The simple statement cuts through my thoughts. Tomorrow means filming and stepping back into the real world that’s waiting beyond this house and whatever’s happening between us. The routine of it should feel grounding, like proof that this is only temporary, rather than the beginning of a future I never planned for.
But even as the thought creeps in, I know it isn’t that simple. I don’t want to go back to keeping distance between us or constantly monitoring every shift in closeness like it’s dangerous. I don't want to lose the strange sense of calm that's settled over me here, surrounded by people who somehow make everything feel easier.
I want them to stay close.
“I can help,” I say, already reaching for the empty plates. “It’s the least I can do after... everything.”
Adrian nods, but his attention lingers on me for a second too long, like he caught whatever crossed my face before I could hide it. “Actually,” he says after a pause, “we could still watch something lighter before bed. If you want.”
The offer is casual enough that he could still pretend it means nothing if I turn him down. But I notice the intent way he watches my expression before he continues.
"I was hoping you'd stay a little longer," he says finally, his voice low, like he's not entirely sure he should admit it. His gaze holds mine as he speaks. “If that’s okay. If you’re up for it. If you’re not too tired.”
I can't stop the small smile that tugs at my lips.
For the last hour, I've been trying not to think about the evening ending.
Apparently, I wasn't the only one.
“I’m not tired,” I say, and mean it. “Another movie sounds perfect.”
Relief flickers across his expression, like he'd been hoping I would say yes. Then he smiles, the expression reaching his eyes in a way that makes my stomach flip unexpectedly. “Great,” he says as he pushes to his feet and starts gathering plates from the island. Bash follows a second later with an exaggerated sigh about doing manual labor, Elias moving beside him without complaint. I find myself trailing after them before I can overthink it. The kitchen falls back into order quickly, and somehow the easy familiarity of working beside them follows us into the hallway.
We head for the theater together, and the hallway feels different from the way it did an hour ago.
The distance between us hasn't changed. Adrian is still a few steps ahead, Bash beside him, Elias close enough behind me that I can feel his presence without looking.
I'm aware of every inch of space between us now.
For the first time, I find myself wishing there were less of it.
Chapter 19
Maya
We reach the theater door together, Adrian pushing it open. The theater looks exactly the same—the same comfortable seating arranged in its careful semicircle, the same massive screen waiting for the next film, the same lighting giving just enough illumination to navigate by. But it feels different. The space itself feels different now, layered in all of our scents, like it’s already becoming ours in a way I’m only just starting to understand.
“Back to our seats?” Adrian asks, already moving toward the couch without waiting for an answer.
I nod. “Which movie did you have in mind?” I ask, following Adrian to the center of the couch.
He looks back with a smile that reaches his eyes. “Something lighter this time,” he says, already reaching for the remote. “Thought we could use the break from all that blue.”
Bash sits on my right side, his movements familiar in a way they weren’t just hours ago. He reaches for the blanket folded over the back of the couch before passing it to me. “Here,” he says simply. “Before you get cold.”
It’s blue—the same one I curled under earlier—but it smells different now. My scent has worked its way into the fabric beneath his, and the realization makes my omega hum with contentment. “Thanks,” I say softly.
I pull the blanket into my lap, aware of how far we’ve drifted from the boundaries we keep on set. There, I watched him from across rooms crowded with people and equipment, tracking his movement without ever expecting him to notice mine. Here, he’s close enough that I can count the freckles across the bridge of his nose, his attention focused entirely on my face in a way that makes my omega preen.
Elias takes the seat on the other side of Bash, settling easily back into the couch as the room quiets around us again. Adrian chooses the spot beside me, angled slightly in my direction instead of fully toward the screen. No one comments on the change between us or draws attention to how naturally we settle together now. They simply move toward me, surrounding me like it’s the most natural thing in the world.
And the biggest change is what isn't there.
The constant tension I've been carrying since my presentation is gone. At some point during the evening, I'd stopped monitoring every shift in distance. Stopped bracing for the next symptom. Stopped treating every instinctive reaction like something that needed to be fought. The realization surprises me because I can't remember the last time I felt this relaxed.
With them surrounding me, a deep sense of contentment spreads through me.
Maybe that's what my omega has been trying to tell me all along.
