AURORA'S POV:
I woke up to the sound of silence.
No rustling sheets. No half-asleep kisses against the back of my neck. No Lance whispering, "Five more minutes."
Just… silence.
The left side of the bed was cold when i reached over.
My hand instinctively searched for him, still half-asleep, but found only the crumpled weight of the comforter and the faint scent of his aftershave.
He was gone.
I turned my head and blinked at the faint light spilling from the blinds. Morning. Probably past nine.
I sat up slowly, hair falling over my shoulders, and stared at the empty space beside me.
He must be at the firm already.
That was fine. I understood. I wasn't expecting him to be glued to my side twenty-four-seven.
We were adults.
He had a firm to run.
But i guess i just got used to waking up with his arms around me, especially after the whirlwind of the last few months.
I pushed the blankets away and stood up, stretching with a soft groan. My legs felt heavy, still sore from the final taping of Beyond the Chaos last night. It was done. The whole project wrapped.
I could breathe again.
I padded toward the kitchen and stopped in my tracks.
On the dining table, a plate sat waiting. Pancakes, still warm, stacked neatly, with fresh strawberries on top and a little note beside it written in his unmistakable scribble:
Eat everything. No skipping breakfast, actress.
—Lance
I couldn't help the way my chest softened.
I sat down, ate in silence, and smiled to myself.
I didn't know i could love someone like this, so quietly, so consistently, so fully.
After cleaning up, I took a shower and threw on a soft cream sweater and jeans. It wasn't anything fancy, but i liked looking decent when i saw him.
Maybe it was vain.
Maybe it was my way of saying, Hey, I'm trying. That i was healing.
That i still wanted to be the woman he fell for, not just the one broken by what happened.
Around 11:30, I decided to head to his law firm. I didn't even text. I just wanted to see him.
The lobby of Lance's law firm was quieter than usual when i arrived.
The receptionist, a young woman with thick-rimmed glasses and lipstick too bold for her shy demeanor, looked up and smiled awkwardly when she recognized me.
"Hi, Miss—Aurora," she corrected herself quickly. "He's in his office."
"Is he free?"
"Not really. He's… in a mood," she said apologetically. "Back-to-back clients. Walk-ins. The usual Monday storm."
I nodded. "It's okay. I'll just wait."
But i didn't wait at the reception.
I made my way through the glass hallway, passing interns whispering to each other and paralegals hunched over their laptops. Most of them knew me already, some even liked me, but today i wasn't in the mood to be "Aurora the celebrity." I was here as his girlfriend, and i had no intention of just sitting outside while he slowly drowned in paperwork.
I pushed open the door to his office without knocking.
He didn't even look up.
His eyes were glued to the screen in front of him, fingers moving restlessly across his keyboard.
There were two thick case files open on the desk, a half-eaten sandwich on the side, and a coffee cup that had long gone cold.
He didn't notice me until i shut the door behind me.
Lance blinked, startled, and finally looked up.
"Oh. Hey," he said, his voice tired. "Didn't expect you."
"Clearly," I said, walking toward him. "You didn't even glance at me."
"I'm sorry, Babe" he sighed, rubbing his eyes. "I didn't get much sleep. I've had meetings all morning."
"Mm. That's okay. I just came here to bother you a little."
That earned me a small, weary smile.
"You already are," he teased softly.
I perched on the edge of his desk and crossed my arms. "Well, since i'm already being annoying…" I paused dramatically. "I wanted to tell you something."
Lance half-laughed, half-grunted. "This should be good."
"I'm taking on a new project."
That made him freeze.
His eyes locked on mine, the smile completely wiped off. "What kind of project?"
"Romcom," I said as casually as I could. "Lots of kilig, lots of chemistry. Probably some kissing—"
His pen dropped.
"Aurora—"
I couldn't help it. I burst out laughing.
"Hey, hey! I'm kidding! Oh my God, you should've seen your face!"
He stared at me, stunned and offended and confused all at once.
And then… his eyes filled.
Just like that. No warning.
I watched, horrified, as one tear slipped down his cheek.
"Wait—Lance?" I jumped off the desk and crouched beside him. "Baby, oh my God. It was a joke. I swear. There's no new project. No kissing scenes. Nothing."
He wiped his face quickly, embarrassed. "I'm sorry. I just… I really can't take that joke right now."
I cupped his face, my thumb brushing the corner of his eye. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean it to hurt."
"I know," he whispered, finally holding my hand. "I just—last night, when i watched Beyond the Chaos… I thought i was ready to see it. I thought i could handle it. But then the kissing scene came on and i don't know. I felt like i couldn't breathe."
I sank into his lap, wrapping my arms around his neck.
"I'll never take projects like that again," I said quietly. "I promise. If it's romance, I'll pass. I love acting, but i love you more. I don't want to keep choosing between the two."
"You don't have to give anything up for me," he said hoarsely.
"But i want to," I replied. "Because you matter more." Then i kissed him. Because i seat on his couch.
-
Lunch was already late by the time we left Lance's office.
He insisted we go out, said he needed to breathe, touch grass, see me without walls of legal briefs between us.
So i let him drag me to a quiet little Italian place we both liked, just three blocks away from his firm.
He opened the door for me like always, hand gently resting on my back as we stepped in.
And that's when i saw them.
Selena.
And Nico.
They were tucked into a corner booth, far enough from everyone else to look almost… private.
Selena's hair was up in that loose bun she always did when she wasn't working. Nico looked like he hadn't shaved in a week, but he was smiling soft, distracted, the way he never used to.
They didn't see us at first.
I nudged Lance and whispered, "Tell me i'm not imagining this."
He blinked, then squinted at the table. "Is that… Nico?"
"Yep."
"With Selena?"
I nodded. "On what looks like… a date."
Lance stared for a beat longer.
Then, without hesitation, he turned to the host and said, "Can we get that table over there? Near the couple in the corner?"
My eyes widened. "You're such a chismoso."
He smirked. "I learn from the best."
We were seated close enough to catch Nico's voice when he laughed too loud and Selena's nervous tucking of hair behind her ear. But not close enough to interrupt at least, not immediately.
Our food arrived.
Lance ordered pasta. I got a salad i didn't touch.
I was too busy watching those two.
"I mean, I always thought they hated each other," I whispered between bites.
"They did at first," Lance said. "Or they were pretending they did. That's usually how it starts."
"I hate how cute they are."
He gave me a look. "You mean you love how cute they are."
"Okay, fine." I smiled. "I love it. I just… wasn't ready."
Then Nico finally noticed us.
His eyebrows shot up as he whispered something to Selena, who turned her head slowly cautiously and met my gaze.
I waved.
She froze for half a second, then smiled back, small but genuine.
And that was our invitation.
"You wanna?" I asked Lance.
He nodded. "Let's ruin their date."
We carried our drinks and slid into their booth like it was always meant to be shared.
"Well, well, well," I said sweetly. "Fancy seeing you two here."
Selena laughed nervously. "We, uh, we were just—"
"Don't even try to explain," I cut in, teasing. "Your secret is safe."
Nico sighed. "We weren't trying to hide anything."
"Then why do you look guilty?" Lance asked.
He shrugged. "Force of habit."
"Still," Selena said gently, "we weren't sure when was the right time to tell anyone."
"How long has this been going on?" I asked, leaning in dramatically.
"A few weeks," Nico answered. "Not… official or anything. But… we're trying."
I looked between them. "You look happy."
Selena's eyes softened. "So do you."
And suddenly, there was this quiet.
The kind that wrapped around the table like a bubble, fragile and golden.
We were all healing from something, Selena from the trauma of almost losing her best friend, Nico from his guilt, Lance from the weight of loving someone as bruised as me.
And me… I was still learning how to forgive myself.
But in that moment, over half-eaten pasta and clinking glasses, we were just four people who found each other again.
"So what's next?" Nico asked. "You two planning a wedding or what?"
Lance choked on his water.
I nearly spit out my drink.
Selena snorted.
"What?" Nico asked innocently. "Too soon?"
I coughed. "Way too soon."
Lance coughed harder. "We just moved in together again."
"Still," Selena said, "the way you two look at each other? I give it six months."
Lance looked at me.
I looked at him.
And despite the heat crawling up my cheeks, I smiled. Because maybe… just maybe… they were right.
Maybe this love really was that kind.