All the time I change into the orange bikini, he remains quiet and steady until I place a hand on his back.

When he turns around, I ball my hands into fists by my side and wait to read his reaction. Without blinking, his eyes skim my body.

He gasped. His eyes were heavy-lidded. They dragged from my stomach to my lips and stopped there.

"What do..." I started.

"I shouldn't be in here."

What does that mean?

"You brought me here."

He brings a hand to his face and rubs his eyes.

"I know. I shouldn't..."

"You should." I exhaled nervously, feeling the twist of acid in my stomach at the fear that he might take back his intentions.

"I wanted to leave earlier. You stopped me." He said. My eyes widened at his guts.

"So you're blaming me?" I scoff. He quickly holds both sides of my arms and leans in, almost like we are about to kiss. I can only see his blood-red lips.

"No, I am not. I am as much to blame. Even more. I am older..." He rushed out, eyes panicked. He is breathing intensely.

I don't understand. I don't understand the who's the older topic.

"You're just two years plus older." I challenged.

"You don't get the danger there is between that small gap when you're underage." He mumbled sadly.

"I will be eighteen in a couple of months." I am feeling weak in my knees.

He ground his jaw as he pressed his lips together and stared brazenly into my eyes.

"You can't bring me here and tell me otherwise after leading me on. I can not just disencumber myself from loving you." I panicked at his fixed expression.

"Cali..." He choked, but I was choking even more. I have to vomit out every word in my chest.

"You have been in my head, my body, and the walls of my room ever since your debut. You do not know the wishes and hopes my best friend, and I had of you." After the hell, everyone put us through.

"The one that passed away?" He asked.

"The one that passed away." I sadly repeated.

"I am sorry, Cali." He murmured, his eyes flickered past me.

He can't end this. We didn't even start.

"Do not tell me this is over. This sucks because it's complicated, and I know..."

"Not that complicated."

"You said I was showing you in the wrong direction. And I swear I am not. I googled your favorite food for breakfast through the last meal you take before bed. I know your hobbies, the schools you went to and the best courses you had. I know you don't get closer to everyone and that you hate basketball but ended up on the top list of this year's best scorers in the NBA. And yesterday, I know your secret place. I will not take you in the wrong direction, I promise." I am crying fully on force. If it was in school, there would be hundreds of cameras recording me by now. But now it is only me and Myles and a worst-wrenching heartache.

"You are." He opposed and more tears left my eyes. I shake my head and look away as the pain is slowly eating me alive, but his hand comes to my face and directs me to look at him. His eyes were glistening. He leans over and kisses my cheek, his hot breath hitting my skin when he whispers against my cheek, "And the path is painted just like heaven."

What?

I pull back. Our noses brush, and he rests his forehead against mine.

"I thought..." I started, but he cuts me off. "I freaked out because I know I can't back down now. Cali, I'm hooked on this like an addict. It burns through me slowly, reaching every part like venom in my blood." He exhales a smile and tears drop from my eyes. He wiped them with his thumbs. "And actually I am glad because it massacred every other consistency I had and assembled a free rent temple in my mind. It's where I worship you. I will worship you."

There were no better words to be said. I stand on the tips of my toes until our lips were touching.

My breathing had sped up, matching his. He wrapped a hand around my bare back, blending our bodies. It is exciting and excruciating. It fuels my hormones. I know I must buy the bikini now.

"Kiss me, Myles." I implored, as a shudder left me.

"I-"

"You're addicted to me already. Kissing me is just a new dose."

"What if this makes it worst and I want more?" His eyes close, and he breathes in my parted lips.

"Then we can make it a habit." I softly assured, bringing a smile to his face before his lips swallows mine. It is satisfaction in ecstasy. He devours me with eagerness, panting hard and fast from excitement.

I loop my arms around his strained neck, knowing he is my habit now. There was no going back.

~

"Where were you? I've been looking around for you?" Brayden asked when I found him speaking with one of the security men outside the store.

"I was trying some outfits on in the dressing area."

"You promised to let me know of your whereabouts." He warily reminded and my eyes rolled.

"That applies to when I am going somewhere without you. But you were just out there." I head towards the checkout desk and he follows.

"Where is Myles?" He asked suddenly and my heart thumped, then stopped along with my breathing. It's a good thing he is behind. He didn't have to see my reaction.

"How am I supposed to know?" I squeaked. God, my voice had to make me sound suspicious.

"The man out there said you were together earlier."

Great. Some stalker.

No... Not great. I mean, what if Brayden had asked for the surveillance camera earlier when he couldn't find us? What could have happened?

"Yes, then he met some fans like you did." I retorted and set down bunches of bikinis I have collected.

"I will make a call. Don't go anywhere." He cautioned behind my head, and I only nodded, afraid he can pick evidence in my tone. And as his footsteps distance away, I let out the breath I didn't know I was holding. Which is a bit early, for I wasn't yet aware of the humiliation that is ahead of me until the cashier picked up the orange pair of bikinis I had just removed and scanned them into the checkout machine.

Yes, the pantie was wet in the middle.

My cheeks heated from embarrassment, even though I had wiped most of it with tissue paper after Myles left me to change in the cubicle.

Chewing my lip, my gaze averted from the woman whose eyes judgementally swelled at the circumstances. Standing here, awkwardly, I begin to wish the boutique was checkout-free, like those other retail stores we've been to earlier.

The payment process was completed after a moment. The brand is quite stylish so they kind of charge extra money than the typical underwear stores I know.

By the time I reached my brother, he had found Myles.

"You're done?" Brayden asked, but my attention was on the blue-shirt boy with sensual green eyes. He is smiling, wetting his honeyed-flavor lips with his tongue.

"Yup."

"Why aren't they delivering?" Brayden asked when his eyes fell on the additional loads in my hands.

"I prefer having them with me." There is no way I will leave a store with my purchase items under their watch, knowing there's a pantie with my juice all over it. I've known similar embarrassment, like when my dress is stained with menstrual blood during a language period and the full class points at me for an entire month, laughing from a distance and getting sick when I near them.

The memory suddenly wounded my emotion. I stride forward.

"Hey," Myles called, and my legs stopped without waiting for my head to decide. "I got you a boba." He said and handed over a cup.

While collecting, he intentionally brought his fingers over mine. It was a good feeling and mitigating. I could exhale, as every taut muscle in my body relaxes.

I smile at him, and he rewards me with a winsome one. My heart melts.

He helped me with the packs I was lugging since somehow he had gotten rid of the bags he was carrying earlier and before I could ask; he let me know he had taken them to the car.

"You are going to love the boba," Brayden promised. After I was sure I was done shopping, he even made us grab a couple of takeouts at the cafe. Then we had lunch at a sumptuous restaurant where everything cost triple as it should. We snapped pictures around the malls and on the road when we came to a beautiful quiet street with aligned palm trees by each side.

Myles had parked when he noticed we'd stopped behind him. He then stared at me most of the time with his boba straw between his indecent lips. It reminds me of this specific salacious memory from our hot make-out session in the changing room. My body felt heavy, but I struggle to pose for the pictures Brayden was taking.

And when it was time for Myles to join, I send a quick message to his Instagram,

"Now, I know another fact about you. You're a boba lover."

He looks down at his screen and smiles. He brings his hand to my waist, appearing amiable and courteous to the camera while behind, he has his fingers under my shirt, drawing tiny circles on the skin of my back.

My cheeks were flaming. I can feel it. Hell, I saw it in his eyes as he looked down at me when Brayden asked us to change positions. He was amused. He was fighting to stay composed before my brother.

Then at his turn to snap pictures of my brother and me, he responded to my dm and the butterflies in my stomach were set loose.

"And that I love kissing you, and I miss kissing you. I want to kiss you right now."

It had just popped up on my screen. Chuckling, I shove the device inside my pocket after reading the message and focus on the last few pictures before we went home.