As I walked toward Chak's office, I spotted Amara heading the same way with a stack of papers in her hands.
"Are those for the boss?" I asked her.
"Yeah," she nodded.
"You can give them to me. I'll hand them to him," I offered.
"Thanks, Niran," she said with a faint smile and handed me the papers.
She rolled her eyes. "The boss is totally out of it today. This morning, when Chai and his boyfriend came by, he was already tense. Then they all left somewhere together..."
"To the lunch I cooked," I muttered quietly to myself.
I gave her a forced smile.
"How's Leo doing?" she asked, a bit concerned.
"He's fine," I replied.
"What was he doing when he broke his leg?"
I froze for a second. What should I say?
"He… fell out of a closet," I finally answered.
Amara raised an eyebrow at me but said nothing. She just nodded and continued down the hallway.
I made my way to Chak's office. I knocked, but before he could answer, I opened the door and stepped inside.
He was standing in front of the large window, hands in his pockets, staring out at the city skyline.
"Why did you tell everyone Leo broke his leg? Why did you lie?" I asked directly, no filter.
Chak slowly turned and looked at me, his eyes calm and unreadable.
"Because I had to make something up about where you were," he said plainly.
"Why didn't you tell me what you said? So I could be prepared! Do you know how confused I was? I had no idea what they were talking about. And then they asked me how Leo broke his leg..."
"I forgot to tell you," Chak said.
"I don't understand why you're so upset," he continued, walking past me toward the door. As he grabbed the handle, he added, "We can go tell them the truth—tell them you were at my place, cooking lunch. That you're living with me now."
My heart was racing. Too fast. Too loud. I wasn't ready for that.
I stepped toward him, reaching to stop him—but in my rush, I lost balance and ended up wrapping my arms around him.
An accidental hug.
And yet, it froze me in place.
I could feel the warmth of his body through his shirt. My heartbeat echoed in my ears. Heat flushed through my face like fire.
Chak stood still.
He didn't say anything. He just slowly turned... and looked at me.
That look—slow, calculated, restrained. A flicker of doubt... and something I couldn't quite read.
I blushed, quickly stepped back, and with slightly trembling hands, walked over to his desk.
"These... the papers. For you to sign," I mumbled, placing them down.
Just before I could completely turn away, I glanced back at Chak. He was standing still, eyes fixed on me, his expression unreadable. For a moment, it felt like the air between us was charged, heavy with something unsaid.
I reached for the door handle, my hand almost closing around it, but before I could turn it, I felt a firm grip on my shoulder. Chak's hand was there, holding me in place.
"Niran," his voice was low, a warning, or maybe a plea—I wasn't sure.
I froze, my heart racing. Slowly, I turned back to face him, meeting his gaze. His fingers were still resting on my shoulder, his touch solid and grounding, but there was no softness in it. Just pressure.
"Don't go yet," he said, his voice barely a whisper, but it carried enough weight to make my breath hitch.
But before I could find the words, I gently pulled away from his grip, stepping back. The silence stretched between us again.
I couldn't stay. I needed to get out.
I glanced at him one last time, then without another word, turned and left the office.