"After six months, we can separate and get back to our life."
"That's too long!" Zyreen refused with her frowning face. "Two months, and let's get back to being strangers again." She added and unbuckled her seatbelt.
"Strangers with memories," Hunter stated with confidence, "six months, and I will let you go." His eyes were fixed at Zyreen's eyes.
Zyreen looked away, not meeting his eyes. She couldn't stare at him for more than a minute; it gives her an odd feeling that she neither understand nor explain. She inhaled and opened the door; then she stepped out of the car.
"I will let you go!" Those words reiterated in her ears.
'Nothing has changed. You still want to let me go.' She thought as she took a glimpse from the dark sky that full of stars that twinkles above.
'How could you say that I'm your moon who brightened your dark path during the night if there were millions of dazzling stars that were always there to give light to your way even when the moon is not around?' Zyreen smiled in dismay remembering the words he had uttered that engraved in her heart.
"You're my moon which will give light to my dark path, my ass!" Zyreen simpered, removing her gazes at the sky, and looked at the building's entrance.
Hunter followed Zyreen outside while scratching his head.
"Six months, Zyreen. That's all I'm asking." Hunter was persistent, trying to persuade Zyreen.
"Two months, Hunter. That's all I'm asking." Zyreen started to walk and entered the building as Hunter followed her behind.
Hunter messed up his hair and hissed, thinking that Zyreen seemed determined. Two months is not enough and is too short to play.
"Love," Hunter called Zyreen with his sweet tone and pulled her right hand.
"Love, two months is enough to play. If you don't like it, then let's call off the deal," said Zyreen while Hunter was still holding her hand as they entered the building.
Hunter keeps on hissing, and with his sulky eyes, he will look at Zyreen and then to his feet and then back to Zyreen again.
While the two were entering the building, Hunter's driver took an immediately snapped photo of them. "Just like the old times, " he smirked and started the engine, then he drove off.
"Fine, let's do three months. Deal?" Hunter took a deep breath, and then they entered the elevator.
Zyreen chuckled and said, "Deal!" Three months is good enough to spend time with Hunter. Three months of playing, and then after that, she'll be back where she belongs.
The two quietly held each other's hands. Their hands became so warm that they finally intertwined with each other.
Reaching the eighth floor feels like so long, and without realizing it, they enjoyed the moment of being together and enjoyed the familiar feeling that they used to cherish.
The elevator stopped on the fifth floor, and a group of teenage boys wearing their school uniforms strode inside while laughing. They recognized Zyreen immediately as they stepped in and nudged each other.
One of the teenage boys with blonde hair and crooked necktie lifted his phone and turned on the camera focusing on Zyreen, trying to confirm if it's Zyreen who was behind him. "It's her," declaring with his raspy voice as he stole a quick snap from Zyreen silently.
An idea crossed their mind as they saw one of them took a photo.
They grinned and compressed to each other in front of Zyreen. They all posed, making sure that the camera will catch Zyreen as their background, and they took a photo again and again.
Being overjoyed, the boys didn't notice Hunter standing beside Zyreen, who was already pissed off while looking at them furiously like he can hit them anytime soon.
"Damn, these brats!" Hunter whispered and stalked toward Zyreen, covering her from the teenage boys.
"Hunter!" Zyreen's eyes glazed over at Hunter when he moved his body closer to her. Zyreen can feel his warm breath. Hunter's hands wrapped around her waist.
The kids were shocked as they witnessed something exciting and intriguing scene, and at the same time, they felt dismayed by knowing that an ugly man snatched their Zyreen from them. Even though that posture of Zyreen and the guy breaks the boys' heart, they still captured their intimate pose.
"This is an exclusive bomb that will explode on social media right after we post this photo." One of the boys with nose piercing whispered to his friends while zooming at the photo they have taken. With that kind of pose, all people who will see the picture will think that they are a lovely couple showing their affection.
On the seventh floor, as soon as the boys left the elevator, Zyreen pushed Hunter away from her.
"What was that!?" Zyreen exclaimed and shot him with daggers through her eyes.
"Because they kept on taking photos of you!"
"Let them be. Those people were just a bunch of kids."
The elevator's door opened, and Hunter marched out like a kid.
"Stop being sulky!" Shaking her head, they headed towards Zyreen's suite.
"I'm not! I'm just thinking about your privacy." When Zyreen brought out her keys from her bag, Hunter grabbed the keys and unlocked the door.
"Why did you follow me here, anyway?" Zyreen asked as they entered the room.
"I'm going to sleep over here, my dear fiance." Hunter winked at her.
Zyreen acted as if she's going to puke and glared at him. "Fiance, your ass! Go home. You are not allowed here, jerk!"
Zyreen walked towards the living room and dropped herself on the soft fluffy sofa. At last, she can finally have a rest. Zyreen was so tired. She's been working the whole day, and after that, she supposedly meets her cousin, but it was Hunter she met.
When Hunter saw Zyreen massaging her legs as stretching her body, he went to the kitchen and got water for Zyreen.
"Drink this." Hunter passed the glass of water to Zyreen and sat down beside her. Zyreen smiled and took the glass from him, then took a sip. "Thanks."
"How long have you been here?" Asked Hunter and roamed his eyes around the place. Zyreen's condo has two floors and has only a few stuff that she daily uses.
"I don't know. Three? Four? I moved here a year after we broke up."
When Zyreen mentioned their break up, the awkwardness hushed them. They could only hear their breathing and their sighs.
The silence broke when Zyreen's phone rang.
She took out her cellphone from her bag and saw her manager's name, Olivia, on the screen. When Zyreen answered the call, Hunter pulled Zyreen's feet and put them on his lap, and then he started to massage them.
"Where the hell are you!?" A yell from another line greeted Zyreen after she answered the call.
"Oh, hello to you." Zyreen greeted Olivia with sarcasm in her low voice.
"Hello to your new scandal, Zyreen. Again, you became trending!" Olivia, on the other line, was so disappointed at Zyreen's carelessness and irritated because her sleep was disturbed by her bosses.
"What?!" Zyreen's voice echoed in the room that made Hunter startled. Zyreen frowned as Hunter furrowed his eyebrows.
"What are you talking about?" Zyreen asked a minute after digesting the news that shook her night.
"Zy, why can't you give me a good rest tonight? It's already ten at night, but you still made me work." Zyreen heard the continuous sighs from the other line.
Olivia couldn't help but blame Zyreen. If she could be only careful, her sleep will not be bothered, and she will not work late at night. She needs to make hundreds of calls and hundreds of calls from tv shows, newspaper companies, and reporters she was responding to.
"Check your social media. I still a lot to settle with. And I'm so thankful for disturbing me, Zyreen. I really appreciated it." And then Olivia hung up.
'Oh, no! Olivia was mad!'
"What's wrong? " He heard all Zyreen's and her assistant's conversation, but he just pretended he doesn't know anything.
Zyreen didn't answer. She, too, doesn't know what's going on.
Zyreen looked at Hunter's phone as he logged in to his social media.
They both cracked laughs as they saw what's the new hit on social media.
"I can't believe this. Those idiots just took the photo a while ago, and now it went viral! Those kids were fast!" Zyreen, who was still laughing, took Hunter's phone and gazed at the photo.
"Oh, my goodness, gracious! So, this is my new scandal that Olivia's referring to?" Zyreen was still laughing while browsing the photos.
In the photo, Zyreen's and Hunter's body were so close while staring at each other, and Hunter's hands were wrapped around Zyreen's small waist. Zyreen's and Hunter's face was so clear that you can immediately recognize them in just one blink.
The photo immediately garnered netizens' attention as they reposted it on their social media accounts, and it went viral like a wildfire that couldn't stop.
The keyboard warriors started to type bad and good thoughts about Zyreen and Hunter while the curious netizens followed the posts and kept browsing the comments to learn what's going on with Zyreen and Hunter.
The photo was a big hit in the showbiz industry, knowing that it involves Zyreen, especially Hunter, that keeps a low profile specifically on his love life.
Zyreen had been modeling since she was a teenager until she became famous and renowned as the Angel of the century. At the same time, Hunter was introduced as the only heir of the Blyth company, who is soon the said company's CEO.
"Our first photo after five years."
"The first trouble I encountered being with you." Zyreen corrected while rolling her eyes. They just met, and now they thrilled the entire social media, and for sure, it's a big hit on television and newspaper tomorrow.
Hunter flickered a smile of victory as he saved the photo secretly on his phone and made it his cellphone's wallpaper.
"I owe those kids big time," Hunter murmured while eyeing his phone's wallpaper.
Hunter felt ecstatic as he looks forward to what kind of exciting stories will come to their lives starting tomorrow.
"What are you grinning at?" Zyreen noticed Hunter keeps on smiling while gazing at his cellphone.
"Nothing, " replied Hunter while shaking his head.
'Let the game begin!'
While Zyreen was upstairs taking a shower, Hunter trying to call his butler while staring at Zyreen's large framed photo on the wall.
"My love," whispering Hunter while still gazing at the frame and didn't notice that the call from the other line was answered and the butler heard what he said.
"What?" The butler was curious and thought that maybe Hunter accidentally called him instead of his lover.
Hunter was startled hearing the voice from the other line, but then he ignored it.
"Spread the photo of Zyreen and me as much as you can!" Hunter ordered with his grinning face.
The butler knows already what his boss' talking about. He had seen it immediately when Hunter's name appeared on social media. He was expecting that Hunter would order them to take down the post, but surprisingly, Hunter wanted him to help the culprit spread the photos.
"Why?" The butler asked, furrowing his eyebrows. Since he started working with the Byth family and was assigned as Hunter's butler, he has never seen Hunter being with a woman and never heard that Hunter has a girlfriend. But now, he's acting weird; he wanted to spread the photo as if he wanted to let the world know that there's something between Zyreen and him.
The phone call was put on loudspeaker; the men beside him heard what Hunter told him. Some of them were curious just like him, and some of them who knew about Zyreen and Hunter's past were laughing and thrilled.
"The young master was starting his move already!" Hunter's driver since he was young, commented.
Hunter could hear the noise from the other line. Shaking his head, he looked upstairs to check if Zyreen is done, but there's no trace of Zyreen.
"Just do what I have told you," he paused and cleared his throat, "all of you out there, do the same!" Hunter's voice was sharp and frightful, making his men pulling out their phones and followed his order.
"Mr. Tan," Hunter called his driver.
"Yes, young master?" Mr. Tan, Hunter's loyal driver since he's young, grabbed the butler's phone and answered Hunter.
"Please bring me some clothes for tonight and for tomorrow to change. Thank you." Without any explanation, Hunter ended the call before Mr. Tan could ask something about it.
Hunter went upstairs to check on Zyreen, but when he was about to touch the doorknob, the door opened, and Zyreen appeared with her wet hair dripping on her white robe.
Zyreen was shocked while Hunter hardly swallowed his saliva, and his eyes locked on Zyreen's chest that wasn't covered enough by her robe.
The water from Zyreen's hair rolled over her neck down to her chest as Hunter witnessed that scene, making his jaw widely open.
Zyreen noticed it and saw Hunter's eyes full of lust that's sparkling while looking at her chest.
Zyreen rolled her eyes, "you perv!" She snapped her fingers in front of his eyes and pushed Hunter's chest.
Hunter was surprised and almost lost his balance, good thing he immediately grabbed Zyreen's shoulder and almost touched her chest.
Zyreen widened her eyes and held her breath for a second. Zyreen's eyes dimmed and became cold. "Hunter!" She shouted and removed his hands from him, and kicked his knee.
"I didn't mean it! Besides, you're at fault for pushing me!"
Zyreen glared at him. She turned her back ang slammed the door at him. "Asshole!"
"Tsk," Hunter chuckled, "women."
When Hunter arrived downstairs, the doorbell rang.
"Who is it?" Shouted Hunter asked the person behind the door.
No one answered him, but he concluded that maybe it was Mr. Tan whom he's been waiting for.
As Hunter opened the door, the woman startled and took a step backward as well as Hunter.
"Who are you," Hunter asking wrinkling his forehead.
"I- I... Ah." The woman stammered. Her words couldn't escape from her mouth and stuck. She checked the suite number on the door, and it was 888. She was in the right suite!
What was Hunter doing in Zyreen's condo?
A thought struck in her mind, and she realized why Hunter is in Zyreem's condo.
"Miss?" Hunter called her as she blinked her eyes.
"Sorry, I'm Felyne. Zyreen's personal assistant." She introduced herself, offering her hand to make a shake with Hunter, but Hunter just nodded and turned his back at her.
Felyne's jaw dropped, and she felt embarrassed. The rumors about Hunter being indifferent was right. Absolutely right!
Felyne followed Hunter inside, and she headed to the living room.
"Wait here while I'll call Zyreen." Hunter's voice was cold and didn't show any expression or emotion on his face.
Felyne nodded and didn't utter a word. Hunter looks scary and seemed he's not just a simple guy whom you would like to oppose.
Despite Hunter being cold and scary, Felyne almost shrieked seeing the man's handsomeness.
"Zyreen won a jackpot!"
Hunter kept on knocking on Zyreen's door, but Zyreen didn't open it and didn't answer him.
Zyreen doesn't want to deal with Hunter, she was too tired, and she just wanted to take a rest.
Hunter's knuckles were tired of knocking on the door, and he was pissed off. "Are you going to open this damn door, or I will break it?" Hunter threatened.
Zyreen kicked her blanket and cursed so hard, "damn!" She got up and inhaled. Hunter's threat worked. She knows that if Hunter threatened, he would definitely do it.
"What!?" Her voice was furious, and her eyes darkened. She was annoyingly glaring at Hunter.
"Someone's downstairs looking for you. And when Mr. Tan comes, take my clothes." Hunter passed Zyreen entering the room, and headed to Zyreen's bed.
"Sure, your highness!" Zyreen squinted and banged the door.