Aurora gave her phone screen a final glance before nodding to herself. She swiped the pack from the shelf and strolled to the counter where a lanky guy wearing glasses twice his size stood, immersed in the video he was watching.

"Hi, um can you help me with this?" They guy's head snapped upwards, the scowl on his face morphing into shock and then surprise.


He made a slight squeaking sound, "Y-You, you're that ballerina girl!"

Aurora cocked her head to the side, unimpressed with his gawking. She pushed the packet towards his end, "Can you tell me what this drug is for?"

He was still open-mouthed, eyes wide open and his face flushed. Aurora gave him a narrowed-eyed look and he blinked rapidly, shutting his mouth,


"I-I'm sorry, let me get a look at that," He swiped the packet from the counter, swinging it back and forth, "Oh, it's a common anti-depressant. Why do you need this?"

This made Aurora confused and intrigued so she leaned forward, "Anti-depressant?"


The pharmacist bobbed his head vigorously, his large glasses almost slipping from his face as a result, "Yes but I wouldn't advise this one," He leaned closer to whisper conspiratorially, "It's kind of on the strong side and has dangerous side effects."

"What kind of side effects?" She queried, looking down at the packet.

He lifted a shoulder carelessly, "Hallucinations, high anxiety level and even cases of delusion."

Her interest piqued as he slid the packet back to her, she picked it up with renewed interest. Her gaze fixed on the large scrawlings at the top. She nodded and swallowed,

"Thanks, I'll check this out," She said with a forced smile.

He grabbed the scanner and placed the package underneath it. His eyes flickered towards hers uncertainly,

"But why do you need-"

The glare she gave him silenced him instantly and he chuckled cheekily, "Sorry, here you go," He passed her the packaged drug and she swiped the cellophane from his hold before rushing out of the store.

The moment she got into her car, she let her head fall onto the steering wheel. Aurora tried very hard to regulate her breathing, willing her eyes to shut.

Why did Evan need anti-depressants? Especially one that was as strong as this?

As she drove into the road, Aurora realized with panging realization that she'd just left with more questions than she'd came.


She'd managed to escape from the house with her father's permission, of course she lied that she was going to visit Natasha for a project at school. It was surprising how her father literally had no qualms about her leaving the house, well according to him, she was a grown woman now and she had the right to go wherever she wanted to.

Her mother had other opinions about that.

Now, she was parked just outside of Ryan's apartment, debating if this was a good idea. After all, she didn't know if Evan still had his spies on her,

"You shouldn't care about him, Aurora," She muttered to herself encouragingly, "You're here because you want to be."

With one final nod and a quick glance at the mirror, she dashed out of the car and sauntered towards the open doors that led to the building. As usual, the ground floor was empty save for a few stray cats that had found comfort beside the reception table. The fluorescent lamp overhead blinked unstably and she sighed as she crossed over the dingy tiles towards the stairs.

Aurora couldn't understand for the life of her, why anyone would choose to live in a place like this?

She thought boxers earned a lot. Apparently, she must have been very wrong.

When she finally arrived at the front of his door, she inhaled before rapping her knuckles against the wooden frame. Nobody answered so she leaned forward and knocked again,

"Coming!"

She heard his muffled voice yell from inside and she straightened. Her hands were crossed in front of her as she tightly clutched the miniature white Louis Vuitton purse. Aurora didn't want to appear overly preppy so she'd opted for an all-white ensemble.

A white fluffy crop top donned with a matching jacket and a tight-fitting mini skirt that ended at the middle of her thighs, everything was paired with knee-length fur boots. Her hair was left down to tumble down her back in lustrous waves and she'd chosen not to use any makeup, except from her usual cherry lipgloss.

The door swung open, revealing a half-naked Ryan with only a towel wrapped around his waist. His hair was still wet from the shower and some trailed down his delicious stomach, disappearing underneath his towel.

Aurora audibly gulped, quickly righting herself, "Hey," Her voice came out more breathy than she'd intended and her cheeks flamed in embarrassment.

Well, she couldn't help it. Not when he was standing there, looking like a complete snack.

"When you said you were on your way, I thought you were still dressing up," He huffed out a laugh, running a hand through his damp hair.

"Aren't you going to invite me in, at least?"

"Oh, I-I'm sorry," He stammered, pulling the door wife open just enough to let her walk in. Aurora noticed how he seemed to hold his breath when she walked past him.

She heard the door close with a soft thud but didn't look back. Her eyes roamed around the expanse of the room, something delicious wafted in the air and her stomach grumbled in response,

"What's that?" She asked, swiveling around to face him.

Ryan had his signature smirk as he walked towards her, "I figured you wouldn't have had dinner yet, so I made us a little something."

She smiled and nodded ecstatically. Ryan winked, moving to take off the large jacket on her shoulders,

"But before then, make yourself comfortable while I go get dressed."

His finger paused when her head tipped up, locking eyes with him. His gaze momentarily flickered to her mouth and something warm pooled between her legs,

"Have I mentioned how stunning you are tonight?"

She shook her head in a dazed manner, "No," She breathed, enjoying the way he leaned closer and closer, "No, you haven't."

"Well," He paused when the tip of their noses brushed against each other, hungry dark eyes boring into hers, "You look absolutely ravishing, I think I might have to miss the entire meal tonight."

Aurora gasped when a long, warm finger trailed down the length of her throat, stopping at spot between her breasts.

She couldn't resist the sigh that escaped her and pressed into him, "Why?"

When his dark eyes met hers, she felt like melting into a puddle right there and then. The corner of his lips tugged into a devilish smirk and even if he had asked for her soul at that moment, Aurora wasn't sure she would have the will to say no,

"Because," He drawled softly, his finger now disappearing into her shirt, "I'm looking at my favourite dessert right now."