Uma watched Hugo enter the bathroom, took a deep breath, and straightened her posture. The tenderness and restraint from moments ago faded away, replaced by her usual confident, decisive air. Lifting her chin, she walked toward Charlize's room.
Before she could knock, the door opened on its own. A sleepy-looking Charlize appeared in the doorway. Uma smiled and greeted her, "Good afternoon, Charlize."
Charlize clearly hadn't expected to see Uma first thing after waking up. She blinked in confusion, stepped back a little, and, once she recognized who it was, managed a smile. "Oh… hey, Uma. It's already noon?"
As she spoke, Charlize lazily gathered her hair into a loose twist and clipped it up with a shark clip, then shuffled toward the kitchen in search of the coffee machine. Thanks to Hugo's influence, Charlize, Alex, and even Joseph and Kal upstairs had all picked up the habit of starting their mornings with coffee.
"Hugo's not up yet? He drank quite a bit last night," Charlize asked casually. She knew Uma must have come early to look after Hugo, so she naturally brought up the topic.
As a woman herself, Uma was well aware of Charlize's natural allure. That effortless charm didn't need makeup or fancy clothes — it simply radiated from her. Even now, dressed in a simple T-shirt and sweatpants, her hair hastily pinned up, face bare and slightly pale from a hangover, Charlize still exuded that lazy, irresistible kind of beauty.
At first, Uma had been wary of Charlize. She could sense that their energies didn't align — there was always a subtle tension in the air when they were together. But after Uma publicly declared her relationship with Hugo, and through several small tests afterward, she realized Charlize and Hugo were just friends. Even when Uma planned that romantic dinner for Hugo not long ago, Charlize and Alex had both cooperated enthusiastically, putting her at ease.
Still, since Uma had chosen to stay at Sydney's house last night while Hugo spent New Year's Eve with this same group of friends — Charlize included that calm had begun to waver again. "Hugo's in the shower," Uma said, stepping into the kitchen. "Drinking coffee first thing in the morning isn't good, especially after how much you all drank last night. I warmed up some milk — have a cup."
She took a cup from the microwave and handed it to Charlize.
Charlize smiled cheerfully. "Thanks. But Alex and I are so used to it — mornings feel incomplete without coffee. Even if we don't drink it, just smelling it makes the day better."
Her mind still foggy from sleep, Charlize nevertheless sensed Uma's wariness that was a woman's instinct. She knew Uma was trying to assert control, to reestablish her place beside Hugo. Still, Charlize had no intention of engaging in a power struggle. She accepted the milk, took a polite sip, and then turned her attention back to preparing coffee.
"Oh God, give me a cup of coffee," came Alex's raspy voice from the living room. A moment later, he spotted Charlize at the counter and perked up. "Hey, Charlize! Do you remember the coffee Hugo made last week? Make me that one!"
"Kilimanjaro? You sure?" Charlize frowned at the memory. Just thinking about that blend made her mouth pucker. "That stuff is so bitter!"
Alex collapsed onto the couch dramatically. "Yeah, that's the one. I need a jolt of black coffee. Otherwise, I feel like I'm walking through mud."
"Black coffee is terrifying," Uma chimed in with a laugh. Alex immediately straightened up, a little embarrassed. "Hey, Uma."
Uma smiled and nodded in greeting. Alex quickly tried to explain himself. "Haha, I just want to try it again. Hugo's always experimenting with new brews, and Charlize and I kind of got used to it…"
He didn't notice Charlize giving him a warning look from the kitchen and kept going. "Now I can't start my day without coffee. Even just smelling it makes everything better."
Alex's words overlapped almost exactly with what Charlize had said moments earlier, and Uma immediately realized that their coffee habit had clearly come from Hugo's influence.
Of course, there was nothing unusual about that — people who lived together naturally picked up each other's habits. It was true for couples, families, and friends alike. Sharing a roof meant sharing little pieces of life.
But today, Uma was feeling sensitive. She and Hugo had argued for the first time last night, and now even these tiny details made her feel the distance between them. Her fingers tightened around the cup of milk, though her face remained calm. "Haha, well, I warmed up some milk for you all. Hugo said you drank a lot last night — milk helps with a hangover."
The way she phrased it made Charlize's brow twitch. There was too much subtext packed into those few words.
First, "for you all" grouping Charlize and Alex together subtly shifted the tone from "for Hugo and his friends" to "for Hugo's circle that includes you." Second, "Hugo said" implied that she and Hugo had already talked privately that morning — a small, possessive assertion of intimacy.
Charlize caught the layered meaning instantly. As a woman, she understood perfectly well that Uma was staking her claim — though to her, it seemed unnecessary.
She knew Uma was on guard against her, and perhaps against any other woman near Hugo but Charlize felt no anxiety at all. She had a clear conscience. Nothing had happened between her and Hugo, and she saw him only as a friend.
In fact, last night's situation had been entirely Uma's own choice. She had chosen to stay at Sydney's house. There was no point in being upset now. Hugo had gone to a party with friends that was all. Uma's eagerness to assert her "territory" now either meant she was overthinking things… or she had something to hide.
Something to hide? Charlize frowned slightly. The thought came and went too quickly to grasp, leaving behind only a faint unease and a flicker of irritation toward Uma. Still, as a friend, there wasn't much she could do except hope Uma and Hugo wouldn't start fighting again — that kind of conflict never stayed private.
Alex, meanwhile, noticed none of this subtle tension. The difference between how men and women think was worlds apart. Grinning, he accepted the cup of milk. "Thanks — seriously, thank you so much."
"I'm really sorry I didn't make it to your party last night," Uma said sincerely, looking at Alex. "I still feel bad about it."
Alex had been a little upset—not because Uma didn't show up, but because Hugo had clearly been in a bad mood last night and Uma wasn't there for him. But hearing her apology now, his irritation faded. He quickly waved his hand. "No, it's fine, really. The point of a party is for friends to have fun together. As long as everyone's happy, that's what matters."
As they spoke, Hugo came out of the bathroom, drying his hair with a towel as he walked into the living room. "Alex, go wake up Joseph and Kal—uh, and Hugin too," Hugo added after remembering that Hugin lived just upstairs. "Let's all go out for lunch. I doubt there's much food left from last night."
"So many people?" Uma widened her eyes in surprise, pointing at the fridge. "I was actually planning to make lunch here—to fill everyone's stomachs."
Hugo chuckled at her expression. He knew Uma had been trying to make up for last night, and the lunch plan was probably part of that. "Let's just eat out for lunch and have dinner at home later. It's already around noon anyway—cooking now would be too much trouble."
Charlize stretched lazily and started walking toward the bathroom. "Alex, I'm using it first. Wait a minute."
After a few steps, Hugo asked casually, "Anything in particular you want for lunch?" It was just a habit—whenever they ate together, he liked to make sure everyone's preferences were considered.
Charlize glanced at him with a playful expression, then shot a quick look at Uma from the corner of her eye. "I don't really care. We're all hungover drunks anyway—our cravings are probably the same. Oh, but no sushi. Tell Kal not to even mention it."
That made both Hugo and Alex laugh as they watched Charlize disappear into the bathroom. Uma, not understanding the joke, turned to Hugo. He smiled and explained, "A few times after drinking, Kal suggested something light, like sushi. We went, but the wasabi nearly killed our stomachs—except Kal's. He was totally fine. That's why Charlize refuses to eat sushi now."
"I don't want anything raw for lunch either. I'll make sure to warn Kal," Alex said cheerfully as he headed for the door.
Uma chuckled and nodded. Moments like this—these little inside jokes—were the kind of things only people who lived together knew, the kind that close friends shared. Yet she was an outsider to them, and realizing that, her eyes drifted toward Charlize, whose messy figure disappeared confidently behind the bathroom door.
Still, lunch turned out to be a lively and pleasant one. Uma finally met the mysterious upstairs neighbor, Hugin, and Leonardo and Tobey also joined in. Surrounded by laughter and plates of Spanish cuisine, everyone slowly shook off the remnants of their hangovers.
And just like that, amid the cheerful noise and easy smiles, the year 1993 quietly arrived.
...
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