.❀。• *₊°。 ❀°。
—𝐋𝐎𝐒 𝐀𝐍𝐆𝐄𝐋𝐄𝐒, 𝐂𝐀𝐋𝐈𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐍𝐈𝐀

—𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗲

Arabella groaned softly as her phone buzzed on the nightstand, its glow piercing through the darkness of the room. She shifted under the covers, careful not to disturb Drew, who was still sound asleep beside her. Reaching for her phone, she squinted at the screen—3:23 a.m..

God, who was calling her at this hour?

She glanced at the screen, her brows furrowing when she saw the caller ID—it was her boss.

Arabella quickly slipped out of bed, clutching her phone as she moved toward the door. The sudden motion caused Drew to stir, his hand lazily reaching out to the now-empty space beside him.

"What's wrong, baby?" Drew mumbled, his voice thick with sleep as he reached out blindly, his hand brushing against the cool sheets where Arabella had been moments ago.

"Nothing, go back to sleep," Arabella whispered, her voice steady but soft. Drew didn't need convincing; he mumbled something incoherent before sinking back into the pillow, his breathing evening out almost instantly.

Arabella slipped quietly into the adjacent room, the one that had once been hers. Taking in the faintly familiar space she now rarely used. Ever since Drew had insisted they share a room, this one had become little more than a forgotten corner of the house. Shaking off the thought, she lifted the phone to her ear and answered the call.

"Hello?" Arabella said softly into the phone as she shut the door behind her.

"Hey, Belle, I'm sorry—am I calling at a bad time?"

Of course, it wasn't the right time. It was 3:30 in the morning, for crying out loud.

But Arabella bit back her irritation. "No, no. It's a great time. What's up?" she said, forcing her voice to sound light and composed.

Arabella could hear Lydia's sigh on the other end of the line. "Is it true what the tabloids are saying?"

Arabella's brow furrowed in confusion. The tabloids had said so many things recently—what exactly was Lydia referring to?

"What do the tabloids say?" Arabella asked, her voice laced with skepticism as she tried to make sense of the question.

"How you and Drew Starkey are an item."

Arabella felt her heart start to race, though she couldn't pinpoint why. It wasn't exactly a bad thing—being with Drew was far from a secret—but if their relationship got interfered with again, she wasn't sure how much more she could handle.

"Yeah, I guess," Arabella replied. "We're not official though, just taking things slow. Why?"

Arabella could hear Lydia shuffle on the other end of the phone, the sound making her stomach twist. She silently prayed to the lord above, hoping this relationship wouldn't end up causing any damage—especially not to her career.

"Great!" Lydia exclaimed, her sudden enthusiasm catching Arabella off guard. She blinked, trying to process the unexpected shift in tone.

"Yay?" Arabella mumbled, her confusion clear as she tried to make sense of Lydia's reaction. She wasn't sure whether this was good news or just another curveball.

Lydia chuckled softly before speaking again, "Sorry, Belle. This probably threw you off balance. But I promise, it's nothing bad."

Arabella let out a breath of relief after hearing Lydia's words. Lydia had always been a great boss—there were no complaints she could name, aside from the obvious one: calling her at 3:30 in the morning.

"Okay, that's good." Arabella laughed. "What's up though?"

"We know you're not part of the celebrity side of Harper's Bazaar, but we were wondering if you'd mind helping with one thing over there."

"Depends," Arabella replied, knitting her eyebrows together. She didn't usually dive into celebrity pieces or anything related. "What is it?"

"Well, the team and I were thinking it would be great for Harper's Bazaar if you interviewed Drew Starkey," Lydia said cheerfully. "You know, with his Luca Guadagnino movie in the works, he's getting booked and busy for the next couple of months."

Arabella was taken by surprise once again. Interviewing Drew? She had always told herself she would stick to writing pieces for Harper's Bazaar, not stepping into the celebrity side of things. But now, it seemed she had no choice.

"I can sense how you're conflicted through the phone," Lydia laughed, making Arabella mentally facepalm herself for staying quiet for so long.

Lydia spoke again, her tone lighter. "But the thing is, it won't be that type of interview where you're just asking questions. It'll be more of a conversation, where you both are involved. The internet seems to adore you two together, so it'll basically be you two interviewing each other."

This eased Arabella's nerves a bit. That actually didn't sound so bad. It was more of a casual conversation than a formal interview, and she could handle that.

"Nylon was actually thinking of doing this with you two," Lydia explained, "but it would only make sense for us to do it, since you work for Harper's Bazaar."

Arabella paused, mulling it over. She loved the idea of the interview for the YouTube page—it seemed like a good opportunity. But at the same time, she wasn't sure if mixing her work life with her personal life was a good idea. It could get complicated.

Arabella was also conflicted by the thought that if she agreed to this interview, it might mean she and Drew were moving too fast. She wasn't sure if it was the right moment for their relationship to be so publicly exposed, especially in such a professional setting.

She just needed time before she made this decision.

"Is it okay if I let you know in the next few days?" Arabella asked, her voice careful. "I think it's best if Drew and I discuss this before I decide for the both of us."

"Of course, take your time. But not too much time. I'll give you about three days," Lydia replied, her tone warm. Even though Arabella couldn't see her, she could hear the comforting smile in Lydia's voice.

"Okay, thank you, Lydia." Arabella smiled.

"No, thank you. I'll hear back from you soon then. Bye-bye." Lydia said.

"Bye," Arabella murmured, closing her phone after Lydia hung up.

She needed some sleep.

.❀。• *₊°。 ❀°。

The sun peeked through the blinds, casting a warm glow over her and Drew's spacious room. Arabella glanced at his side of the bed, only to realize it was empty. He was probably already awake.

Arabella quickly freshened up before heading downstairs. As she entered the kitchen, she spotted Drew cooking breakfast, shirtless, with his sweatpants hanging low on his hips.

Arabella made her way to the kitchen and leaned against the counter, watching Drew as he moved around. Her footsteps echoed, announcing her arrival. Drew turned around with a smile on his face and walked toward her.

He walked up to her and kissed the side of her head. "Good morning," he mumbled, his face buried in her shoulder as he held her close for a moment.

"Good morning," Arabella replied, wrapping her arms around Drew. She peeked her head around to see what he was cooking. "What are you making?" she asked, trying to get a glimpse of the stove.

"Just some French toast," Drew replied, turning back to the stove to check on it. "Shit's gonna be ass though"

Arabella rolled her eyes. "Don't say that, it's probably good."

Drew chuckled at Arabella before turning back to check on the toast. Arabella settled onto one of the stools, watching him as he moved around the kitchen.

Suddenly, flashes of last night came rushing back to Arabella. She realized with a jolt that she had only three days to decide on the interview.

Drew placed the plate in front of her, and Arabella tried to suppress a smile as she saw the French toast. Instead of whole slices, it was broken into small, grainy pieces, like a scrambled attempt at toast. She met his eyes, trying to hold back her laughter.

"I tried, that's all that mattered," Drew muttered under his breath, scratching the back of his head sheepishly.

"Hey," Arabella laughed, shaking her head. "I didn't even say anything."

"Try it and let me know."

Arabella looked down and grabbed the fork off the table, trying to pick up a piece of the soggy, grainy French toast. It was impossible to get a decent bite since it was broken into small pieces and soaked through. After a few attempts, she finally managed to get a piece on her fork and put it in her mouth.

Drew watched Arabella with a hopeful expression as she started to chew, his eyes flickering between her face and the plate, waiting for her reaction.

"This is..." Arabella started, pausing for a moment before finishing with a grin. "Honestly, really good."

This made Drew let out a breath of relief. A smile tugged at his lips as he kissed the top of her head before sitting next to her on the stool beside her.

"Actually, I wanted to ask you something," Arabella spoke, breaking the comfortable silence. Her voice was hesitant, and her fingers played with the edge of her plate. She was scared to mention the interview to Drew, unsure if it would mean they were moving too fast or if it would complicate things between them.

"What happened baby?" Drew said, looking up at Arabella.

"Okay," Arabella took a breath before starting. "Last night I got a call from Lydia, my boss. Long story short, she asked me if you and I would be willing to do an interview on the Harper's Bazaar YouTube channel. She said it would basically be us interviewing each other, if that makes sense." She glanced at Drew, waiting for his reaction, unsure of how he'd feel about the idea.

Drew nodded along to Arabella's words, his gaze focused on her as she spoke. When she finally stopped, he just looked at her for a moment.

"Oh yeah, I know. I already said yes," Drew shrugged casually.

Arabella was surprised to hear Drew's words. She thought she was the only one who knew about the interview, or at least the one who had to make the decision.

"Wait really?" She asked, furrowing her eyebrows at his nonchalant request.

Drew looked at Arabella, confused. "Yeah, was I not supposed to?"

Arabella ran a hand through her hair, letting out a breath. She didn't know if she felt relieved or scared.

"Ara, was I not supposed to?" Drew asked again, a little worried this time. He gently placed his hand on her thigh, his thumb softly stroking her skin as he leaned in. "Why do you seem stressed?"

"No, no," Arabella spoke quickly, placing her hand on top of his hand that was resting on her thigh. "I just didn't know if this meant taking it slow, that's why."

Drew knitted his eyebrows together, quizzically. "What do you mean?"

"Like, we aren't boyfriend and girlfriend yet," Arabella bit her lip. "So I didn't know if it was weird if we did an interview together."

Drew's mouth parted slightly, and he looked a bit sheepish. "If I'm being honest, I thought we were boyfriend and girlfriend."

Arabella pursed her lips together, a little disappointed that he hadn't bothered asking, just assuming. She tried to brush it off.

"You do know it's good if both of the people in the relationship know that they're in the relationship," Arabella said, rolling her eyes playfully,

"Yeah, sorry about that," Drew chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck. "Anyways, I tried making a cake the other night. Was wondering if you wanted to try some."

Arabella bit the inside of her cheek, trying to mask the pain and confusion. So, were they boyfriend and girlfriend? Why didn't he address anything?

Arabella decided to push her thoughts aside, not wanting to stir up conflict, especially when things were finally starting to feel right between them. She simply nodded at Drew, offering a small smile.

Drew's face lit up at her response. He stood, heading over to the fridge, and pulled out a medium-sized cardboard cake box.

"Let me know what you think," Drew said with a hopeful smile as he placed the box before Arabella. "It might just redeem me for the French toast."

Arabella huffed out a laugh, "The French toast was good. Stop doubting yourself."

Drew shifted on his toes, nervous energy radiating from him as he pointed at the box, urging Arabella to open it.

Catching his anxious behavior, she chuckled. "Relax, it's just a cake."

"Yeah, well," Drew mumbled, "you haven't seen it yet."

Arabella carefully slid her plate of French toast aside and flipped open the lid of the cake box. Right as she opened it, she saw the words written on the cake.

"7 years and I'm still asking, will you be my girlfriend?"

Arabella's gaze snapped up to Drew. Drew, standing just a few feet away, was beaming so brightly he had to bite his lip to try and contain his grin.

"That's not all. Look under the stool." Drew said.

Arabella stood from the stool, her brows furrowing slightly as she bent down to check underneath it. Her expression softened instantly when she spotted a bouquet of vibrant roses nestled beneath.

"So?" Drew asked his eyebrows lifted in a hopeful expression.

"Yes, yes." Arabella breathed out. Without another word, she rushed into Drew's arms, wrapping him in a tight embrace as she whispered "yes" repeatedly into his shoulder.

"Yeah?" Drew asked, his eyes searching hers as Arabella pulled back slightly, their faces now close enough that she could feel his breath on her skin.

"Yeah," Arabella smiled as she leaned in, gently pressing her lips to his.

"I love you," Drew mumbled against her lips. Arabella couldn't help but break into a smile in the middle of the kiss.

"I love you."

©𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐞