Austin's POV
It all began with the sound of thunder.
Except it wasn't thunder. It was combat boots. Combat boots on cobblestone. Fast. Chaotic. Probably illegal.
Then came the war cry.
"SEEEEEEBBBAASSSTTIAAANNN!"
I didn't even turn. I already knew who it was. Ray Lin, hurricane in human form. The girl who could walk into a funeral and have the priest laughing in five minutes. And today?
Today, she was on a mission.
Sebastian froze like he'd been caught doing something illegal. Which, considering Ray's existence, wasn't a bad comparison. His shoulders tensed. Jaw clenched.
"Run," he muttered.
"No way," I grinned. "This is the highlight of my month."
And then, just like clockwork—she fell.
Hard.
Face-first. Bag flying. Lip gloss cartwheeling into the fountain. Phone skidding across the path like it was late for work.
I cackled.
Seb, being Seb, just… stood there.
Ray sat up, one cheek smudged with dirt, and looked genuinely confused about what had just happened to her limbs. "Ow."
"You okay?" I asked, because I had to. Friend code.
"I think I bruised my third rib. Or like, my soul."
Then she did it.
Threw herself at Sebastian like he was a teddy bear with a six-pack. Arms flung around his neck, legs somehow managing to wrap around his waist like it was the most natural thing in the world.
His face?
Priceless.
He looked like a man betrayed by God himself.
"Hi," she said sweetly, nose almost touching his. "You're coming shopping with me."
Still hanging on him like a koala.
"I'm not," Seb deadpanned.
"You are," she chirped. "You caught me. That means you're mine."
Seb looked like he wanted to drop her. He didn't. I took pictures.
Eventually, she allowed him to put her down—only to immediately hand him her pink, glittery heart-shaped purse.
"Carry it with pride," she ordered.
Seb stared at it like it had insulted his bloodline.
And then, somehow, we were in the mall.
Ray tried on everything. Dresses, hats, sunglasses, a pair of shoes shaped like strawberries. She made Seb hold four bags and called him her "personal scowly butler." He didn't correct her.
She made me taste a perfume that smelled like sugar and regret. She almost broke a mannequin's arm while hugging it. And she forced Seb to drink a beverage so pink it looked radioactive.
"Is this… whipped cream and syrup?" he asked, inspecting it like it might explode.
"And marshmallow fluff!" Ray said proudly. "With both chocolate and caramel drizzle. You're welcome."
I've never seen Sebastian Ashford look more offended in his life. He drank it anyway.
That's when I knew.
He was doomed.
We left just as the sun was setting. Ray walked between us, swinging her bag, humming nonsense, and bumping into Seb like she couldn't help it. He didn't flinch anymore. Just rolled his eyes and told her to stop twirling or she'd knock over a child.
She called him "Seb" again. He didn't snap.
She told me I had good taste for picking out a jacket she loved.
She told him she'd wear it on their imaginary wedding day just to annoy him.
I don't know what the hell is going on between those two. But I'm invested now. Like front-row-tickets, popcorn-in-hand invested.
Because if Ray's the chaos, Sebastian's the fuse.
And baby, something's gonna blow.