The Love We Deny ✔️ [COMPLETED]

Chapter 11 - Rules

"I mean I'm not sure how I can stay away from him, we work at the same place, we live in the same building, we belong to the same team. It's like everything is there to make sure I lose my job. I don't think adding a friendship of any kind of ship is a good idea, it would only add ammunition to the gun pointed at my head," I rambled on to Sylvia after finishing my morning practice. It's been two nights since Kyle and I spoke in front of our apartments. I had been dancing every morning in the studio. Concentrating on my technique and recent choreographies was the best way for me to escape my reality.

"The way I see it, this is perfect," she said with a wide grin.

"I don't follow," I answered looking at her in disbelief. What part of the nightmare I had just described was perfect?

"Well, you won't even need to sneak into the guys' locker room to have your way with the man. You can literally walk next door and get some." Her eyes were shining with excitement.

"That's not the point," I whined, although I couldn't help but be amused by Sylvia. She was such a horny old woman.

"No, but seriously darling, who would even know? It's not like anyone is inside the building," she argued.

A little girl interrupted, wanting Sylvia to open the door from studio four for them. I quickly said goodbye before walking away.

I was nearly at the door when I heard her voice again. "Silver lining dear, think about the silver lining," I turned around, only to burst out laughing at her air humping.

"What are you doing Syl?" I heard one of the smaller girls ask innocently. It was like seeing Agnes ask a question to Gru.

"Oh I'm just stretching sweetie, you know my hips are getting old," I snorted and shook my head side to side at her lie. This woman really had no shame.

While I walked back home, my mind traveled back to my current situation. I couldn't afford to move, and if I couldn't afford to move then there was no way I couldn't quit my job. It had taken me weeks to find a personal assistant job. Sure, Sandra was the reincarnation of the devil himself but it was still a job in the business industry. If I quit now, I wouldn't be able to guarantee that I could find another job on time to pay next month's rent. Luckily, the job at Johnson & Co was the least of my problems since Kyle mostly worked from home.

My mind kept wandering to everything I had been thinking about while I made my way back to my building. I walked up the stairs with a newfound determination. I lifted my hand and knocked twice on Kyle's front door.

The door opened and revealed a disheveled Kyle, wearing nothing but a black bathrobe. I checked the time only to realize it wasn't even ten in the morning. Oops. He must have still been recovering from the game. I heard players often needed a few days for their bodies to be back to normal. I on the other hand had been plagued with nightmares and had been hit by a wave of insomnia.

His eyes widen slightly when he saw me standing before him, probably not expecting to see me after I left him standing in the hallway the other night.

"Hey," he said recovering quickly.

"Hey, I'm sorry, I didn't realize it was still so early, I can come back later," I replied feeling bad for not having checked the clock before knocking on someone's door.

"Don't worry about it. You want to talk inside?" he asked while opening the door further and inviting me in with an arm gesture. I walked in and headed to the couch. This might take a few minutes and I didn't need to make the conversation any more uncomfortable by standing awkwardly by the door.

"So?" He looked at me questioningly waiting for me to start.

"I'd like to set some ground rules," I stated as seriously as possible. I needed to keep my composure and treat this as a business deal, otherwise, my mind would wander to the last time I had been in his apartment. To the feeling of the cold bathroom tiles pressed against my back while my front felt the warmth radiating from his proximity. His soft lips and rough hands. Ahem, You obviously excel at not thinking about it. Clearly, this was a lot harder than I initially thought.

"What do you mean?" he asked raising his eyebrows.

"Well, if I want to even have a chance at finishing this season as a Beacon's cheerleader then we need to set some rules," I tried explaining.

"What did you have in mind?" he asked looking amused. His attitude only served to irritate me. Did he think this was a joke? Did he not care? Footballers and their oversized ego and pride, did you really expect anything different? Yes. He had been so down to earth when we had spoken the other nights.

It was hard to believe I had been in his apartment less than a week ago. It felt like a tornado had passed through my life and turned everything upside down, making sure to shake it a few extra times just because it could.

"Simple things, for one I saw that the building has two exits. So, it would be great if we could make sure to never enter or leave from the same one. I'll take the back one I don't mind," I quickly added. He seemed surprised by my request but didn't say anything, so I continued. "I think it's also better if we stop talking altogether," I looked down at my hands, feeling awkward about the entire situation. Here I was in his apartment, telling him we shouldn't have any contact anymore.

"Is that necessary?" he asked. I dared a glance in his direction. His eyebrows were sky-high as he looked at me with disbelief. Is that necessary? It was my turn to look at him in surprise. Is that necessary? Is he kidding me?

"You're kidding right?" I questioned hoping I was right, but seeing as his face looked dead serious, I continued, enumerating each reason with my fingers. "Well let's see, there's a picture of us going into the same building, I get fired. There's a picture of us entering Johnson & Co together, I get fired. There's a picture of us talking, I get fired. There's a picture of us parking our cars in front of the same building, I get fired. You do realize that I am bound to get the short end of the stick in this situation, right?" I asked feeling rattled and frustrated that he didn't seem to understand. Technically I could still talk to him inside the building but if that was the case it was also much more prone to an accidental slip up.

"Fine, whatever you want Kathanya," he replied dryly turning on his heel to walk back to the kitchen, he didn't look at me anymore or say anything else. He was letting me know the conversation was done and over.

He didn't want to talk about it anymore, the use of my full name was a clear enough indication. Oddly I had gotten used to him calling me Anya. The use of my full name stung more than I would like to admit.

This is what needed to be done, it didn't mean I liked it or wanted it. It was simply unavoidable. I had worked too hard to get to where I was. Hell, I wasn't even on speaking terms with my mother. It wouldn't be right to just throw away all my sacrifices for a fling. A fling. The words sounded bitter even in my own mind, but that is what it is. I had just spent the past few minutes pouring water on the dry wood, removing all chances for the blaze to ignite.

"Hey Kyle, did you make breakfast?" I turned around to see a slim-looking brunette walking out of his bedroom wearing an oversize shirt that probably belonged to the football player standing in the kitchen. It didn't take a genius to put two and two together. She stopped walking when she saw me, seeming confused. That makes two of us darling.

"I didn't realize you had company. I'll leave you to it," I said standing up and walking to the door. For the second time in a week, Kyle seemed to want to say something but at the last minute must have thought otherwise because he remained silent.

Stepping into my apartment, I went to the kitchen to grab a glass of water. Maybe that would help ease the hurt I was feeling from seeing that pretty model in his apartment. Had she showed up after Kyle and I spoke or was she waiting for him in his apartment the entire time?

I laughed bitterly, what was I expecting? It was probably better this way. The ground rules were a necessary evil and the pretty brunette was like a hammer setting the nail in place. It had to be done.

Maybe over time, I'll believe it.

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