

What he saw was a guy with glasses...

His eyes were a beautiful blue...

His hair was messy...

Sweat flowed down his neck and forehead...

He looked like he just went running from a mile...

The guy in front of him was his brother's new friend...they apparently met at a lecture on the first day of college.

Atlisia saw him a couple of times. But he remained in his room at those times. He didn't want to interact much with other people.

He didn't want another person to call him girly. He distanced himself and didn't pay attention to him.

The man saw Atlisia staring at him.

He smiled.

As bright as he could.

It made Atlisia feel at ease.

He closed his eyes and fell asleep.

...

After opening his eyes, Atlisia saw his parents. They were happy to see him awake.

But what made him bolt from the bed was the feeling of the warm hands.

He glanced at his hands, and turned red as he saw his hands gripping onto Devin's hand tightly.

“You should say thank you to him later. He found you and carried you here. You won't even let go of his hands. He looked exhausted from running, but still held your hand because you were gripping it tightly.” His brother said.

Atlisia looked at Devin's sleeping face.

His eyes stared at him.

And he smiled.

...

Back to the present...

“And up until now, I'm still staring...”, I whispered.

“Why don't you confess...maybe he'll date you...”, it was Beill.

I looked through the window, smiling painfully.

“Yeah...he might...but out of pity...”, I answered.

Beill sighed. She met me back in high school, when she was still an aspiring photographer.

I decided to model for her. We became so close to the point of getting mistaken as lovers.

But she knows me the best. She knew that I wouldn't even try to look away from that one person.

She stayed with me. My best friend. My manager. My photographer. My comfort.

...

“We've arrived...”, she said and waited for me to get ready to go out.

“I'll send you the report later. Her past and everything...I'll investigate it all. But don't be disappointed if I find nothing. Don't be sad either. Call me when you're ready to get picked up. And don't drink too much.” She nagged.

“Who are you...my mother?” I said. She raised a brow. All I could do was sigh, smile, and agree.

I'm in front of a club. There was a party hosted by one of the actresses I acted with. She invited me. I have no reason to refuse, so I decided to just go for it. I'll just contact Beill or the head butler later.

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