Dominque pulled up in the driveway of a pavilion house in the Parisian suburbs with an excessive number of window bays as if it were a greenhouse.

He turned off the music, and Khalid's voice faded on late at night we're crusin' from Eleven. Dominque looked at Kaede, "here we are."

"Is this your house?"

"It's my parents, actually," Dominque said as he unbuckled his seat belt.

They both stepped out of the car. Kaede scanned the building and its long grey rectangular bricks. The architecture was modern. Kaede estimated the building was less than ten years old; it contrasted with the surrounding houses.

"It's neat. I like the design. Is it where you grew up?"

"I grew up in Saint-Denis in a council flat. My parents brought this before moving to Puerto Rico; it's their vacation house."

Kaede frowned; it was challenging to imagine a house in Aubervilliers as a vacation location. Though many opted and moved to Paris outskirts, Aubervilliers like Saint-Denis were still classified as rough neighborhoods even if new futuristic constructions appeared in their landscapes.

"Want to come in for a short tournament?" Where most would offer coffee, Dominque picked a pretext the woman would go for without overthinking.

Kaede calculated, she started work at 2 pm. It left plenty of time for sleep if she went home at 1 am, also playing would wake her, "okay, sure."

Dominque bit his inner lip to hide his enthusiasm, "Cool," the man led the way and opened the door.

Kaede stepped in; the house was more significant than she expected. In cream and beige tones, the interior was sober, which gave the living room a cozy feel though there was almost no furniture. Photos of Dominque and Dyan as children filled the walls. The radiant smiles on field trips or holidays showed how happy they were.

His parents were probably adept at Feng Shui. Kaede noticed the giant aquarium with specific types of fish. A large bamboo tree whose branches almost touched the high ceiling. One felt appeased in the space where all was disposed in a particular way.

"So this is your parent's house?"

"Yeah, it's my father's pride. A testimony that he made it somewhere."

Dominque's father was the type of man who didn't want to die a penniless immigrant. He wished to leave an imprint. The man worked hard and tried any business venture until his efforts began to pay off. The boxing club was the first success, followed by a restaurant that financed Dyan's dance school.

The days where the Miguens ate plain soft bread for breakfast and had spaghetti and butter from the first day of the month to its end were far behind. Dominque's father forced him to invest the money he made when he got transferred to a football team in Paraguay's second division before his injury.

At age 21, with his father's help, Dominque brought a small apartment in Paris 16th arrondissement. He then went on to acquire a little duplex in Gennevillers, where he lived with Hye Ju. The man rented both out, leaving his parent's home as his only option to crash. They assured Dominque a revenue every month, in addition to his salary as a GIGN FI corps.

As for other expenses, the man, like many, knew people in places. There wasn't anything he paid total price as friends and acquaintances offered discounts or freebies. Dominque's parents left France in peace, knowing their children were in non-assistance-needed positions.

Kaede let her eyes roam around, and her mind revived the scrub theory where the man lived off his parents. Dominque, of course, did not think to fill her in on his actual situation. The living room was spacious, with the ceiling at least three meters high.

They crossed the room and entered an open space kitchen in steel grey metallics that gave a panoramic view ofㅡ.

"A swimming pool. Dominque, you have a swimming pool?"

It wasn't the pond type, but a clear watered 20meter pool.

Kaede finally got the answer to how the man kept his tan. She imagined the number of hours Dominque spent bathing in the sun.

Dominque crossed his arms and observed her. He could not believe Kaede stood in his kitchen or that she was Kuroqueen. So many things brought them together; why could she not see that.

"So?" Kaede turned to face him.

"So what?"

"You brought me here to play, right?"

The sentence's ambiguity made the man sweep a hand behind his head in a motion of embarrassment.

Absorbed by the sight of the woman, Dominque ¹felt dumb. He almost forgot why she was there, "come on."

"Where are you taking me?"

"To my bedroom."

Kaede froze, "why are you taking me there?"

Dominque gave her a cocky smile, "well, that's where my consoles are."

"Why aren't they in the living room?"

"Because no one does that."

"Well, mine is in the living room," Kaede replied while she crossed her arms.

"But it's your apartment."

"Yeah, and?" Kaede didn't understand his reasoning.

"Well, this is my parent's house. I keep my stuff in the space allocated for me."

Kaede rolled eyes for her; the man lived alone in a house way too big for one person. He could do what he desired.

"Why are you staring at me like that?"

"Eh, it not like your parents left a baby cam to monitor your activity."

Dom sighed, "okay, I'll connect everything in the living room."

Dominque opened the door to what seemed to be an annex and went down a few steps. His room was in an atypical space. It looked like someone dug a hole with the intent to create a pool but changed their mind halfway through and transformed it into a room.

"Dominque, was this place a pool too?"

"Yeah, my parents didn't want one inside, and I found the space was cool. Wait there; I'll bring everything up."

Kaede looked around. The place had a good vibe, "Nah, it's cool; let's do it here."

The man turned away from what he was doing and cocked an eyebrow. Kaede realized the interpretation one could make of the sentence and shifted her gaze.

Dominque began to put back the HDMI cables that he had already plugged out.

Kaede went down the steps and joined him.

Dominque had an apartment within another. The living space included a sofa and coffee table and a king-sized bed designed for a monarch a few meters away.

It was one of the moments where Kaede's mind mechanics should have switched on a danger zone's red lights. Unconsciously conscious, Kaede made abstraction as she got hyped to play.

Dominque inserted Mortal Combat, and they went through a few Fatality rounds. They then switched to Street Fighter, as none accepted defeat, they followed up with other challenges. He even plugged in his Switch to dance on Just Dance.

It felt like a reboot of youth for two adults who spent most of their younger years trying to escape the miserable future society wanted to paste. Time slipped, and they fell on the couch, exhausted Kaede snoozed right away. The man watched her before falling asleep at around 2 am.

At 3 am, Kaede lifted her head from Dominque's shoulder.

The man opened his eyes instantly; they were eye to eye. Dominque's lashes fluttered, and Kaede bit her bottom lip, "I've got to go."

"There no emergency."

"There is, Dominque, there is."

"What is it?"

Kaede got up and looked down at him," we're heading to the wrong place. I'm your friend's Ex, andㅡ."

Dominque got up, "Kaede, what's wrong is us repressing our feelings. And don't tell me you don't have any."

"What? Are you a psychic now?"

"Stop it, Kaede."

"I don't want to be that girl, okay. I don't want to be the hoe who comes between to besties."

"I'm the one at fault. I'm not a good friend," he caressed her cheek, "I want you."

"It's wrong."

"I know," the man cupped her face in his hands and kissed her. Kaede expected something strong and forceful resembling the persistent way the man chased her; the kiss was gentle, if not to say shy. It felt like the first time, where the lips trembled, bodies quivered, yet a refreshing sensation lingered as the man pulled away.

Dominque removed his hands, and they stared at each other. Kaede tucked in her lips and rushed to the small stairs. She jumped the steps as if it was a survival course, and her life depended on it to the room's door. She crossed the kitchen and hurried to put on her sneakers at the entrance as Dominque arrived.

"Kaede."

"I can't, Dominque."

Kaede left; she ran to her car, where she rested her head on her steering wheel. Her heart drilled through her thorax; they had crossed the line. It was too late; Kaede knew it but still attempted to muffle the heated sentiments.

She was about to start the engine when she remembered her phone still charged on the coffee table in Dominque's bedroom. "Shit," a part of Kaede wanted to leave, but she needed the device and found herself ringing at his door, which opened instantly.

"I forgot my phone," Kaede said, dodging past.

The man followed her to the living room.

Dominque took considerable strides to block her path, "Kaede can't you see ㅡ," the woman walked past Dominque, who grabbed her arm.

"Dominque."

"I can't, Kaede, I can't pretend anymore. I tried, but I don't want to do this. I've never envied or coveted anything someone has. Even though Marco told me not to and says, you're his, I'm unable to refrain myself. I'm incapable of being a good friend to him, and I can't be yours because my desires are devouring me."

Enough was enough; the woman could not take it anymore, "Dominque, let go."

The man did as asked.

Kaede stepped up to him. For the first time, she stared straight into his eyes without shying away, "it's not up to Marco to decide who can be with me. I decide I say when, where, and how."

Dominque expected anything except these words and what followed.

"I say now," the woman grabbed him by the collar of his tee and kissed him.