Chapter Nine - Asher
Asher
”Be there in a second,” Kayla says hastily when I call let her know I”m waiting in front of her house. Then the call disconnects and I lower my phone, pushing it back into my pocket.
A second, however, turns into almost ten minutes until I see her familiar face pop around the corner to the elevator hall of her building.
”Sorry,” she says breathlessly as she climbs into the car. I’m still surprised about how gracefully she manages to do that, considering the car’s height and the fact she’s wearing high heels. ”The elevator took forever.”
”You”re fine,” I answer, glancing at her before I start the car. ”It”s not like we have a fixed time we need to be there.”
She makes an approving, humming sound in the back of her throat and buckles her seatbelt.
As I merge into traffic and check that my security teams’ car is behind us, I feel her eyes on me, and I can”t help but glance at her from the corner of mine at each red traffic light.
She”s wearing her hair completely straight again. There is no trace of the soft waves I saw at her place and I”m not sure why, but it bugs me. The little waves look adorable and suit her so much better than this boring, strict look.
Not that I’d tell her that.
A comfortable silence settles in the car until we arrive. I find two parking spots about a block away from the restaurant and pull into the first, watching my team take the second one before shooting Van a quick message to let him know the spectacle is about to begin.
”Wait in your seat,” I tell Kayla before I jump out of the car and walk over to her side.
After our fun conversation regarding the rules of this fake relationship, I spent the night doing some research. I probably went through hundreds of articles and pictures, searching hashtags and the answers to her posts to have an idea of what I’m going to be dealing with and what comes with dating a Siren.
Imagine my shock when I found a whole ass website dedicated to trying to get pictures from under her or Millie”s skirts. A. Whole. Goddamn. Website.
And that’s only the tip of the iceberg, because I also found posts about a now deleted website that had nudes and even whole porn videos with their faces, made with artificial intelligence.
The internet is a scary, disgusting place, but my little research truly opened my eyes to what I’d be getting into.
I don”t see any photographers around yet, but I still step between the gap the open door leaves to hide her with my body as she gets out of the car. Just in case.
”Thank you,” she murmurs softly and pats her skirt back into position. Now”s the first time I actually get to look at her outfit and I whistle between my teeth.
She looks amazing. While I just threw on a black shirt, jeans and slipped into a leather jacket Van handed me to wear, she dressed up to the nines. Her long legs are covered by black tights, leading to her beige skirt and she”s wearing a black top and brown leather jacket.
Maybe she was right and outfit coordinating was a good move. I look at our reflections on my cars side. I have to admit, we look really damn good together.
With a sigh, she rummages in her handbag until she finds her sunglasses. Right. The sun might already be setting but with the lightning chaos we’re about to face, it’s a smart move.
I let her step aside, then lean over the passenger seat to retrieve my cap. I tucked it between the seat and center console in preparation for our little outing but almost forgot about it.
I hate these things. I can never quite manage to wear them properly with my hair, at least whenever I wear it in a top knot like today.
”Here, let me help.” Kayla reaches out her hands. I lean down a bit so she can reach better, and her gentle fingers help me tug my hair through the hole on the backside of the hat. I”m not sure how exactly she does it, but it sure as shit feels a lot better than when I force my hair through it the usual way.
”Thanks,” I mumble and roll my shoulders as I straighten my back.
”Let”s get this over with,” Kayla says softly, sounding more resigned than annoyed, and roughly pulls my arm over her shoulder.
”You”re shrugging me on like a backpack,” I chuckle and shift my arm, feeling her tense under it as it tugs her closer against me. ”Relax.”
”I”ll relax after I”ve had those noisy people take my picture,” she grits out and snakes her arm around my waist. ”Now, where is that security team of yours?”
I nod towards the black car that has parked two spots behind mine. Immediately, the doors open and four huge and buff guys in suits jump out, all of them wearing sunglasses and earpieces to communicate.
Slowly, I feel her starting to relax under my touch, and from the corner of my eyes, I see her plastering a smile onto her lips.
If you didn”t know, you”d have no idea how bad her mood was until just now. Admittedly, her ability to conceal her emotions probably would have made her a wonderful actress.
I nod at Sven, the tallest of the security guys and head of our little security team, and off we go.
Just as I thought, as soon as we round the corner to the restaurant, someone immediately shouts our names and a horde of paparazzi storms our way.
Undeterred by security, they try to reach us and push microphones or cameras into our faces while screaming into our ears and blinding us with the lights of their camera flashes.
Instinctively, I pull Kayla a bit closer to me as we walk, both of us directing our eyes to the ground.
It”s really nice to walk with her. I can’t help but notice again that she keeps up with me easily.
My exes were way smaller. Apart from the awkward arm angle, I would have never been able to walk this quickly with them, but walking with Kayla is easy, as natural as breathing.
Loud voices mix until I can”t make out any distinct voice anymore. All I hear is shouting and our names.
Our security team members are champions, pushing them out of our way. We don’t have to slow down one bit until we finally reach the restaurant.
”Japanese?” Kayla asks and tilts her head, looking up at the fa?ade.
”Yes. The best one around,” I tell her and hold the door open so she can walk in ahead of me. The screaming seems to subside as soon as the door falls closed behind us. Or this building has amazing soundproofing.
I help Kayla shrug off her jacket, and then carry it along with mine to the table that the host leads us to. Once there, I drape them over the free chair right next to me.
”I hope you like ramen?” I ask as I sit down, placing my phone on the table with the screen facing down, because it feels weird in the pocket of these particular jeans when I sit down. I noticed in the car, and I’d rather have it on the table.
”I do,” she answers and nods, an approving hum coming from her throat. ”It”s been forever since I last had some.”
”Same. The last time must have been on a press tour in Tokyo.” I accept the menu our waiter hands us and order myself a lemonade. I wish I could have a beer or some sake, but since I”ll be driving her home after our dinner, that”s absolutely not happening.
She, however, orders herself an alcoholic drink, her eyes lighting up as they dart over the card until she finally chooses a whiskey highball. Interesting.
Once the waiter is gone, my phone starts buzzing and blinking. I turn it quickly to glance at the display, then roll my eyes and unlock it, only to put it on do not disturb.
”Sorry, that was my mom.” I push it to the far side of the table before I change my mind and just put it down on the empty chair after all. ”She”s asking how the flowers are doing. A sneaky strategy to spy on our date, I assume.” It’s one of her tactics. She’d ask an innocent enough question like this and then dive right into the uncomfortable questions once it’s answered. I’m not falling for that this time.
”They’re still alright,” Kayla assures me quickly, shooting the waiter a grateful smile when he returns with our drinks. ”They”re so pretty. And at least they give my apartment some color and make it look a little less boring. So, your mother has a flower shop?”
The question could be interpreted condescendingly, but her voice signals that she”s genuinely interested.
”Yes. She opened it when I was five and started going to school so she wouldn’t worry about me whenever I was out of her sight.”
”That”s so sweet! And you mentioned your dad is a CEO?” I nod. ”How did the two of them meet?”
”A nightclub,” I tell her, chuckling when her eyes grow wide. ”Trust me, that”s all I ever wanted to know.”
”Yeah, that’s understandable,” she says and takes a sip of her drink, her face contorting into a grimace. “Oof. Yep, there’s definitely whiskey.”
I grin and reach for my own drink. ”How about your parents?” I ask her before I take a sip and her face strains, for just the barest of seconds, before she regains control over her expression. ”Are you close to them?”
”Not really,” she says without elaborating and clears her throat. A wiser man would take the hint, but that’s not an adjective I’d describe myself with.
”Why?” I tilt my head, cursing myself when I see her whole body tense up. ”Sorry, if you don”t want to tell me, that”s fine.”
”No, no, it”s okay. You just caught me a bit off guard.” She twirls the straw of her drink between her fingers. ”I didn’t think it would be one of the first topics to come up in this little charade.” She gulps. “They didn”t approve of my career choice and made that very clear. In fact, their disapproval was the only thing they could talk about whenever we met, so I cut them off a few years back.”
Oh. My stomach drops. What a way to kill the conversation. Well done, Asher.
”That must suck for them now that you”re basically on top of the world.” I try to save it, but she only gives me a tight smile that doesn’t look real at all.
”They don”t care,” Kayla says, accepting the menu to choose her ramen. ”Millie and I were already selling out stadiums by the point everything escalated. They didn”t give a damn how successful I was, they wanted me to do something they deemed proper.” She lowers the menu and lifts one of her hands to air quote as she speaks that last word. ”Like a lawyer, or dentist, or accountant. I think they”d rather I marry some rich guy and become a stay-at-home wife than be a pop star.” She shrugs, meanwhile, my heart starts hurting for her.
It”s obvious that she”s not happy about this conversation and her situation. Her shoulders have grown tenser, and she’s pulled them up to her ears since she started talking about her parents, and her chestnut eyes dart around uneasily as her fingers play with the pearls of her bracelet.
”It”s alright, though,” she says and shakes her head subtly, blinking like she just woke up from a bad daydream. ”I”ve made my peace with it. I’ve decided that in the end, it”s their loss. Not mine.”
”Damn right, it is,” I assure her quickly and nod to emphasize my point. God, I couldn”t imagine cutting Mom and Dad off. Every day I’m thankful that they were quite the opposite.
“How about your parents? You seem to have a good relationship with them, were they supportive?”
“We don’t have to talk about it, if you don’t want to,” I assure her, but she shakes her head.
“It’s alright, Asher. I’ve had enough time to get over it.” She waves me off and I lean back in my seat. “I won’t cry myself to sleep because we’re talking about your parents. Meeting them is another topic.”
“Alright.” I nod and take a moment to think. “When I first mentioned that I wanted to get into acting, they were a bit apprehensive. All the theatre kids in my school were girls and they were worried I’d get bullied for joining them.”
“Well, were you?” she asks amusedly and raises her eyebrow at me.
“Of course not. And when half a year later I still begged them to let me act, they actually threw their all into it and supported me the best they could have.” I take another sip of my drink and watch her eyes follow the glass. Suddenly, I’m acutely aware that she’s staring at my lips as I continue talking, almost making me stumble over my words.
“My mom drove me to acting lessons and auditions, and my dad took the time to teach me all the behind-the-scenes stuff going on and warn me of what”s to come if I were to enter the industry. And thank God for both. Mom always told me how bad I was at lying, and let me tell you, she showed me a video from when I was like six, and she’s right. I sucked so bad,” I tell her and both of us burst into a chuckle.
“Is that video still somewhere? I’ll have to get you to let me watch it.”
“Nope, I destroyed it,” I say way too quickly, and she grins widely, smelling my lie.
“Anyway, so I definitely needed the acting lessons, and I also needed the reality check from my dad. Of course, I was arrogant enough to think that I was the only talented person to walk this earth, but his talk prepared me for the months and even years it took to finally score a proper role that was not ensemble or an ad. Ultimately, I would have given up countless times if it weren’t for the two of them and their support.”
“That’s so nice,” Kayla says wistfully, her eyes glassy as they’re fixated on my lips, but I can see that she’s not actually looking at them at all. She’s somewhere else, entirely lost in her thoughts. Maybe she’s thinking about her family.
I let my eyes wander as well. What a journey it was to where all of us are today. Mom with her dream flower shop and my dad able to reduce his hours to not work himself into an early, stress-filled grave. The way it turned out is a win-win situation all around.
I can”t imagine being where I am today without them and the fact that Kayla did it all on her own? Without her parents cheering on the side-lines? Unimaginable.
The waiter suddenly appears at our table and takes our food orders before Kayla speaks up again.
”Let”s change topics,” she diverts, and I let her all too easily. ”What do we think about the actual couple in this friend group?”
”Oh, Luca is head over heels, absolutely no need to worry about him,” I assure her quickly, making her smile.
I really like her real smile. Not the forced one she tends to contort her face into when she’s with me. Her real smile makes her eyes crinkle and light up and the cutest dimple appear on her cheek.
She takes another sip of her long drink, and I can already see her cheeks heating up with the alcohol. How cute.
Wait, what? Hold on a second, Asher. Cute?
”Millie is definitely crushing too. She’s all giggly and blushes whenever we talk about Luca.” Kayla nods and takes another sip. For some reason I can”t take my eyes off her lips and the way they close around her straw, the way her cheeks hollow as she sucks the liquid into it. ”I don’t think love at first sight is a thing, but now I’m half convinced that those two just might have opened myself up to the possibility.”
”Those two are certainly . . . something.” I take another sip of my lemonade as well. The cold liquid running down my throat is only a temporary distraction from the woman opposite me though. She”s leaning her chin into the heel of her hands as she props her elbows on the table, eyeing me curiously. ”Luca is kind of exhausting when he”s freshly in love.”
”And when he”s not so freshly in love?” she asks and lifts her eyebrow, her eyes suddenly hardening. ”It”s not always going to be all rainbows and sunshine.”
”If they make it past the pink glasses stage, I think they”ll be fine.” I shrug and grin at her. ”I haven”t seen much of his relationships, but I think when they ended, it was mostly in the beginning. I’ve never seen him as infatuated as he is with your friend, though.”
”Good. She deserves it.” Kayla hums happily and lifts her head as our food arrives. ”God knows she”s been through enough shit with her former boyfriends and the media. She deserves her happy end.”
I eye her, my eyebrow raised high up my forehead. During my research, I couldn’t help but notice the negative tone media outlets use when it comes to Millie and how little I could actually find out about Kayla’s former relationships in comparison.
Nonetheless, why does she only mention Millie? Doesn’t she deserve a happy end too?
”Why do you think they’re targeting Millie like that?”
”I know why. It’s not much of a speculation.” She takes the chopsticks and expertly places them in her hand. Me, not so much. ”Our label was not a fan of me being caught in public with my ”friends,”” she emphasizes the word with air quotes, ”so they diverted the media to Millie. They deemed her being pictured in relationships to be better for our image than me being pictured with hook-ups. And the truth is, they don”t give a damn about the cyberbullying they”re subjecting her to, as long as my fuck buddies are not on the news.”
”So that”s why you don”t want to involve your management?”
”Exactly.” She exhales a deep sigh. ”I don”t trust them. Overall, I’m sure Naroa is a good egg and does a lot for us behind the scenes, but at this point, it’s just not enough. If I could and Millie came along, I would leave Starlet Sounds in a heartbeat.” She picks at her bowl and then maneuvers a few long noodles to her mouth. It”s not a glorious sight, but the sight of her slurping them is downright adorable.
Adorable. There it is again.
I try to follow suit, but the noodles slide off my chopsticks whenever I try.
”You know they’ve got forks over there, right?” She nods toward the far end of our table and I shake my head.
”Thanks, but I”m very determined to make this happen.” I pick them up again but with the same result. “My mom didn’t raise a quitter.”
She says something under her breath that I can’t quite make out.
”You need to hold them a bit differently. May I?”
I take the chopsticks out of the bowl and offer her my hand. She twists my fingers along the sticks until she a satisfied hum leaves her throat.
”There. Try again. Only move the upper stick. How the hell did you eat ramen in Tokyo and can’t hold chopsticks?”
”Holy fuck, it works,” I say, ignoring that last remark as I pick up half an egg with her technique. It’s way easier than what I attempted before. ”Thank you.”
”You”re welcome.”
We continue our meal in silence. It”s a nice silence, though. Like in the car. For once, there is no bickering, no sarcastic use of nicknames, only light conversation and food until we”re both finished and I pull out my wallet to hand the waiter my card.
”I could pay for myself, you know?” She looks at me with a raised eyebrow and tight jaw.
”See it as an apology for pulling you into this whole fake girlfriend thing,” I tell her and hand my card to the waiter anyway.
”The next one is my treat,” she insists before she freezes.
Ha! She implied there”d be a next time. Now, play it cool, Asher.
”If we keep this up for three more months, I guess we need to be seen again together,” she quickly adds, her alcohol-red face turning an even deeper shade of red.
”Sure,” I say noncommittedly while internally freaking out. I”ll just have to pay in advance at that restaurant or something.
Standing up, I hand over her jacket and help her put it on before I do the same and we make our way out of the restaurant. She doesn’t even tense too much when I put my arm over her shoulder this time.
That’s probably the alcohol.
The crowd must have tripled in size since we came here, even though it was a short dinner; we were in there for not even an hour.
But here they are, yet again screaming, blinding us with their flashing cameras and being obnoxious in general. Thank God for Sven and his guys. They free our way and I only notice halfway there that they”ve called for reinforcements. Instead of four, now it”s around ten guys keeping our path open.
I stop by the passenger door and let her in first, again shielding her with my body as she climbs in, glaring at all the guys who are trying to photograph past me anyway. Fucking perverts.
Then I quickly round the car to jump into the driver”s seat and off we are, a car with Sven”s team right behind us.
Three streets away from our parking spot, I get a call from him. ”Yeah?” I answer via the Bluetooth console.
”Drive around for a bit, you”re being followed.” I gulp and my eyes dart to the rear-view mirror.
”Oh, come on,” Kayla groans, letting her head fall against the backrest and I have to agree. Following us? Now that’s just overkill.
”Alright,” I answer with a sigh and turn into the opposite direction of where we need to go. ”Thank you, Sven. I can”t say I”ve been in a real car chase before.”
”You”re doing the speed limit, not really a ”chase,” is it?” Kayla chuckles and turns in her seat to look behind us. ”All I see are your security guys.”
”Behind us,” Sven chimes in before he ends the call.
I turn again. I”m keeping my eye on the cars behind us, and the longer we drive, the more nervous I become. Then I get another call.
”Yes?”
”This is Sven again. At the next traffic light, we will block the car behind us from following. We’ve determined it’s only one car, so that should hopefully be it.”
”Alright, boss. Thank you.” Kayla ends the call on the center console, turning to look behind us anxiously.
The next traffic light approaches and just to our luck, it”s starting to turn from green to yellow already as we get closer. I floor the gas pedal to make it. Sven behind us speeds up as well, until he makes an emergency stop right in front of the light, forcing the car behind him to stop as well as we fly over the intersection.
”Just in case, would you like to come to my place for a bit?”
She shoots me a sharp glare, making me chuckle. ”Just until we”re sure that no one else is following us.”
”I don”t know.” She sighs. ”I have some song writing I need to do.”
”You can do it at my place if you want? I”ll have Van deliver a guitar really quickly. You play guitar, right?”
”Yeah.”
”Then it”s decided.”