One for Three

Chapter 11

"Darling? Are you okay? You look pale," Seiya said, concerningly stroking my cheek. I felt the tears welling up inside me. No, I can't cry now, that would be my downfall.

"Yes, I'm fine," I forced myself to smile. As Seiya started driving, I looked at him from the side. What did Mina say again? Pros and cons list.

Pros of Seiya: His laughter, his openness, his humor, his lightness, the way he loves me... oh, I could go on and on with this list.

On the con side, there would always be one word: Star.

No matter how I turned it around, he was an international star. He was in the spotlight, and if I chose him, sooner or later, I would be too. Seiya wasn't like his brother Taiki, who had been together with Amy for two years, and it was perfectly fine for both of them to not be publicly presented. Seiya loved the big show, even though he was often annoyed by clingy fans. I knew that if I gave my consent, it would only take a few days until we would be on the front pages.

Seiya turned into the hotel parking garage. "Are you really okay? You haven't said anything the whole way."

"Yes, really, everything is fine. I was just lost in thought."

"And what were you thinking about?"

I couldn't quite interpret his expression when he asked that. It was a mixture of concern and interest.

"About how incredibly lucky I am to have you by my side," I whispered, leaning towards him, causing a mischievous grin to spread across his lips.

Gently, he ran his finger down my cheek to my chin. He pulled me closer, and as our lips were only a few centimeters apart, he stopped.

"I'm also incredibly lucky to have found you. I love you, my darling."

While he spoke those words, I froze and was simultaneously flooded with a fluttering sensation. I felt both hot and cold. It was the first time he said it out loud. He loves me. Seiya didn't wait for a response but closed the remaining distance and kissed me. It was a passionate kiss, and I immediately joined in. He loves me, echoed repeatedly in my mind. I had already read it in the song, but hearing him say it out loud was something entirely different.

We slept in late the next morning. Seiya had breakfast delivered to our room, and then we leisurely made our way back home. We were about an hour away from Tokyo when Seiya's phone rang, and he answered the call on the speakerphone.

"Seiya? Are you home?" Yaten's voice echoed through the speakers.

"Only in an hour, why?"

"I'm on my way. Since I finally met your girlfriend, I wanted to see your apartment. You've kept it such a big secret."

Seiya looked somewhat caught off guard and glanced at me. I thought for a moment, but there was no point. I couldn't come up with a suitable excuse for why his brother shouldn't visit us.

"No problem. We're looking forward to it. I'll send you the address," I said a bit louder for him to hear.

"Oh, I'm on speaker. Hey Usagi. Great, see you soon."

As soon as Yaten hung up, Seiya looked at me again. "You don't have to do this. I can cancel on him."

"Why? Are you embarrassed by our apartment?" I asked, puzzled. He seemed to give off the impression that he didn't want his brother to visit us. "No, not at all. I love our apartment."

He took a deep breath, and I could tell he was searching for the right words. "But... It's still more your apartment than ours, in a way."

"What do you mean?" I couldn't quite follow. Of course, it was my apartment. It had been mine for almost five years now.