"How do you feel?"

Kaiden sat on the bed with the nebulizer covering half his face. When the medicine ran out, he took it off and lay back.

"Better than the last minute. I guess."

I sighed. It meant something else.

The meds and operations only ever made him feel better, never healed him. You could see it in his pale skin and chapped lips.

And it hurt—watching him fake being fine when he didn't have to.

I smiled and poked his side. "Will you be fine without me, then? I need to earn more now that you're about to get rid of your... cough."

"Will you be away at work in the orange grove again?"

"No." I sat down slowly in the chair, taking a breath. "The season's over. There are no more oranges left; they all turned green. Plus—I have a better job now."

Kaiden frowned, scrunching his nose as he exhaled. "How away are we talking about?"

"Not too far. I'll be working for Akio. Said he lives in the nearest subdivision."

"Really?" He scratched his cheek. "As an assistant?"

There was silence. Assistant wouldn't be the right word, but I didn't want to call myself a muse either.

"Yes," I lied.

Kaiden leapt off the bed and stood frozen, eyes wide, smiling like he had just heard the best news in the world.

"Can I come with you? I wanna see how rich he is! I wanna see his paintings!"

I pulled him back down before he started jumping again.

"You love him that much?" I teased.

"I think he's cool."

The door opened, and Akio marched in. He sported a white shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his shoulders and loose pants, just enough to tease the waistband of his CK underwear, as if he had just rolled out of bed and walked here.

"Hey, Champ." He greeted Kaiden with a fist bump. "I'll borrow your brother for a while, alright?"

Kaiden nodded with a smile. Then, we left the hospital.

Akio sang along to his playlist while he drove, stealing glances at me whenever the lyrics mentioned a lover being pretty or something.

"And I say yes." He glanced at me again. "You look wonderful tonight." Then, he imitated the guitar solo with his mouth as his eyes went back to the road.

"Kaiden asked me if he could come over sometime. I think he'll like it there too." I paused. "If you'd let him."

Akio hesitated before answering.

"I mean—it's okay for me. I don't know about you."

I just shrugged, not saying a word until we took a turn off the highway.

The car rolled up a winding path, with the gravel crunching under the tires. Beyond the hedges, a modern house spread wide, open to the sunlight, with tall windows reflecting the orange sky.

"Wow... is this real?" I barely managed to say as he casually rounded the car to open my door.

He smiled, ushering me out as if I were some Hollywood bitch about to walk down the red carpet.

"Let's go."

I almost stumbled as he pulled me inside as if he were in a hurry. The door was already unlocked, and he made me lean on the wall beside it as he gazed at me with a light smile on his face.

"Can I kiss you?" Akio asked, his fingers brushing my cheek.

My stomach flipped. I expected this to happen, but I didn't expect it to happen so soon.

Would this be the right time to kiss him?

I scoffed mentally. Why would this be the wrong time?

I held his waist. "Can you?"

That got his eyes sparkling.

I leaned in first, pressing my lips against his with just enough challenge to make him catch it. He responded instantly, tilting his head, letting our mouths move together.

I pulled back a fraction, letting my lips brush his, eyes locked on his, a smirk playing at my own.

He chuckled, lips capturing mine again but firmer, and I let the warmth spread, my hands finding his shoulders. I counted every moment, and each felt so delicate.

Suddenly, I heard footsteps coming down the stairs.

Akio didn't look like he minded it; he just continued kissing me while I tried pushing him away.

I could see the stairs from where I was, and sure enough, someone was there—Cory. I remember him. He was the guy who gave the speech at the charity program.

He made an exaggerated expression of disgust upon seeing us; his eyes lingered on mine as he continued to walk down, as if he were about to catch something that was trying to escape him.

"Aki!" he called as he charged toward us, but Akio didn't listen.

I struggled against Akio's stillness, trying to push him as I pursed my lips, but he'd just pull my head back to his as if he was teasing the guy with his stubbornness.

"Aki, nanda yo!" he exclaimed when he could finally reach Akio, before smacking Akio's head. "You brute. Really? Messing around beside Grandpa's ash?" He pointed at the urn we'd almost knocked off the accent table.

"Drama," Akio mumbled. He pulled me behind him, as if that could hide me. "It's okay for Cory to fuck around, but not Akio?"

I heard Cory sigh as I peered at his reaction. "That's not what this is about. At least wait before reaching your room."

When he saw my face up close, he squinted his eyes for a moment before widening them.

"Oh, God. I knew that this was about to happen." He paused briefly, glanced at Akio, before he yanked me away.

Akio didn't want to let go, but I stumbled into Cory's hold. Just as Akio reached for my arm again, Cory's finger jabbed at his face, halting him.

"You really took this guy." He paused. "I told you not to do something like this anymore."

I furrowed my eyebrows, thinking about what that might mean.

"He's not here because of that." Akio casually replied before pulling me back to him. Cory didn't protest; he just let me slip out of his hold. "I'm genuine this time."

It looked like Cory wanted to say more, but he left after a moment of silence with frustration leaking out of him like sweat.

"Don't worry about my brother. He's paranoid." Akio reassured me before kissing my cheek firmly. "I'll take you to my studio later—you can look around."

Then, he left me too, ascending the stairs while I stood awkwardly—not knowing where to look.

Everywhere I glanced, sculptures and paintings hinted at sex—private parts, intimate acts. 

Did Akio own this? I hope not. Maybe that's why he hesitated about letting Kaiden come over. 

Walking deeper into the house, I saw more paintings and sculptures, and trinkets of the same kind. I couldn't deny that they look good and expensive, but they still don't sit right with me.

When I reached a small room with an unlit fireplace and bookshelves, I stopped after seeing a big painting of a buck naked guy with blonde hair and a crown sitting on top of his head.

I paused. We kind of looked the same.

Same tilt of the head, same body type. The only difference was our hair colour, and how his eyes were larger and rounder compared to mine.

The image pressed against something deep inside me, and I felt I shouldn't look any closer. Somehow, I feel as if this has something to do with Akio's desperation to have me.