Sapphire.

Chapter Ten

SAPPHIRE'S POV

Zaara huffed as we tromped up the stairs to our front door, her tone laced with a touch of irritation. "I hope you realize what a good friend I am," she said pointedly, "for dropping everything to come pick you up from the café, even though I was smack in the middle of a hangout session with Tanner."

With a chuckle, I hooked my arm through hers. "How about we grab a hazelnut latte from The Daily Grind instead? My treat."

Her eyes lit up with excitement as she nodded eagerly. "Yes, please! I've been wanting to try their hazelnut latte for ages." She paused. "Large, with extra crunch toppings?"

"You know it," I replied, grinning.

Zaara rolled her eyes playfully, but I could see a hint of amusement in her expression. "Fine," she relented, "I guess that makes it somewhat worth it."

I chuckled, feeling a sense of satisfaction at having won the argument. Zaara was never one to back down easily, and I knew that I had earned her respect with my persistence.

"Hey, I always know how to make it worth your while," I said, nudging her arm with mine.

She laughed, shaking her head in amusement. "You always say that, but I'm not so sure."

I winked at her, feeling a sense of lightheartedness in the air. Zaara was my closest friend, and I loved nothing more than making her smile.

"Well, you just wait until I treat you to that coffee date I promised you," I said, grinning. "Then you'll see how good I am at making things worth your while."

Zaara rolled her eyes again, but this time there was a hint of fondness in her expression. "I guess I'll just have to wait and see, won't I?"

As we stepped through the door into the apartment, a sense of stillness settled around us like a heavy blanket. The silence was almost palpable, broken only by the sound of our footsteps echoing off the walls.

But just as we were about to call out to Kai or Astrid, a movement caught our eye. Across the room, in the kitchen, we could see the faint outlines of two figures entwined in a passionate embrace.

At first, it took us a moment to process what we were seeing. But as the image slowly came into focus, we realized that it was Kai and Astrid, locked in a heated kiss.

My cheeks burned with embarrassment as I quickly averted my gaze, feeling like an intruder in their intimate moment. But at the same time, I couldn't help but feel a twinge of curiosity - I had never seen Kai and Astrid this way before.

Zaara nudged me with her elbow, her eyes twinkling with mischief. "Looks like we interrupted something," she whispered, a sly smile tugging at the corners of her lips.

"Oh my god, they're dating!" I blurted out, laughing.

Zaara snickered, "Well, it's about time they realized it."

As we walked towards the kitchen, we tried to contain our laughter. We peeked around the corner and saw Kai and Astrid still in a full-on makeout session.

But our attempts to diffuse the situation were in vain, as Kai and Astrid remained locked in their embrace, seemingly oblivious to our presence.

Zaara cleared her throat loudly, but the sound seemed to fall on deaf ears as the two continued to kiss passionately.

"Hey guys," I said, raising my voice in an attempt to grab their attention.

Finally, Kai and Astrid pulled apart, their eyes widening in surprise as they spotted us standing in the doorway.

"Uh, hi," Kai stammered, rubbing the back of his neck nervously.

Astrid let out a nervous chuckle, her cheeks flushing bright red. "Hey," she managed to say, still catching her breath.

I couldn't help but feel a twinge of embarrassment at having walked in on their private moment. "Sorry to interrupt," I said, my own cheeks burning with heat.

Zaara, on the other hand, seemed to be thoroughly enjoying the awkwardness of the situation. "Well, well, well," she said, grinning mischievously, "looks like we caught you two in the act."

Kai and Astrid exchanged a look of mutual discomfort, clearly caught off guard by our sudden appearance. "It's not what it looks like," Kai said quickly, his eyes darting nervously around the room.

I couldn't help but chuckle at the obvious lie, knowing full well that we had stumbled upon something much more intimate than just a casual fling.

Zaara rolled her eyes, clearly unimpressed with Kai's feeble attempt to downplay the situation. "Oh, come on, Kai," she said, her voice tinged with amusement, "we know you guys are dating."

Kai and Astrid exchanged another look, their expressions softening as they realized they could no longer hide the truth. "Yeah, we are," Kai said, a note of resignation in his voice.

Astrid smiled sheepishly, her eyes sparkling with happiness. "We wanted to keep it a secret," she admitted, "but I guess that cat's out of the bag now."

I grinned, feeling a sense of warmth spread through my chest at the sight of my two friends finally finding happiness with each other. "Well, it's about time," I said, clapping Kai on the back, "you guys make a great couple."

Zaara nodded in agreement, a smile playing at the corners of her lips. "Yeah, we're happy for you guys," she said, her eyes meeting Astrid's with genuine affection.

As we turned to leave the room, Kai and Astrid resumed their 'kissing session'

Zaara and I groaned in unison, "Get a room!."

Kai and Astrid laughed, "We will, thanks!"

Zaara and I walked out of the kitchen, still grinning from ear to ear, "Can you believe it? Kai and Astrid! Who would have thought?"

"Now, no one in this house is single anymore," Zaara replied, chortling.

"I know right?"