Alicia was sitting on the bed in Romil's room next to Ian, his arm around her as they watched Matt and Merlyn record with Ian. They were arguing over a line when Dom walked in, sitting at the chair in front of the microphone and putting on the headphones. Matt and Merlyn walked over and crashed down on the bed as Dom recorded his verse.
Matt laid down and rested his head on Alicia's lap, closing his eyes as she ran her fingers through his hair. She smiled down at him softly, nodding her head as Dom spit his lines. Merlyn was smoking from a joint, sharing it with Alicia and Matt. Dom stood from the chair, asking Romil to play it back. They all smiled widely as they heard it back.
"That's hard." Ian smiled, pulling out his phone to do an Instagram live.
Dom finished up the joint, putting it out and throwing it away.
Ian started the live, dancing in the mirror with Merlyn. Alicia hadn't realized what he was doing and was still running her fingers through Matt's hair. He had his eyes closed, listening to the song as she did so. Alicia leaned down and kissed the top of his nose, making Matt smile widely. Ian turned to show Romil dancing, accidentally showing Alicia and Matt.
The viewers were quick to notice and immediately began asking about who Matt was with. Ian turned off the live once he saw all the messages, eyes wide.
The track ended, and Ian scratched his head nervously.He didn't want either one to get mad at him, but he couldn't not tell them. There were a couple thousand people on the live. Word was sure to get around, especially within the fandom.
"Guys, uh, I think I fucked up."
"What do you mean?" Dom asked, leaning against the wall and crossing his arms.
Matt opened his eyes, turning towards Ian as Alicia and Romil looked in his direction.
"I think I accidentally showed Matt and Ali in the live and people saw." Ian admitted, looking down at his feet.
"What?" Matt asked, sitting up. Alicia groaned, slumping back against the wall.
"I know y'all weren't public yet, I'm so sorry, it completely slipped my mind." Ian sighed, crossing his arms.
"Fuck, I need a smoke." Alicia sighed, running her fingers through her hair and walking out the door. She grabbed Matt's pack and lighter from his room and walked out to the back patio. She needed to be alone with her thoughts.
Dom shook his head with a sigh.
"It's fucking weird, you forget how many people are fucking watching now. It's not like before. We all gotta be careful with what we're doing." He advised, flicking his lighter absentmindedly.
"I should go talk to her." Matt sighed, running his fingers through his hair and walking out to the back patio.
Alicia was sitting on the edge of the rail, looking out at the view while smoking her cigarette.
"I think we need to talk." Matt mumbled, sliding onto the rail next to her. She passed him the pack, him taking a cigarette out and lighting it.
"Yeah, I've been avoiding this conversation." She sighed, exhaling a cloud of smoke.
"Babe, it might not even be that bad. How many people could've caught it?"
"I checked Twitter. Everyone is talking about it." She groaned, rubbing at her eyes tiredly.
"People are gonna talk, Ali. They've been talking for a while because they noticed my stories at your place."
"They're gonna find out who I am. What if I'm not ready for that?"
"It was bound to happen, but your Instagram is private. It'll be fine." Matt reasoned, looking at her with a frown.
"I know. It just fucking sucks. I wish it had come out on my own terms."
"Me too." He sighed, flicking his cigarette and watching the ashes fall.
Alicia laid her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes. She was scared their paradise would be ruined. She was a pretty private person, and this was all really overwhelming for her.
"What do we do?" Alicia asked, Matt resting his head against hers. The both took long drags of their cigarettes, staring out into the horizon.
"I don't know. This situation fucking sucks. This is still kinda new, and we're getting bigger. I don't want you to get ambushed."
"Am I being dramatic right now? I just don't want this to be anyone else's but ours."
"You're not being dramatic. I feel the same way, Ali."
Alicia put out the cigarette in the ashtray she was holding with a huff. Matt followed her lead, wrapping an arm around her once he was done. She melted into his side, closing her eyes at his touch. Their illusion was broken, and they had a decision to make.
"Fuck it, let's do it." Alicia mumbled, looking at him cautiously.
"You wanna go public?" Matt asked, raising an eyebrow.
"I don't know, maybe? Do you?"
"I don't fucking know." Matt groaned, looking down at his lap.
"We're the two most indecisive people on this planet." Alicia laughed, looking down at her lap. Matt chuckled, leaning over and kissing her cheek.
"Fine, let's do it." Matt mumbled, reaching for his phone.
He opened his Instagram, looking through his camera roll before settling on a picture of the two of them in her mirror in her room. She was on his back pinching his cheeks, and her face was somewhat hidden, her eyes and hair being the only thing really visible. He looked for a filter, settling on one and fixing up the picture before posting it with the caption "not just friends".
Alicia turned and slid off the railing, taking a seat on the outdoor couch. Matt followed her, crashing down next to her.
"It'll be okay." Matt said, reaching for her hand. He intertwined their fingers, rubbing the back of her palm with his thumb.
"I hope so." Alicia sighed, meeting his gaze and pressing her lips against his.
Andrea was scrolling through her Instagram when she screamed loudly. She had seen the picture that Matt posted.
"Holy fuck!" Andrea yelled, throwing her phone on the bed.
"What? Jesus, you scared me." Joba chuckled, looking up from his laptop.
"Matt posted a picture with Alicia." Andrea squealed, covering her mouth and jumping excitedly.
"So?" Joba laughed, making her roll her eyes.
"So that means that Alicia is serious enough about him that she let him post it!"
"I don't get you sometimes, carebear."
"That's fine, no one does." Andrea joked, grabbing her phone and crashing down on the bed next to him. He smiled widely, kissing her cheek quickly and making her blush.
"Listen to this." He said, handing her the headphones. She listened to the track, nodding her head to the beat. Everything he did sounded good to her, but she listened anyways and gave him her positive feedback. They spent the rest of the day watching Netflix in her bed in each other's arms.
