Secretly Watching Over Her

Chapter 4: A Hidden Secret

Orm sat on the edge of her bed, the weight of the day's events pressing down on her. The soft glow of the bedside lamp bathed her room in a warm, golden light, casting shadows that danced along the walls. She could still feel the lingering warmth of Ling's kiss on her lips, the electric buzz that had spread through her entire body the moment their mouths had met. As if drawn by an invisible force, Orm's eyes drifted to the nightstand where a small, leather-bound diary lay waiting. It was her most private possession, a keeper of secrets and silent confessions.

She reached for it, her fingers trembling slightly as they brushed against the worn leather. The diary held a world only Orm knew, a world where Ling was the center of every thought, every heartbeat. Slowly, she opened it, revealing pages filled with pictures and notes. Each page was a testament to her hidden feelings, the silent love that had grown stronger with every passing day.

The photos were candid, capturing Ling in moments when she thought no one was watching. Ling laughing with a fellow actor on set, her eyes crinkling with genuine joy. Ling deep in concentration, studying her script with a furrowed brow. Ling standing alone in the shadows at a fan meet, her eyes fixed on Orm with a look that had always made Orm's heart skip a beat. Orm ran her fingers over the images, her touch light and reverent, as if afraid to mar the memory.

Orm turned to a page near the middle of the diary, her heart beating faster. This page held a collection of photos from the first time she had noticed Ling. It had been at a crowded fan meet, with people jostling to get closer to the stage, to get a glimpse of their favorite stars. Orm had been in the middle of signing autographs when she saw her. Ling was standing at the back of the crowd, her posture reserved, her eyes fixed intently on Orm. She hadn't been holding up a sign or calling out Orm's name like the others. Instead, there was a quiet, almost melancholic look on her face, as if she were content just to watch from afar.

That moment had stuck with Orm. Every time she was in public after that, she found herself searching for that face in the crowd, hoping to see those eyes again. It was always the same—Ling standing just out of sight, never pushing forward, always watching. It had been confusing at first, the way Ling seemed to want to be invisible yet was so undeniably present. Orm had started taking pictures of Ling, trying to capture that mysterious allure, that silent admiration that seemed to mirror her own.

As Orm stared at one particular photo—a shot of Ling standing under a canopy of trees, her face half-lit by the setting sun—her mind drifted back to that day. It had been one of those rare moments when Orm had managed to approach Ling without the chaos of fans and cameras around them. She remembered how Ling's eyes had widened in surprise, a blush spreading across her cheeks when Orm had asked her if she was enjoying the event. Ling had nodded, her voice barely above a whisper as she replied, "I just like watching."

That memory brought a smile to Orm's lips. "Watching me," she thought, a small thrill running through her.Orm had been so careful about keeping her feelings hidden, about watching Ling from a distance. She thought she had been the one secretly observing, silently admiring Ling's every move. But now, things weren't adding up. Why had Ling been watching her? Orm's mind spun with questions. The kiss today, the way Ling had responded so naturally, so willingly, was not what Orm had expected. And then, those words—"Me too." They echoed in Orm's thoughts, pulling at the threads of her careful secrecy. Could it be possible that Ling had been feeling the same way all along?

Orm's heart thudded heavily in her chest. Was it possible that all this time, Ling had been harboring feelings, just like Orm had been? Every smile, every stolen glance, every moment they'd shared—it all suddenly seemed charged with a different meaning. Had Ling been stalking her too, just as secretly, just as fervently? The realization hit Orm with both excitement and fear. If Ling had been feeling the same way, then maybe this wasn't a one-sided obsession. Maybe the pull between them was mutual, like two stars orbiting each other, unable to break free.