MAL finally gathered her courage and knocked on the brown, wooden door loudly. She could hear a shuffling sound on the inside as if someone got up and was now headed towards the door. A few minutes later, the door was opened, revealing the sight of the person she loved the most.

He had long, chestnut brown hair parted down the middle, matching with deep, brown eyes and a slim figure. He had a sad, anxious expression planted over his handsome face.

However, to her surprise, his expression changed into a happy, delightful one as soon as his eyes landed on her. He let go of the doorknob and immediately wrapped his arms around her in a tight, relaxing hug.

"You came...!"

She hugged him back and ran her hand through his soft hair, her heart sinking a little as she realized she missed him a lot. More than she knew before.

"Teo, I missed you so much," Mal whispered, letting him go gently and staring into his eyes. He smiled weakly and glanced at the floor, clearly upset at something.

"I missed you too."

"Well, aren't you going to let me in?"

He snapped out of his thoughts after a few seconds, then moved away from the entrance to invite her in, slightly embarrassed.

She entered and took a long glance at the room he was staying in. There was a king-sized bed in the middle, and on its sides were two drawers that had books and accessories all over them. Two armchairs were facing each other and a small table in the middle, along with a medium-sized wardrobe at the far end of the room.

"Wow, your room is so nice."

He sent her a small smile. "Thanks,"

She took her seat on the bed. He quickly followed, and a few moments later, he found himself between her arms again, hugging her tightly.

"I missed you so much!" he whispered, tears of happiness filling his eyes.

"I missed you more, baby..."

Mal smiled into nothing as she hugged him back.

Gosh, she missed him.

They let each other go after long, quiet minutes.

"So, how are you doing?"

"I'm great. Now that I've seen you."

Her cheeks turned red, and her heart fluttered a little. He always had that kind of effect on her.

"Yeah... Me too."

She paused for a few seconds, her eyes wandering around the room. "Do you like it here?"

"I... I'm getting used to it. It's still a new place for me, you know," she nodded in understanding.

"Do you think you can show me around?"

He nodded with a sincere smile, "Absolutely!"

☭

"... And this is the kitchen."

She smiled at the sight of the elegant, quiet kitchen. The place had a big table in the center surrounded by five, wooden chairs. There was a big, silver-colored fridge in the corner, next to the stove and the cupboards.

"This looks nice."

"Yeah... But now I want to show you the basement."

"Basement?" she sent him a questioning look. It didn't cross her mind that there was a basement, nor an attic.

"Yeah, it's just down the stairs. Shall we?"

She nodded and squeezed his hand gently, allowing him to lead her downstairs.

She stopped in her tracks when she saw the dark entrance of the basement.

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